Privacy Policy - B.E. Ready Services

1. Who We Are

B.E. Ready Services Ltd (“we”, “our”, “us”) is a company registered in the United Kingdom. We provide digital customs solutions including import/export clearance, transit declarations, safety and security declarations, and related services.

For personal data about your portal account and your dealings with us, we are the controller. For personal data contained in the declarations and documents you ask us to process (for example the names and addresses of consignors, consignees and drivers), we act as your processor and handle that data on your instructions and as customs law requires.

2. Information We Collect

Account details – name, company, email address and a hashed password. We never store your password in readable form.
Service data – information you provide when submitting declarations, uploading documents, or completing forms, including EORI numbers, trader, consignor, consignee and carrier details, goods descriptions and transport details.
Billing data – invoicing contact details and the services we have supplied to you.
Technical data – IP address, browser type, device details, sign-in times and usage logs.
Acceptance records – the date, IP address and browser from which you accepted our Terms & Conditions and pricing.
Communications – messages, emails and attachments or support queries you send to us.

We do not ask for or store your Government Gateway or other HMRC sign-in details. Where a service requires you to authorise our software with HMRC, you sign in on HMRC’s own website and HMRC gives us a revocable access token.

3. How We Use Your Information

We use your data to:

Provide and manage our services, including preparing and submitting declarations to HMRC and other customs authorities.
Communicate with you regarding your account and submissions.
Invoice you for our services.
Comply with legal and customs requirements.
Keep our portal secure, detect misuse and investigate incidents.
Improve our portal.

We use automated tools, including an AI service, to read incoming emails and documents and extract shipment details into the portal. Our staff review declarations before submission; we do not make decisions that have a legal or similarly significant effect on you by automated means alone.

4. Legal Basis for Processing

We process personal data under UK GDPR on the following bases:

Contract – to provide services you request.
Legal obligation – to meet customs, tax and regulatory requirements, including record keeping.
Legitimate interests – to secure, maintain and improve our systems.
Consent – where applicable (e.g., marketing communications). We will not share your personal data with anyone for marketing without your consent, and you can withdraw consent at any time.

5. Sharing Your Data

We may share your information with:

HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) and other customs authorities and government agencies, to submit declarations and when the law requires.
Customs software and gateway providers that transmit declarations to customs systems on our behalf.
Service providers who process data for us: hosting and database, email, cloud document storage (Google Drive), accounting and invoicing (Xero), and AI-assisted document processing (OpenAI).
Logistics partners you work with, such as carriers and forwarders, where needed to complete your shipment.
Professional advisers (e.g., auditors, legal advisors).
Other parties as required by law.

We do not sell your data.

6. Information We Send to HMRC

When we connect to HMRC on your behalf we send the declaration data you provide. Where HMRC requires it by law, we also send HMRC fraud prevention information about the device and connection used to access our portal, such as IP address, browser and device details, time zone and screen information, together with our software’s own identifiers. HMRC uses this to protect your data and tax affairs from fraud. HMRC’s use of your information is described in HMRC’s privacy notice.

7. International Transfers

Some of our service providers process data outside the United Kingdom. Where that happens we rely on UK adequacy regulations or put in place appropriate safeguards such as the UK International Data Transfer Agreement or Addendum. Contact us for details of where your data is processed and the safeguards that apply.

8. Data Retention

We keep declaration records and supporting documents for as long as customs and tax law requires (generally at least four years from the date of the declaration, and longer where the law or an ongoing enquiry requires). Account details are kept while your account is active and are deleted or anonymised once the records linked to them no longer need to be kept. Security logs are kept for a limited period. After these periods, data is securely deleted or anonymised.

9. Your Rights

You have the right to:

Access the data we hold about you.
Request correction of inaccurate data.
Request deletion of your data, where applicable.
Restrict or object to certain processing activities.
Request a copy of your data in a portable, commonly used format.
Withdraw consent where we rely on it.

To exercise these rights, contact us at the details below. We respond within one month. Where the law requires us to keep a record (for example a submitted declaration), we will explain this and restrict its use instead of deleting it.

10. Security

We use technical and organisational measures to protect your personal data against unauthorised access, misuse, loss, or disclosure. These include encrypted connections (HTTPS/TLS), hashed passwords, access limited by role so that each customer sees only its own data, sign-in throttling, and security testing of the portal.

If a personal data breach is likely to affect you, we will tell you without undue delay, and we report qualifying breaches to the Information Commissioner’s Office and to HMRC within 72 hours. To report a security concern, see our Security page.

11. Cookies

Our portal uses one strictly necessary session cookie to keep you signed in. It is removed when your session ends or expires. We do not use advertising or analytics cookies.

12. Changes to This Policy

We may update this policy. The date at the top shows when it last changed, and we will tell you about material changes through the portal or by email.

13. Contact Us

If you have questions about this Privacy Policy, please contact us:

B.E. Ready Services Ltd
Email: operations@bereadycustoms.com
Address: Knightrider House, Knightrider Street, Maidstone, ME15 6LU, United Kingdom

You also have the right to lodge a complaint with the UK Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO): www.ico.org.uk