Legal
Terms of Use & Privacy and Cookies Notice
Effective date:
Who we are: Rye and Distict Chamber of Commerce (also “we”, “us”, “our”), registered in England & Wales, company number 03907429.
Registered office: The Old Cinema, Fishmarket Road, Rye, East Sussex, England, TN31 7LP.
Contact: [email protected] or The Old Cinema, Fishmarket Road, Rye, East Sussex, England, TN31 7LP.
Scope: These terms govern your use of visitrye.co.uk (the “Site”), including our directory, AI local guide, and any business services (e.g., paid listings).
Part A — Terms of Use
1) Using our Site
Access & availability. The Site is provided on an “as is” and “as available” basis. We may suspend, withdraw, or change any part of the Site without notice for maintenance, improvements, or legal/compliance reasons.
Acceptable use. You agree not to misuse the Site (for example, introducing malware, attempting unauthorised access, scraping or harvesting data, or posting unlawful, defamatory, or infringing content). We may suspend or terminate access for misuse.
For consumers and businesses. Some sections are aimed at visitors (consumers) and others at local businesses (e.g., listing management). If you obtain any paid-for business services from us, additional terms presented at checkout or in an order form will also apply.
2) Information on the Site (including the Directory)
No endorsement. Listings, maps, links, descriptions, ratings, images, and AI suggestions are for general information only. We do not endorse, audit, or independently verify third-party businesses or their offerings.
Accuracy. We aim to keep information current, but details (opening hours, prices, accessibility, etc.) can change. Always check directly with the business before you travel or purchase.
Third-party links. We are not responsible for third-party websites or content linked from the Site.
3) AI Local Guide (our on-site chatbot)
Informational tool. The AI guide provides general local information (e.g., transport, walks, places to eat). It may be incomplete, outdated, or incorrect, and should not be relied upon for safety-critical decisions, legal/medical advice, or emergencies (call 999/112 where applicable).
Your responsibility. You remain responsible for your decisions and for verifying important details directly with relevant providers or authorities.
What you share. Do not submit sensitive information (e.g., payment card numbers, medical details) to the chat. We may review anonymised chat logs to improve service quality (see Privacy & Cookies Notice for details).
4) Accounts, Business Listings and Content You Provide
Eligibility. You must be at least 18 and authorised to act for a business to claim or manage a listing.
Your promises. You confirm you have the right to upload content (text, logos, photos), that it is accurate, lawful, and not misleading, and that it complies with applicable advertising and consumer laws.
Licence. You grant us a non-exclusive, worldwide, royalty-free licence to host, display, and distribute your listing content (and to resize, reformat, or moderate it) to operate and promote the Site and your listing.
Moderation. We may edit, refuse, or remove content that breaches these terms or applicable law.
Fees (if applicable). Paid listings or upgrades are subject to the prices and billing terms we present at the point of purchase. If you are a consumer buying a digital service from us online, you may have a 14-day cancellation period under the Consumer Contracts Regulations unless you ask us to start the service sooner; in that case, you may owe a proportionate amount for services already supplied.
5) Intellectual Property
Ours. We (or our licensors) own the Site and its content, structure, and design. All rights are reserved.
Yours. You keep your rights in content you supply and grant us the licence described above.
Personal use only. You may view and print pages for personal use. No scraping, framing, bulk download, or republication without our written permission.
6) Liability
We do not exclude liability for death or personal injury caused by our negligence, for fraud or fraudulent misrepresentation, or for any other liability that cannot legally be limited or excluded.
Information only. To the extent permitted by law, we are not liable for: (i) reliance on general information, listings, or AI outputs; (ii) losses from business decisions taken without independent verification; (iii) loss caused by events outside our reasonable control; or (iv) indirect or consequential loss.
Consumers. Nothing in these terms affects your statutory rights, including those under the Consumer Rights Act 2015 (e.g., services to be provided with reasonable care and skill).
Cap for business users. For paid business services, our total liability for all claims arising in a 12-month period is limited to the higher of £100 or the total fees you paid us for those services in that period.
7) Law, Jurisdiction and Changes
Governing law. These terms and any non-contractual obligations are governed by the laws of England and Wales.
Jurisdiction. The courts of England and Wales have exclusive jurisdiction, except that consumers in Scotland or Northern Ireland may bring claims in their local courts.
Updates. We may update these terms and the Privacy & Cookies Notice to reflect legal, technical, or business changes. We’ll post the new version with a new effective date.
Part B — Privacy & Cookies Notice
1) Who is the controller?
Rye and District Chamber of Commerce is the data controller for personal data processed via the Site, the directory, and the AI local guide. UK data protection law comprises the UK GDPR and the Data Protection Act 2018.
2) What personal data we collect
- From visitors: identifiers (e.g., IP address, cookie IDs), device and browser data, usage analytics, enquiry details, and AI chat prompts/responses.
- From local businesses: contact details, business profile information (e.g., description, location, categories, photos), billing/contact information for paid services.
- From public/third-party sources: publicly available business details (e.g., websites, social profiles, registries) to help maintain the directory.
- Special category data: we do not intentionally collect this via the Site. Please do not submit health or other sensitive data in forms or the AI chat.
3) Why we use personal data (lawful bases)
We only use personal data where a lawful basis applies (UK GDPR Art. 6). Typical bases include: consent (e.g., non-essential cookies, certain marketing); contract (e.g., to provide/manage your paid listing); legitimate interests (e.g., to operate and secure the Site, to maintain a comprehensive local directory, to prevent abuse/fraud); and legal obligation (e.g., tax, accounting, regulatory requests).
4) How we use the AI local guide (chat)
- Purpose. To generate answers to local queries, suggest places/activities, and improve relevance/quality.
- Vendors. We use trusted third-party AI provider(s) acting as our processors under contract. They process chat content only to deliver the service and for our quality/safety purposes.
- International processing. Some providers or sub-processors may be located outside the UK. Where we make a “restricted transfer”, we implement appropriate safeguards (e.g., the UK International Data Transfer Agreement (IDTA) or the UK Addendum to the EU SCCs).
- Human review. A small number of trained staff may review minimised chat excerpts to investigate misuse, troubleshoot, or improve prompts/responses.
- Your choices. Don’t share sensitive personal information; you can request deletion of chat logs (see “Your rights”).
5) Marketing communications
Email/SMS. We send electronic direct marketing to individuals only with your consent, or under the “soft opt-in” for our own similar services where permitted (with an opt-out in every message). You can opt out at any time.
B2B. We may email corporate subscribers about relevant business services. We honour any opt-out requests.
6) Cookies and similar technologies
What we use. We use (i) strictly necessary cookies for core functionality; and (ii) optional analytics or personalisation cookies (and similar technologies) to understand usage and improve the Site.
Consent. We obtain your consent for any non-essential cookies and provide controls to change your choices at any time. Strictly necessary cookies do not require consent.
Managing preferences. Use the on-site cookie banner. You can also control cookies in your browser settings.
7) Sharing your data
- Service providers/processors (hosting, security, analytics, communications, AI vendors, payment processors for business services);
- Verified partners where you ask us to share your enquiry;
- Authorities or others where required by law or to protect rights, safety, and security;
- Business transfers (e.g., merger or acquisition), where the recipient will honour this Notice.
8) International transfers
If we transfer personal data outside the UK, we will ensure an appropriate transfer mechanism (e.g., UK IDTA, UK Addendum to the EU SCCs, or adequacy regulations) and implement supplementary measures where needed.
9) Retention
- Web logs & security events: ~12 months;
- AI chat logs: up to 12 months (shorter if you request deletion unless we must retain for security/legal reasons);
- Business listings & account records: while the listing is active and for up to 6 years thereafter for tax/accounting or to establish/defend legal claims;
- Marketing preferences: until you withdraw consent/opt out and for a short period thereafter to honour the request.
10) Security
We use administrative, technical, and organisational measures appropriate to the risks (e.g., access controls, encryption in transit, monitoring). No system is 100% secure; you are responsible for keeping account credentials confidential and for reporting suspected misuse promptly.
11) Your rights
Under UK data protection law, you have rights including: to be informed, access, rectification, erasure, restriction, data portability, and to object; plus the right to withdraw consent where processing is based on consent. You also have rights related to automated decision-making (we do not carry out solely automated decisions with legal or similarly significant effects). You can exercise these rights by contacting us (see “Contact”).
12) Complaints
If you are unhappy with our response, you can complain to the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO): ico.org.uk or by calling 0303 123 1113. Postal: ICO, Wycliffe House, Water Lane, Wilmslow, Cheshire, SK9 5AF.
13) Children
The Site is not intended for children under 13. If you believe a child has provided us with personal data, please contact us so we can delete it.
14) Changes to this Notice
We will update this page when we make material changes and, where appropriate, notify you by banner, email, or within your account.