Data Processing Agreement

This Data Processing Agreement (DPA) is entered into between Vicinity Trading Limited, a company registered in England and Wales under number 10764984, whose registered office is at Commer House, Station Road, Tadcaster, LS24 9JF (“we”, "us", "our" or "Processor") and the Customer and is incorporated into and governed by the Customer Terms.

1. Definitions

1.1 Any capitalised term not defined in this DPA shall have the meaning given to it in the Customer Terms.

“Customer” means the person or firm who purchases Services from us;

“Customer Terms” means the agreement between us and the Customer for the provision of the Services;

“Controller” means the Customer;

"Data Protection Legislation" means all applicable data protection and privacy legislation in force from time to time in the UK including without limitation the UK GDPR; the Data Protection Act 2018 (and regulations made thereunder) (DPA 2018); and the Privacy and Electronic Communications Regulations 2003 (SI 2003/2426) as amended;

“Data Subject” shall have the same meaning as in the UK GDPR (as amended from time to time, or replaced by subsequent legislation);

“DPA” means this data processing agreement together with its Schedule 1;

“Personal Data” shall have the same meaning as in the UK GDPR (as amended from time to time, or replaced by subsequent legislation);

“Security Measures” means the security measures contained in our Privacy Policy or any other security measures as otherwise made available in writing by the Processor to the Controller;

“Services” means the services to be provided by us to the Customer under the Customer Terms;

“Standard Contractual Clauses” the International Data Transfer Agreement or any other appropriate safeguards approved by the UK Government and/or the Information Commissioner to ensure compliance with transfers of personal data from the UK to third countries to ensure compliance with Article 44 of the UK GDPR;

“Subsidiary” means any entity that directly or indirectly controls, is controlled by, or is under common control of a party. “Control,” for purposes of this definition, means direct or indirect ownership or control of more than 50% of the voting interests of a party;

“Sub-Processor” means any person or entity engaged by us (including a Subsidiary) to process Personal Data in the provision of the Services to the Customer in accordance with the terms of this DPA;

"UK GDPR" has the meaning given to it in section 3(10) (as supplemented by section 205(4)) of the Data Protection Act 2018.

1.2 The Schedules form part of this DPA and shall have effect as if set out in the full body of this DPA.  Any reference to this DPA includes the Schedules.

1.3 A person includes a natural person, corporate or unincorporated body (whether or not having a separate legal personality).

2. Purpose

The Processor has agreed to provide the Services to the Controller in accordance with the Customer Terms. In providing the Services, the Processor shall process Customer Data on behalf of the Controller. Customer Data may include Personal Data. The Processor will process and protect such Personal Data in accordance with the terms of this DPA.

3. Scope

In providing the Services to the Controller pursuant to the terms of the Customer Terms, the Processor shall process Personal Data only to the extent necessary to provide the Services in accordance with both the Customer Terms and the Controller’s instructions documented in the Customer Terms and this DPA or otherwise as instructed in writing by the Customer and agreed by us.

4. Processor Obligations

4.1 The Processor may collect, process or use Personal Data only within the scope of this DPA.

4.2 The Processor confirms that it shall process Personal Data on behalf of the Controller and shall take steps to ensure that any natural person acting under the authority of the Processor who has access to Personal Data does not process the Personal Data except on instructions from the Controller.

4.3 The Processor shall promptly inform the Controller, if in the Processor’s opinion, any of the instructions regarding the processing of Personal Data provided by the Controller, breach any applicable Data Protection Legislation.

4.4 The Processor shall ensure that all employees, agents, officers and contractors involved in the handling of Personal Data:

4.4.1 are aware of the confidential nature of the Personal Data and are contractually bound to keep the Personal Data confidential;

4.4.2 have received appropriate training on their responsibilities as a data processor; and

4.4.3 are bound by the terms of this DPA.

4.5 The Processor shall implement appropriate technical and organisational procedures to protect Personal Data, taking into account the state of the art, the costs of implementation and the nature, scope, context and purposes of processing as well as the risk of varying likelihood and severity for the rights and freedoms of natural persons.

4.6 The Processor shall implement appropriate technical and organisational measures to ensure a level of security appropriate to the risk, including inter alia as appropriate:

4.6.1 the pseudonymisation and encryption of Personal Data;

4.6.2 the ability to ensure the on-going confidentiality, integrity, availability and resilience of processing systems and services;

4.6.3 the ability to restore the availability and access to Personal Data in a timely manner in the event of a physical or technical incident;

4.6.4 a process for regularly testing, assessing and evaluating the effectiveness of technical and organisational measures for ensuring the security of the processing.

4.7 In accessing the appropriate level of security, account shall be taken in particular of the risks that are presented by processing, in particular from accidental or unlawful destruction, loss, alteration, unauthorised disclosure of, or access to Personal Data transmitted, stored or otherwise processed.

4.8 The technical and organisational measures detailed in the Security Measures shall be at all times adhered to as a minimum security standard. The Controller accepts and agrees that the technical and organisational measures are subject to development and review and that the Processor may use alternative suitable measures to those detailed in the attachments to this DPA provided that such updates and modifications do not result in the degradation of the overall security of the Services.

4.9 Where Personal Data relating to a Data Subject is transferred outside of the United Kingdom it shall be processed only by entities which:

4.9.1 are located in a third country or territory recognised by the UK government to have an adequate level of protection; or

4.9.2 have entered into Standard Contractual Clauses with the Processor; or

4.9.3 have other legally recognised appropriate safeguards in place.

4.10 Taking into account the nature of the processing and the information available to the Processor, the Processor shall assist the Controller by having in place appropriate technical and organisational measures, insofar as this is possible, for the fulfilment of the Controller’s obligation to respond to requests for exercising the Data Subject’s rights and the Controller’s compliance with the Controller’s data protection obligations in respect of the processing of Personal Data.

5. Controller Obligations

5.1 The Controller warrants that it shall comply with the terms of the Customer Terms, this DPA and all applicable Data Protection Legislation.

5.2 The Controller warrants that it has obtained any and all necessary permissions and authorisations necessary to permit the Processor, its Subsidiaries and Sub-Processors, to execute their rights or perform their obligations under this DPA.

5.3 The Controller is responsible for compliance with all applicable Data Protection Legislation, including requirements with regards to the transfer of Personal Data under this DPA and the Customer Terms.

5.4 All Subsidiaries of the Controller who use the Services shall comply with the obligations of the Controller set out in this DPA.

5.5 The Controller has their own obligations to implement their own appropriate technical and organisational procedures to protect Personal Data, taking into account the state of the art, the costs of implementation and the nature, scope, context and purposes of processing as well as the risk of varying likelihood and severity for the rights and freedoms of natural persons. The Controller shall implement appropriate technical and organisational measures to ensure a level of security appropriate to the risk, including inter alia as appropriate:

5.5.1 the pseudonymisation and encryption of Personal Data;

5.5.2 the ability to ensure the on-going confidentiality, integrity, availability and resilience of processing systems and services;

5.5.3 the ability to restore the availability and access to Personal Data in a timely manner in the event of a physical or technical incident;

5.5.4 a process for regularly testing, assessing and evaluating the effectiveness of technical and organisational measures for ensuring the security of the processing.

5.6 In accessing the appropriate level of security account shall be taken in particular of the risks that are presented by processing, in particular from accidental or unlawful destruction, loss, alteration, unauthorised disclosure of, or access to Personal Data transmitted, stored or otherwise processed.

5.7 The Controller may require correction, deletion, blocking and/or making available the Personal Data during or after termination of the Customer Terms. The Processor will process the request to the extent it is lawful, and will reasonably fulfil such request in accordance with its standard operational procedures to the extent possible.

5.8  The Processor shall comply with any request by the Controller to return or destroy any Personal Data in accordance with clause 9.

6. Sub-Processors

6.1 The Controller acknowledges and agrees that:

6.1.1 subsidiaries of the Processor may be used as Sub-processors; and

6.1.2 the Processor and its Subsidiaries respectively may engage Sub-processors in connection with the provision of the Services.

6.2 All Sub-processors who process Personal Data in the provision of the Services to the Controller shall comply with the obligations of the Processor similar to those set out in this DPA.

6.3 Where Sub-processors are located outside of the United Kingdom, the Processor confirms that such Sub-processors:

6.3.1 are located in a third country or territory recognised by the UK government to have an adequate level of protection; or

6.3.2 have entered into Standard Contractual Clauses with the Processor; or

6.3.3 have other legally recognised appropriate safeguards in place.

6.4 Those Sub-processors approved as at the commencement of this DPA are as set out in the Schedule (Approved Sub-processors).  In the event that further Sub-processors are appointed by the Processor, the Processor will notify the Controller in writing and shall list such additional Sub-processors in the Schedule.

6.5 If the Controller objects to a new or replacement Sub-processor the Controller may terminate the Customer Terms with respect to those Services which cannot be provided by the Processor without the use of the new or replacement Sub-processor. The Processor will refund the Controller any prepaid fees covering the remainder of the term of the Customer Terms following the effective date of termination with respect to such terminated Services.

7. Liability

7.1 The limitations on liability set out in the Customer Terms apply to all claims made pursuant to any breach of the terms of this DPA.

7.2 The parties agree that the Processor shall be liable for any breaches of this DPA caused by the acts and omissions or negligence of its Sub-processors to the same extent the Processor would be liable if performing the services of each Sub-processor directly under the terms of the DPA, subject to any limitations on liability set out in the terms of the Customer Terms.

7.3 The parties agree that the Controller shall be liable for any breaches of this DPA caused by the acts and omissions or negligence of its Subsidiaries as if such acts, omissions or negligence had been committed by the Controller itself.

7.4 The Controller shall not be entitled to recover more than once in respect of the same claim.

8. Audit

8.1 The Processor shall make available to the Controller all information reasonably necessary to demonstrate compliance with its processing obligations and allow for and contribute to audits and inspections.

8.2 Any audit conducted under this DPA shall consist of examination of the most recent reports, certificates and/or extracts prepared by an independent auditor bound by confidentiality provisions similar to those set out in the Customer Terms. In the event that provision of the same is not deemed sufficient in the reasonable opinion of the Controller, the Controller may at its own expense conduct a more extensive audit which will be:

8.2.1 limited in scope to matters specific to the Controller and agreed in advance with the Processor;

8.2.2 carried out during UK business hours and upon reasonable notice which shall be not less than 4 weeks unless an identifiable material issue has arisen; and

8.2.3 conducted in a way which does not interfere with the Processor’s day-to-day business. The Processor may charge a fee (based on its reasonable time and costs) for assisting with any audit. The Processor will provide the Controller with further details of any applicable fee, and the basis of its calculation, in advance of any such audit.

8.3 This clause shall not modify or limit the rights of audit of the Controller, instead it is intended to clarify the procedures in respect of any audit undertaken pursuant thereto.

8.4 Notwithstanding clause 8.2, if the Controller becomes aware of any breach of the terms of this DPA by the Processor, the Controller may conduct an extensive audit without prior written notice to the Processor, such audit not to be conducted in a way to interfere with the Processor's day-to-day business.  Such audit shall be at the Controller's cost unless the result of the audit concludes that the Processor's breach of the terms of this DPA has led to a breach of the Data Protection Legislation due to the fault of the Processor.

9. Data Deletion

9.1 The Controller will enable the Processor to delete Personal Data using the functionality provided by the Services. Upon deletion, the Processor will permanently delete the Personal Data from the live systems.

9.2 On termination of the Services, the Controller has the option to request the return or deletion of Personal Data. This request must be made within 14 days of termination. The Processor will make the data available for download by the Controller in a machine readable format. Thereafter the Processor will permanently delete the Personal Data from the live systems in any event.

9.3 Following permanent deletion from the live systems, partial data resides on the Processor’s archival systems for a period of up to 90 days. If requested by the Controller, the Processor may be able to assist with recovery of partial data from these archives during this period. A fee will be charged for this service.

9.4 If the Controller requests the return or destruction of any Personal Data during the provision of the Services, the Processor shall comply with such request but this may result in additional fees being charged to the Processor.  In such case, the Processor will notify the Controller of such additional fees in advance, unless agreed otherwise.

10. Notification of Data Breach

10.1 The Processor shall notify the Controller without undue delay after becoming aware of (and in any event within 72 hours of discovering) any accidental or unlawful destruction, loss, alteration or unauthorised disclosure or access to any Personal Data (“Data Breach”).

10.2 The Processor will take all commercially reasonable measures to secure the Personal Data, to limit the effects of any Data Breach and to assist the Controller in meeting the Controller’s obligations under applicable law.

10.3 The Processor’s notification of, or response to, a Data Breach under this Section 10 will not be construed as an acknowledgement by the Processor of any fault or liability with respect to the Data Breach.

10.4 The Processor will not assess the content of the Controller’s data in order to identify information subject to any specific Controller data breach. The Controller is solely responsible for complying with data breach notification laws applicable to the Controller and fulfilling any third party notification obligations related to any Data Breach(es).

11. Compliance, Cooperation and Response

11.1 In the event that the Processor receives a request from a Data Subject in relation to Personal Data, the Processor will refer the Data Subject to the Controller unless otherwise prohibited by law. The Controller shall reimburse the Processor for all costs incurred resulting from providing reasonable assistance in dealing with a Data Subject request or assisting the Controller in complying with its duties. The Processor shall notify the Controller of any costs it will incur further to this clause 11.1 in advance, unless agreed otherwise. In the event that the Processor is legally required to respond to the Data Subject, the Controller will fully cooperate with the Processor as applicable.

11.2 The Processor will notify the Controller promptly of any request or complaint regarding the processing of Personal Data, which adversely impacts the Controller, unless such notification is not permitted under applicable law or a relevant court order.

11.3 The Processor may make copies of and/or retain Personal Data in order to comply with its legal or regulatory requirement including, but not limited to, retention requirements.

11.4 The parties acknowledge that it is the duty of the Controller to notify the Processor within a reasonable time, of any changes to applicable data protection laws, codes or regulations which may affect the contractual duties of the Processor. The Processor shall respond within a reasonable timeframe in respect of any changes that need to be made to the terms of this DPA or to the technical and organisational measures to maintain compliance. If the parties agree that amendments are required, but the Processor is unable to accommodate the necessary changes, the Controller may terminate the part or parts of the Services which give rise to the non-compliance. To the extent that other parts of the Services provided are not affected by such changes, the provision of those Services shall remain unaffected.

11.5 The Controller and the Processor and, where applicable, their representatives, shall cooperate, on request, with a supervisory data protection authority in the performance of their respective obligations under this DPA.

11.6 Unless otherwise stated within this DPA, the parties agree that the Processor will be entitled to charge the Controller additional fees to reimburse the Processor for its staff time, costs and expenses in assisting the Controller, when the Controller requests the Processor to provide assistance pursuant to this DPA. In such cases, the Processor will notify the Controller of its fees for providing assistance, in advance.

12. Term and Termination

The term of this DPA shall coincide with the commencement of the Customer Terms and this DPA shall terminate automatically at the later date of the termination or expiry of the Customer Terms and the date when the Processor no longer has any Customer Data in its control or possession.

13. General

13.1 This DPA sets out the entire understanding of the parties with regards to the subject matter herein.

13.2 Should a provision of this DPA be invalid or become invalid then the legal effect of the other provisions shall be unaffected. A valid provision is deemed to have been agreed which comes closest to what the parties intended commercially and shall replace the invalid provision. The same shall apply to any omissions.

13.3 This DPA shall be governed by the laws of England and Wales. The courts of England shall have exclusive jurisdiction for the settlement of all disputes arising under this DPA.


Schedule – Approved Sub-Processors

  • Infrastructure / Platform as a Service providing cloud computing. We use it to provide a private virtual network, host web applications and provide application insights.

    Located in Northern Europe.

    Applies to all products and services.

    Read more…

  • A multi-cloud database Platform as a Service. We use it to host, manage and backup customer databases.

    Located in Northern Europe.

    Applies to all products and services.

    Read more…

  • Platform as a Service providing cloud computing. We deploy our MongoDB instances to AWS and use it to provide persistence for customer data.

    Located in Northern Europe.

    Applies to all products and services.

    Read more…

  • Software as a Service providing live chat and customer support services. Used to process and store customer data (including personal data). Customer’s personal data (name and email address) may be processed outside of the EU.

    Located in Western Europe and East Coast US.

    Applies to our web applications.

    Read more…

  • Software as a Service providing application search. Used to provide search engine functionality.

    Located in Ireland on AWS.

    Applies to our web applications.

    Read more…

  • Cloud based email. Used for day-to-day communication with customers.

    Cloud based file storage. Used for long term storage of customer data.

    Located in the USA.

    Applies to all products and services.

    Read more…

  • Cloud email and SMS service provider used for some system emails sent by and to customers.

    Located in the USA.

    Applies to our web applications.

    Read more…

  • Marketing automation. Used for customer updates and marketing campaigns.

    Located in the USA.

    Applies to all products and services.

    Read more…