Privacy and cookies policy

FMB privacy policy

Revised November 2024

Who are we? 

We are Federation of Master Builders Limited, a company registered in England with number 368163 at the address of Star House, Star Hill, Rochester, Kent, ME1 1UX. FMB is registered as a data controller at the Information Commissioner’s Office with number Z6547840. FMB Insurance Services Ltd is a subsidiary of the FMB, and is regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority.

You can find out who to contact about anything contained in this Privacy Policy on our website at: www.fmb.org.uk

About this policy

This Privacy Policy explains how information about you is collected, used, and disclosed by the FMB and our subsidiaries. This Privacy Policy applies to information we collect when you access or use our products and services (such as our membership, websites, and online services), or when you otherwise interact with us (phone, social media, texts mail).

We may change this Privacy Policy from time to time. If we make changes, we will notify you by revising the date at the top of the policy, and in some cases, we may provide you with additional notice (such as adding a statement to our website’s homepage or sending you an email notification). We encourage you to review the Privacy Policy frequently to stay informed about our information practices and the ways you can help protect your privacy.

Our principles

We respect your privacy. And we will do our very best to protect your privacy by using appropriate security technology.

We make sure that we have appropriate security measures to protect your information, and when we ask another organisation to provide a service for us, they have appropriate security measures.

We will be clear as to what information about you we will collect and how we will use it.

We will use personal information only for the purposes for which it was originally collected and we will make sure we delete it securely when appropriate.

Should we send you marketing (whether by email, post, SMS or telephone) we will make sure it is clear how you can opt out, for example, we have boxes you need to tick if you no longer want to receive to receive marketing emails.

However, if you are a member, we may email you occasionally with information or questions about your Membership, for example, with reminders, information about events and renewal notices. These are service emails and necessary for maintaining your Membership. You cannot opt out of service emails. 

If we or our service providers transfer any personal information about you out of the United Kingdom, it will only be done with the relevant protection (stated under UK law) being in place.

We will regularly train our staff on their privacy obligations and ensure they understand how important the protection of your data is.

We will update our records when you inform us that your details have changed.

We are committed to ensuring that your information is secure. In order to prevent unauthorized access or disclosure, we have put in place suitable physical, electronic and managerial procedures to safeguard and secure the information we collect.

What personal data do we collect?

We collect information you provide directly to us.

We collect information when you apply for Membership, complete a registration form for one of our services, create an account or profile, sign-up for our email newsletters, use any our online products or services such as the Find a Builder service, participate in contests, awards, promotions, and surveys, communicate with us via third-party social media sites, apply for a job, request customer support, or otherwise communicate with us.

The types of information we may collect directly from you include your name, username, email address, phone number, billing address, demographic information, and any other information you choose to provide. If you use our Find a Builder or Dispute Resolution services we will process information you provide in connection with the project, including photographs, images and designs.

In some cases, we may also collect information you provide about others, such as if you pay for others to attend events or training or you nominate others for an award. We use this information solely to fulfill your requests, and will not send marketing communications to these individuals, unless they separately opt in to receive communications from us.

When you make a purchase from us (become a member or pay for an event or training), we will collect and store limited payment information from you, such as payment card type, payment card expiration date, and a limited subset of your payment card number; however, we do not collect or store full payment card numbers and all transactions are processed by a third-party payment processor.

We collect information from consumers in relation to our members, such as customer reviews, award nominations, disputes arising from building projects, and details necessary for independent inspections of work to be carried out, which are a condition of FMB membership. We will only use this information for the purpose for which it is provided, and will not share it with any third parties (except to third parties providing services to us for those purposes) unless you have either given us permission to do so, or we are required by law by a statutory agency such as Trading Standards, to do so.

Where we need to collect information by law, or under the terms of a contract we have with you, and you fail to provide that information when requested, we may not be able to perform the contract we have or are trying to enter into with you (for example, to provide you with our products or services). In this case, we may have to cancel a product or service you have with us but we will notify you if this is the case at the time.

Information We Collect Automatically: When you access or use our services such as Find a Builder or your online Membership account, we automatically collect information about you, and we may associate it with information that you provide directly to us.

For example, we may collect:

Log Information: We log information about your use of our website, such as IP address, web browser type and language, access times, referring and exit websites, and clickstream data.

Mobile Device Information: We collect information about your mobile device when you access or use our mobile applications, such as the hardware model, operating system version, unique device identifiers, and performance and diagnostic data regarding your use of our website.

Information Collected by Cookies and Other Tracking Technologies: We use cookies and other similar technologies (e.g., web beacons, pixels, mobile identifiers) on our websites, mobile applications, email messages, and advertisements, to help us understand user behaviour, improve our services, customise your experience, see which areas and features of our websites and applications are popular, and understand usage and campaign effectiveness. Please refer to our Cookie Policy for more information.

Information We Collect from Other Sources: In order to fulfil and manage your Membership, we may also obtain information from other sources and combine that with information we collect through our products or services. For example, we may collect information about you from credit reference agencies, feedback from your clients, and information from third party bodies such as Trading Standards. Details of these sources are contained on the Membership Application form.

How we use your personal data

Purpose of information collected	Our legal basis for processing the information
Develop, operate, and improve our products and services.	To fulfil our contractual obligation to provide such services to members. We would not be able to fulfil the requirements of membership without using your information.
Provide and deliver the products and services you request, process transactions, and send you related information, such as confirmations, invoices, technical notices, updates, security alerts, and support and administrative messages.	To fulfil our contractual obligation to provide such services to members. We would not be able to fulfil the requirements of membership without using your information.
Respond to your comments, questions, and requests and provide customer service and technical support.	To fulfil our contractual obligation to provide such services to members. We would not be able to address your comments, questions or requests without this processing.
Communicate with you about products, services, offers, promotions, rewards, and events offered by FMB and others and provide news and information we think will be of interest to you.	It is in our legitimate interests to be able to offer you other products and services from the FMB.
Monitor and analyse website trends, usage, and activities in connection with our products and services.	It is in our legitimate interests to be able to optimise the performance of our website.
Personalise advertisements, content, and features that match your Membership profiles or interests.	Where we have your consent to do so.
Deliver and promote competitions, awards, promotions and awards and process and deliver and promote entries and rewards.	It is in our legitimate interests to be able to deliver and promote the competition, promotion or awards, to develop the products and services we offer and grow our membership.
Link or combine with information we get from others to help understand your needs and provide you with better service.	It is in our legitimate interests to be able to offer you other products and services from the FMB, to develop the products and services we offer and grow our membership.
To assist in resolving any disputes arising between you and your clients through the FMB Dispute Resolution Service.	It is in our, and the public’s  legitimate interests to be able to offer you this service.
To assist you in promoting your business through use of customer testimonials on our website and in other communications.	It is in our member’s legitimate interest in promoting their business.
We will retain personal data from cancelled Memberships and closed accounts in order to enforce our terms and conditions, prevent fraud, resolve disputes, troubleshoot problems, assist with any investigations and take other actions as permitted by law.	It is in our, and the public’s legitimate interests to be able to retain minimum information in such cases.
Information relating to your project collected via the Find A Builder or Dispute Resolution Services.	To perform our contract with you in accordance with the Terms and Conditions for the Find A Builder Service. It is in our legitimate interest to monitor and improve our Services and to facilitate performance of the contract between the customer and member.

We will also retain your data in order to carry out any other purpose that we told you about at the time the information was collected.

Who will we share your personal information with?

We may allow access to your personal data by third parties who supply us with a service - for the purpose of this service only and in accordance with our instructions. Examples include website hosts, judges of awards, email providers and businesses which assist us in undertaking marketing, media promotions, social media posts, communications, monitoring our website, or managing and delivering commercial sales activity.

If you use the Find A Builder service we will share your contact details with Members (as described in our terms and conditions for the Find A Builder service).  The Member you appoint to your project is a data controller in their own right of information you or we share with them.  We are not responsible for Members’ use of your personal data once the introduction has been made.

If you use the FMB Shop we we will share your data with the data processors identified in the FMB Shop's terms and conditions - see https://fmbshop.merchandise-portal.com/uk/p/terms-conditions and Who do we share your data with?

We may share your data with email marketing providers to support the distribution of member communications. Whenever we transfer your personal data out of the UK, we ensure a similar degree of protection is afforded to it by ensuring at least one of the following safeguards is implemented:

• We will only transfer your personal data to countries that have been deemed to provide an adequate level of protection for personal data.
• Where we use certain service providers, we may use specific contracts approved for use in the UK which give personal data the same protection it has in the UK.

If you would like details of the appropriate safeguards in place, please contact us via the “Contact” section on our website at: www.fmb.org.uk.

We will never provide your personal data to third parties for their use for marketing purposes without your express consent.

Personal data which members supply to us for the Find A Builder service may be posted on our site, with consent, and may be supplied by us to consumers.

We may share your personal data with third party agencies that we use to deliver our Alternative Dispute Resolution Service, such as the Centre for Effective Dispute Resolution (CEDR), and with third parties that we use to carry out independent inspections of our members’ work such as the British Board of Agrement (BBA), and others, which may change from time to time.

We may disclose personal data so far as reasonably necessary:

1. if we think you have or may have breached our terms and conditions;
2. to enforce our rights or protect the public if we are required to do so by law or appropriate authority;
3. to obtain advice from an external lawyer or consultant;
4. in the case of an actual or proposed (including negotiations for a) sale or merger or business combination involving of all or the relevant part of our business.

Except as otherwise specifically included in this Policy, this document addresses only the use and disclosure of information by us. If you disclose your information to third parties, whether they are other users of our site or other websites, different rules may apply to their use or disclosure of your information.

Our website may offer social sharing features (such as the Facebook “Like” button), which let you share actions you take on our services with other media. Your use of such features enables the sharing of information with your friends or the public, depending on the settings you establish with that site. For more information about the purpose and scope of data collection and processing in connection with social sharing features, please visit the privacy policies of the sites that provide these features.

Automated decision making

Automated decision-making takes place when an electronic system uses personal information to make a decision without human intervention. Whilst we may use automated systems for analytics purposes and to improve our business and services, we do not envisage that any significant decisions will be taken using automated means. However, we will notify you in writing if this position changes.

We are allowed to use automated decision-making in the following circumstances:

1. Where we have notified you of the decision and given you one month to request a reconsideration.

2. Where it is necessary to perform the contract with you and appropriate measures are in place to safeguard your rights.

3. In limited circumstances, with your explicit written consent and where appropriate measures are in place to safeguard your rights.

How can I access my personal data and how long will it be kept?

How long do we keep your personal data for?

If we have not had meaningful contact with you (or, where appropriate, the company you are working for or with) for a period of two years, we will delete your personal data from our systems unless we believe that we have another valid reason to keep it (for example, in connection with on-going client disputes). We must also report to Trading Standards on the dates of membership of member companies, so that lawful use of the FMB logo, at that time, can be verified.

How can you access or amend  your personal data? 

Even if we already hold your personal data, you still have various rights in relation to it.

Right to object: If we are using your data because we think it necessary for our legitimate interests to do so and you do not agree, you have the right to object. We will respond to your request within 30 days (although we may be allowed to extend this period in certain cases). Generally, we will only disagree with you if certain limited conditions apply.

Right to withdraw consent: Where we have obtained your consent to process your personal data for certain activities (for example, to send you newsletters), or consent to market to you, you may withdraw your consent at any time.

Data Subject Access Requests (DSAR): You have the right to ask us to confirm what information we hold about you at any time, and you may ask us to modify, update or delete such information. At this point we may comply with your request or do one of the following:

• we may ask you to verify your identity, or ask for more information about your request; and
• where we are legally permitted to do so, we may decline your request, but we will explain why if we do so.

Right to erasure (right to be forgotten): In certain situations, (for example, where we have processed your data unlawfully), you have the right to request us to "erase" your personal data. We will respond to your request within 30 days (although we may be allowed to extend this period in certain cases) and will only disagree with you if certain limited conditions apply. If we do agree to your request, we will delete your data but will generally assume that you would prefer us to keep a note of your name on our database of individuals who would prefer not to be contacted. That way, we will minimise the chances of you being contacted in the future where your data are collected in unconnected circumstances. If you would prefer us not to do this, you are free to say so.

Right of data portability: Where you have supplied us with information electronically and we process your data based on your consent or contractual necessity, you have the right to transfer your data from us to another data controller. We will help with this – either by directly transferring your data for you, or by providing you with a copy in a commonly used machine-readable format.

Right to lodge a complaint with a supervisory authority: You also have the right to lodge a complaint with the Information Commissioners Office (ICO), details of which can be found on the ICO website. 

For information about your rights under UK data protection laws (GDPR), see the website of the UK Information Commissioner’s Office: ico.org.uk. 

> See also FMB terms and conditions