Privacy Policy
Privacy Policy
The Book Dragon understands that your privacy is important to you and that you care about how your personal data is used. We respect and value the privacy of everyone who visits this website, and will only collect and use personal data in ways that are described here, and in a way that is consistent with our obligations and your rights under the law.
Please read this Privacy Policy carefully and ensure that you understand it. Your acceptance of this Privacy Policy is deemed to occur upon your first use of our Site. If you do not accept and agree with this Privacy Policy, you must stop using our Site immediately.
1. Definitions and Interpretation
In this Policy the following terms shall have the following meanings:
“Account” means an account required to access and/or use certain areas and features of our Site.
“Cookie” means a small text file placed on your computer or device by our Site when you visit certain parts of our Site and/or when you use certain features of our Site. Details of the Cookies used by our Site are set out in Section 14 below.
“Cookie Law” means the relevant parts of the Privacy and Electronic Communications (EC Directive) Regulations 2003 (as amended by the Data (Use and Access) Act 2025).
“UK GDPR” means the UK General Data Protection Regulation, being the retained EU law version of Regulation (EU) 2016/679 as it forms part of domestic law by virtue of section 3 of the European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018, read together with the Data Protection Act 2018.
2. Information About Us
Our Site is owned and operated by The Book Dragon, a Limited Company registered in England under company number 15711529.
Registered address: The Book Dragon, Room 6, 42 High Street, Stockton on Tees, TS18 1SB
Trading address: The Book Dragon / Chapters & Chai, 42 High Street, Stockton-On-Tees, TS18 1SB.
We are registered with the Information Commissioner’s Office under registration number ZB855221.
3. What Does This Policy Cover?
This Privacy Policy applies only to your use of our Site. Our Site may contain links to other websites. Please note that we have no control over how your data is collected, stored, or used by other websites and we advise you to check the privacy policies of any such websites before providing any data to them.
4. What is Personal Data?
Personal data is defined by the UK GDPR as “any information relating to an identifiable person who can be directly or indirectly identified in particular by reference to an identifier.”
Personal data is, in simpler terms, any information about you that enables you to be identified. Personal data covers obvious information such as your name and contact details, but it also covers less obvious information such as identification numbers, electronic location data, and other online identifiers.
5. What Are My Rights?
Under the UK GDPR and the Data Protection Act 2018, you have the following rights, which we will always work to uphold:
a) The right to be informed about our collection and use of your personal data. This Privacy Policy should tell you everything you need to know, but you can always contact us to find out more or to ask any questions using the details in Section 15.
b) The right of access to the personal data we hold about you. Section 13 will tell you how to do this.
c) The right to rectification if any of your personal data held by us is inaccurate or incomplete. Please contact us using the details in Section 15 to find out more.
d) The right to erasure (also known as the right to be forgotten), i.e. the right to ask us to delete or otherwise dispose of any of your personal data that we hold. Please contact us using the details in Section 15 to find out more.
e) The right to restrict (i.e. prevent) the processing of your personal data.
f) The right to object to us using your personal data for a particular purpose or purposes.
YOUR RIGHT TO OBJECT: You have the right to object to our processing of your personal data at any time where we are relying on legitimate interests as our lawful basis (see Section 7). If you object, we will stop processing your personal data unless we can demonstrate compelling legitimate grounds for the processing which override your interests, rights, and freedoms, or the processing is necessary for the establishment, exercise, or defence of legal claims. You also have an absolute right to object to us using your personal data for direct marketing purposes at any time. To exercise your right to object, please contact us using the details in Section 15.
g) The right to data portability. This means that, if you have provided personal data to us directly, we are using it with your consent or for the performance of a contract, and that data is processed using automated means, you can ask us for a copy of that personal data to re-use with another service or business in many cases.
h) Rights relating to automated decision-making and profiling. We do not use your personal data in this way.
i) The right to lodge a complaint directly with us if you believe we have breached the UK GDPR or the Data Protection Act 2018 in relation to your personal data. You may submit a complaint using the contact details in Section 15, and we will respond without undue delay and in any event within one month.
For more information about our use of your personal data or exercising your rights as outlined above, please contact us using the details provided in Section 15.
Further information about your rights can also be obtained from the Information Commissioner’s Office (https://ico.org.uk) or your local Citizens Advice Bureau.
If you have any cause for complaint about our use of your personal data, you have the right to lodge a complaint with the Information Commissioner’s Office. We would, however, appreciate the opportunity to address your concerns before you approach the ICO, so please contact us in the first instance.
6. What Data Do We Collect?
Depending upon your use of our Site, we may collect some or all of the following personal and non-personal data (please also see Section 14 on our use of Cookies and similar technologies and our Cookie Policy):
– Name
– Address
– Email address
– Telephone number
– Payment information (see Section 6.1 below)
– IP address
– Web browser type and version
– Operating system
– Information about how you use our Site, including pages visited, time spent on pages, and navigation paths
6.1 Payment Data
When you make a purchase on our Site, your payment is processed securely by our third-party payment provider(s). We do not store your full credit or debit card details on our servers. Our payment provider(s) are PCI DSS compliant and process your payment data in accordance with their own privacy policies, which we encourage you to review.
7. How Do We Use Your Personal Data?
Under the UK GDPR, we must always have a lawful basis for using personal data. The table below sets out how and why we use your personal data, together with the lawful basis for each type of processing:
Purpose: Providing and managing your Account
Lawful Basis: Performance of a contract (Article 6(1)(b) UK GDPR)
Purpose: Providing and managing your access to our Site
Lawful Basis: Legitimate interests (Article 6(1)(f) UK GDPR) — it is in our legitimate interest to ensure our Site operates effectively
Purpose: Supplying our products and services to you, including processing and fulfilling your orders
Lawful Basis: Performance of a contract (Article 6(1)(b) UK GDPR)
Purpose: Communicating with you, including responding to emails or calls from you and sending order updates and delivery notifications
Lawful Basis: Performance of a contract (Article 6(1)(b) UK GDPR)
Purpose: Supplying you with marketing information by email that you have opted in to (you may unsubscribe or opt out at any time by clicking the unsubscribe link in our emails)
Lawful Basis: Consent (Article 6(1)(a) UK GDPR)
Purpose: Analysing your use of our Site and gathering feedback to enable us to continually improve our Site and your user experience
Lawful Basis: Legitimate interests (Article 6(1)(f) UK GDPR) — it is in our legitimate interest to improve our Site and services
With your permission and/or where permitted by law, we may also use your personal data for marketing purposes, which may include contacting you by email with information, news, and offers on our products and services. You will not be sent any unlawful marketing or spam. We will always work to fully protect your rights and comply with our obligations under the UK GDPR and the Privacy and Electronic Communications (EC Directive) Regulations 2003, and you will always have the opportunity to opt out.
Third parties whose content appears on our Site may use third-party Cookies, as detailed below in Section 14. Please refer to Section 14 for more information on controlling Cookies. Please note that we do not control the activities of such third parties, nor the data that they collect and use themselves, and we advise you to check the privacy policies of any such third parties.
8. How Long Will You Keep My Personal Data?
We will not keep your personal data for any longer than is necessary in light of the reason(s) for which it was first collected. Your personal data will therefore be kept for the following periods (or, where there is no fixed period, the following factors will be used to determine how long it is kept):
– Order and transaction data: 6 years from the date of the transaction (in line with HMRC requirements and the Limitation Act 1980).
– Customer account data: For as long as your account remains active. If your account is inactive for a period of 3 years, we will contact you to ask whether you wish to keep it open. If we receive no response, we will close the account and delete the associated personal data within 30 days.
– Marketing consent records: For as long as you remain subscribed to our marketing communications. If you unsubscribe, we will retain a record of your opt-out preference to ensure we do not contact you again.
– Website analytics data: Anonymised and aggregated data may be retained indefinitely. Data that can identify you will be deleted within 26 months.
– Correspondence and customer service records: 2 years from the date of the last communication, unless the correspondence relates to a complaint or legal matter, in which case it will be retained for 6 years.
9. How and Where Do We Store or Transfer Your Personal Data?
We primarily store your personal data within the United Kingdom. However, some of the third parties we use to help deliver our services (such as payment processors, analytics providers, and email marketing platforms) may store or process your data outside of the UK. Where personal data is transferred outside of the UK, we will take all reasonable steps to ensure that your data is treated just as safely and securely as it would be within the UK and under the UK GDPR. Such steps may include ensuring that the country to which data is transferred is covered by UK adequacy regulations made by the Secretary of State under section 17A of the Data Protection Act 2018, or that appropriate safeguards are in place in accordance with Article 46 of the UK GDPR (such as standard contractual clauses or an International Data Transfer Agreement approved by the Information Commissioner). In the absence of adequacy regulations or appropriate safeguards, we will only transfer data where one of the exceptions set out in Article 49 of the UK GDPR applies.
10. Do You Share My Personal Data?
We may share your personal data with the following categories of third parties for the purposes described:
– Payment processors (e.g. Stripe, PayPal, or similar) — to process your payments securely.
– Delivery and fulfilment partners (e.g. Royal Mail, courier services) — to deliver your orders.
– Website hosting and IT service providers — to maintain and support our Site.
– Analytics providers (e.g. Google Analytics, StatCounter) — to help us understand how our Site is used and to improve it.
– Email marketing platforms (e.g. Mailchimp or similar) — to send you marketing communications where you have opted in.
– Security services (e.g. Wordfence) — to protect our Site from malicious activity.
In each case, we will take steps to ensure that your personal data is handled safely, securely, and in accordance with your rights, our obligations, and the third party’s obligations under the law.
In some limited circumstances, we may be legally required to share certain personal data, which might include yours, if we are involved in legal proceedings or complying with legal obligations, a court order, or the instructions of a government authority.
11. How Can I Control My Personal Data?
11.1 In addition to your rights under the UK GDPR, set out in Section 5, when you submit personal data via our Site, you may be given options to restrict our use of your personal data. In particular, we aim to give you strong controls on our use of your data for direct marketing purposes (including the ability to opt out of receiving emails from us, which you may do by unsubscribing using the links provided in our emails, at the point of providing your details, and by managing your Account).
11.2 You may also wish to sign up to one or more of the preference services operating in the UK: The Telephone Preference Service (“the TPS”), the Corporate Telephone Preference Service (“the CTPS”), and the Mailing Preference Service (“the MPS”). These may help to prevent you from receiving unsolicited marketing. Please note, however, that these services will not prevent you from receiving marketing communications that you have consented to receive.
12. Can I Withhold Information?
You may access certain areas of our Site without providing any personal data at all. However, to use all features and functions available on our Site you may be required to submit or allow for the collection of certain data.
12.1 Contractual Obligation to Provide Data
Where you place an order with us, you will need to provide certain personal data (such as your name, delivery address, email address, and payment information) in order for us to fulfil the contract. If you do not provide this information, we will be unable to process your order or deliver your goods. There is no statutory (legal) obligation for you to provide personal data to us; however, failure to provide the data necessary for the performance of a contract will mean we cannot complete your purchase.
12.2 Cookies
You may restrict our use of Cookies. For more information, see Section 14 and our Cookie Policy.
13. How Can I Access My Personal Data?
If you want to know what personal data we have about you, you can ask us for details of that personal data and for a copy of it (where any such personal data is held). This is known as a “subject access request” (SAR).
All subject access requests should be made in writing and sent to the email or postal addresses shown in Section 15.
There is not normally any charge for a subject access request. If your request is “manifestly unfounded or excessive” (for example, if you make repetitive requests) a fee may be charged to cover our administrative costs in responding.
We will respond to your subject access request without undue delay and in any case within one calendar month of receiving it. In some cases, particularly if your request is complex, more time may be required, up to a maximum of three months from the date we receive your request. If we need to extend the deadline, we will inform you within the first month and explain why the extension is necessary.
14. How Do We Use Cookies?
Our Site may place and access certain first-party Cookies on your computer or device. First-party Cookies are those placed directly by us and are used only by us. We use Cookies to facilitate and improve your experience of our Site and to provide and improve our products and services. We have carefully chosen these Cookies and have taken steps to ensure that your privacy and personal data is protected and respected at all times.
By using our Site, you may also receive certain third-party Cookies on your computer or device. Third-party Cookies are those placed by websites, services, and/or parties other than us. Third-party Cookies are used on our Site for analytics and security purposes. These Cookies are not integral to the functioning of our Site and your use and experience of our Site will not be impaired by refusing consent to them.
All Cookies used by and on our Site are used in accordance with current Cookie Law, including the Privacy and Electronic Communications (EC Directive) Regulations 2003 as amended.
Before non-essential Cookies are placed on your computer or device, you will be shown a prompt requesting your consent to set those Cookies. By giving your consent to the placing of Cookies you are enabling us to provide the best possible experience and service to you. You may, if you wish, deny consent to the placing of non-essential Cookies; however certain features of our Site may not function fully or as intended.
Certain features of our Site depend on Cookies to function. Cookie Law deems these Cookies to be “strictly necessary”. Your consent will not be sought to place these Cookies, but it is still important that you are aware of them. You may still block these Cookies by changing your internet browser’s settings, but please be aware that our Site may not work properly if you do so.
The following Cookies may be placed on your computer or device:
STRICTLY NECESSARY COOKIES (no consent required): | Name | Provider | Purpose | Duration | Party | |——|———-|———|———-|——-| | wfvt_ | Wordfence | Security — protects the site against malicious attacks. | Session | First | | woocommerce_cart_hash | WooCommerce | Helps determine when the shopping cart contents or data changes. | Session | First | | woocommerce_items_in_cart | WooCommerce | Helps determine when the shopping cart contents or data changes. | Session | First | | wp_woocommerce_session_ | WooCommerce | Contains a unique code for each customer so that WooCommerce knows where to find the cart data in the database. | 2 days | First | | woocommerce_recently_viewed | WooCommerce | Powers the Recently Viewed Products widget on the site. | Session | First | | wordpress_logged_in_[hash] | WordPress | Used to identify logged-in users and provide access to account areas. Only set when you log in. | Session / 14 days if “Remember Me” selected | First | | wp-settings-time-[UID] | WordPress | Stores personalised dashboard and interface settings for logged-in users. | 1 year | First | | wordpress_test_cookie | WordPress | Used to check whether the browser accepts cookies. | Session | First |
NON-ESSENTIAL COOKIES (consent required): | Name | Provider | Purpose | Duration | Party | |——|———-|———|———-|——-| | _ga | Google Analytics | Used to distinguish users for analytics purposes. | 2 years | First | | _gid | Google Analytics | Used to distinguish users for analytics purposes. | 24 hours | First | | _gat | Google Analytics | Used to throttle the request rate to Google Analytics. | 1 minute | First | | is_unique / sc_is_visitor_unique | StatCounter | Used to collect anonymous visitor statistics including page views, visit duration, and traffic sources. | 5 years | Third |
Our Site uses analytics services provided by Google and StatCounter. Website analytics refers to a set of tools used to collect and analyse anonymous usage information, enabling us to better understand how our Site is used. This, in turn, enables us to improve our Site and the products and services offered through it. You do not have to allow us to use these Cookies, and whilst our use of them does not pose any risk to your privacy or your safe use of our Site, it does enable us to continually improve our Site.
In addition to the controls that we provide, you can choose to enable or disable Cookies in your internet browser. Most internet browsers also enable you to choose whether you wish to disable all Cookies or only third-party Cookies. By default, most internet browsers accept Cookies, but this can be changed. For further details, please consult the help menu in your internet browser or the documentation that came with your device.
You can choose to delete Cookies on your computer or device at any time; however, you may lose any information that enables you to access our Site more quickly and efficiently, including but not limited to login and personalisation settings.
It is recommended that you keep your internet browser and operating system up to date and that you consult the help and guidance provided by the developer of your internet browser and manufacturer of your computer or device if you are unsure about adjusting your privacy settings.
For more details, please refer to our Cookie Policy.
15. How Do I Contact You?
To contact us about anything to do with your personal data and data protection, including to make a subject access request or to lodge a complaint, please use the following details:
Email address: thebookdragonteam@thebookdragon.co.uk
Telephone number: 01642 670906
Postal address: The Book Dragon, Room 6, 42 High Street, Stockton on Tees, TS18 1SB.
16. Children’s Privacy
Our Site sells children’s books and may therefore be visited by parents and guardians purchasing on behalf of children. We do not knowingly collect personal data from children under the age of 16. If you are a parent or guardian and you believe your child has provided us with personal data, please contact us using the details in Section 15 and we will take steps to delete that information.
17. Data Breach Notification
In the event of a personal data breach that is likely to result in a risk to the rights and freedoms of individuals, we will notify the Information Commissioner’s Office without undue delay and, where feasible, within 72 hours of becoming aware of the breach. Where a breach is likely to result in a high risk to your rights and freedoms, we will also notify you directly without undue delay.
18. Changes to This Privacy Policy
We may change this Privacy Policy from time to time. This may be necessary, for example, if the law changes, or if we change our business in a way that affects personal data protection.
Any changes will be immediately posted on our Site and you will be deemed to have accepted the terms of the Privacy Policy on your first use of our Site following the alterations. We recommend that you check this page regularly to keep up to date.
This Privacy Policy was last updated on 13 February 2026.
