1. About this policy
This Privacy Policy explains how The Home Panel Ltd (“we”, “us”, “our”), trading as The Home Panel, collects and uses your personal data. It applies to our website at thehomepanel.co.uk, our quote and onboarding flows, and any communications we send you.
The Home Panel is an introducer, not a law firm.We collect your information during quote generation and pre-instruction onboarding (identity checks, source of funds, documents), then refer you to a conveyancing firm on our panel — each of which is regulated either by the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) or the Council for Licensed Conveyancers (CLC). Once a panel firm is instructed, that firm becomes a separate data controller for the legal work. Each panel firm has its own privacy notice, which will be provided to you in their client care letter.
We handle your data in accordance with the UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR), the Data Protection Act 2018, and the Privacy and Electronic Communications Regulations (PECR).
2. Who we are
We are the data controller for the personal data we collect through our platform during the pre-instruction phase. Once we introduce you to a panel firm and you sign their client care letter, that firm becomes data controller for the legal work on your case.
| Registered name | The Home Panel Ltd |
|---|---|
| Company number | 17078166 |
| Registered office | Flora, 1 Canada Square, Canary Wharf, London E14 5AB |
| Our role | Introducer / referral service to SRA- or CLC-regulated conveyancing firms |
| ICO registration | C1919650 |
| Privacy contact | info@thehomepanel.co.uk |
3. What data we collect
Depending on how you interact with us, we may collect:
- Identity data: full name, date of birth, nationality, and the copies of your passport, driving licence, or other government-issued ID we need to verify you.
- Contact data: postal address, email address, phone number.
- Transaction data: property address, property value, transaction type, tenure, mortgage details, and related property information.
- Financial data: source of funds information (bank statements, gift letters, inheritance documents) collected as part of our AML checks.
- Correspondence: emails, portal messages, call notes, and any other communications between us.
- Technical data: IP address, device type, browser type, pages visited, referring website.
- Special category data: we do not deliberately collect special category data. If it becomes relevant to your transaction (e.g. health information affecting capacity), we process it only on the basis of your explicit consent or a substantial public interest.
4. How we collect it
We collect personal data in three ways:
- Directly from you: when you request a quote, complete onboarding, upload documents, or correspond with us.
- From third parties: from your introducer (estate agent, mortgage broker), from your identity verification provider (Credas), from HM Land Registry, and from other parties’ solicitors in the course of your transaction.
- Automatically: via cookies and similar technologies when you use our website (see our Cookie Notice).
5. How we use it
We use your personal data to:
- Generate your conveyancing quote and deliver the legal services you instruct us to provide.
- Verify your identity and complete anti-money laundering (AML) checks required by the Money Laundering Regulations 2017.
- Communicate with you about your case (progress, questions, documents).
- Liaise with third parties involved in your transaction: lenders, estate agents, other solicitors, HM Land Registry, and HMRC.
- Comply with our regulatory and legal obligations (SRA, HMRC, court orders).
- Prevent, detect and investigate fraud.
- Improve our platform and services through aggregated, anonymised analysis.
- Send you marketing communications where you have consented. You can unsubscribe at any time.
6. Legal basis for processing
We rely on the following legal bases under UK GDPR Article 6:
- Contract: to perform the conveyancing services you’ve instructed us to provide.
- Legal obligation: to comply with AML, SRA, tax, and other regulatory requirements.
- Legitimate interests: to operate and improve our business, prevent fraud, and manage security. Your interests and rights always take precedence.
- Consent: for marketing communications and for non-essential cookies. You can withdraw consent at any time.
8. International transfers
Some of our processors are based outside the UK (typically in the United States). Where data leaves the UK, we rely on the UK International Data Transfer Agreement (IDTA) or the UK Addendum to the EU Standard Contractual Clauses (SCCs), together with supplementary measures such as encryption in transit and at rest.
You can request a copy of the safeguards applied to any specific transfer by emailing info@thehomepanel.co.uk.
9. How long we keep it
We keep personal data only for as long as necessary for the purposes we collected it:
| Category | Retention | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Conveyancing case file | Minimum 6 years from completion | SRA rules, limitation periods, tax records |
| AML / ID records | 5 years from end of business relationship | Money Laundering Regulations 2017 |
| Abandoned quotes | 90 days | Re-engagement, then deletion |
| Marketing contacts | Until consent withdrawn + 30 days | PECR compliance evidence |
| Analytics / technical logs | 12 months | Security, fraud prevention |
10. Security
We take the security of your personal data seriously. Our measures include:
- TLS 1.2+ encryption for all data in transit.
- AES-256 encryption for data at rest in our database and document storage.
- Role-based access control: staff access is limited to what they need for their job.
- Two-factor authentication on all staff accounts.
- Regular penetration testing and security review.
- Incident response plan with ICO breach notification within 72 hours where required.
11. Your rights
Under UK GDPR, you have the right to:
- Access the personal data we hold about you (“Subject Access Request”).
- Rectification: correct inaccurate or incomplete data.
- Erasure: ask us to delete your data where we no longer have a lawful reason to keep it.
- Restriction: ask us to stop processing your data while we resolve an issue.
- Portability: receive your data in a machine-readable format.
- Objection: object to processing based on legitimate interests or for direct marketing.
- Withdraw consent: at any time, where we rely on consent.
To exercise any of these rights, email info@thehomepanel.co.uk. We will respond within one month (occasionally extended by two further months for complex requests, with notification).
Note that these rights are not absolute. Where we are required by law to retain your data (for example, under the Money Laundering Regulations 2017 or the SRA Code), we may not be able to action a deletion request immediately.
12. Marketing
We will only send you marketing emails if you have given us your consent, and you can unsubscribe at any time via the link in every marketing email or by emailing info@thehomepanel.co.uk. We will stop sending marketing within 24 hours of any unsubscribe request.
We do not use third-party advertising cookies, and we do not share your data with advertisers or data brokers.
13. Automated decision-making
Our instant quote calculator uses automated processing to generate a conveyancing fee estimate from the inputs you provide. This is not a legally significant automated decision under UK GDPR Article 22. It’s a pricing estimate that you can choose to accept, negotiate, or disregard, and no solicitor is instructed without a human review of your case.
If we ever introduce automated decision-making that produces legal or similarly significant effects for you, we will inform you clearly and give you the right to request human review.
14. Children’s data
Our services are not directed at anyone under 18 and we do not knowingly collect data from children. If you believe we hold data about a child, please contact us immediately and we will delete it.
16. Changes to this policy
We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in law, our services, or our practices. The “last updated” date at the top of this page will always reflect the most recent version. Where changes are material, we will notify registered users by email.
17. Complaints
If you’re unhappy with how we’ve handled your data, we’d like the chance to put it right. Email us first at info@thehomepanel.co.uk.
You also have the right to complain to the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO), the UK’s data protection regulator:
Information Commissioner’s Office, Wycliffe House, Water Lane, Wilmslow, Cheshire SK9 5AF.
Helpline: 0303 123 1113. Online: ico.org.uk
18. Contact us
For anything in this policy, or to exercise your rights, please email info@thehomepanel.co.uk, or write to us at:
The Home Panel Ltd
Flora, 1 Canada Square, Canary Wharf, London E14 5AB