This Privacy Policy explains how The Mason Collective ("we", "us", "our") collects, uses, stores and protects your personal data when you use our website, submit an enquiry form, sign up to our newsletter or otherwise communicate with us. We are committed to handling your data responsibly and in compliance with the UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR) and the Data Protection Act 2018.
Please read this policy carefully. By using our website or submitting your personal information to us, you confirm that you have read and understood this policy. If you have any questions, please contact us at max@masonalpineco.com.
1. Who We Are
The Mason Collective is a luxury travel advisory business operating through three divisions: Mason Alpine Co., Mason Escapes Co. and Mason Events Co. For the purposes of data protection law, The Mason Collective is the data controller responsible for your personal data.
Contact details:
Email: max@masonalpineco.com
WhatsApp: +44 7592 536185
2. What Personal Data We Collect
We collect personal data in the following circumstances:
Enquiry forms
When you submit an enquiry via any form on our website, we collect:
- Your full name
- Your email address
- Your telephone number (if provided)
- Your preferred travel destination or event
- Any additional details you choose to share about your trip (travel dates, group size, budget, preferences)
Newsletter sign-up
When you subscribe to our newsletter, we collect:
- Your email address
Trip planning and bookings
During the process of planning and confirming a trip or booking, we may additionally collect:
- Passport details (for flight bookings)
- Dietary requirements and accessibility needs (where relevant to accommodation or travel)
- Payment information (handled securely by our payment providers — we do not store payment card data ourselves)
- Emergency contact details
Website usage
Our website does not currently use tracking cookies or analytics tools that collect personal data without your knowledge. If this changes, we will update this policy and seek your consent where required.
Communications
If you contact us by email, WhatsApp or any other channel, we will retain a record of that communication.
3. How We Use Your Personal Data
We use the personal data we collect for the following purposes:
Responding to enquiries (legitimate interest / contract)
When you submit an enquiry, we use your contact details and trip information to respond to your enquiry, provide quotes, answer questions and plan your trip. This processing is necessary to take steps at your request prior to entering into a contract (UK GDPR Article 6(1)(b)) and on the basis of our legitimate interest in running our business (Article 6(1)(f)).
Planning and managing your trip (contract)
Once a trip is confirmed, we use the personal data collected to make reservations, purchase flights, coordinate transfers, communicate with hotels and suppliers and manage all aspects of your trip on your behalf. This is necessary for the performance of our contract with you (Article 6(1)(b)).
Marketing and newsletter (consent)
We will only send you marketing emails or our newsletter if you have specifically opted in to receive them. You may withdraw your consent at any time by clicking "unsubscribe" in any email we send you or by emailing max@masonalpineco.com. Withdrawal of consent does not affect the lawfulness of any processing carried out before withdrawal. This processing is based on your consent (Article 6(1)(a)).
Legal and regulatory compliance (legal obligation)
We may retain certain records as required by applicable law or regulation. This processing is based on our legal obligations (Article 6(1)(c)).
4. How Long We Keep Your Data
We retain personal data only for as long as necessary for the purposes described in this policy:
- Enquiries that do not result in a booking: We retain your data for up to 12 months from the date of last contact, after which it is securely deleted unless you have asked us to keep it on file for future trips.
- Confirmed bookings: We retain trip-related records for 7 years from the date of the trip, in line with our financial record-keeping obligations.
- Newsletter subscribers: We retain your email address until you unsubscribe.
- Communications: We retain email and messaging records for up to 3 years unless a longer retention period is required by law.
5. Who We Share Your Data With
We do not sell or rent your personal data to any third party. We may share your data with:
- Hotels, airlines and other travel suppliers — where necessary to make reservations and fulfil your booking. We share only the minimum data required (typically name, contact details and relevant trip information).
- FORA Travel — our preferred-partner travel network, for the purposes of applying hotel perks and benefits to your booking.
- Payment processors — to process payments securely. We do not store payment card data.
- Email service providers — for the purpose of sending our newsletter and transactional emails. These providers process data on our behalf and under our instructions.
- Professional advisors — solicitors or accountants, where necessary and subject to professional confidentiality obligations.
- Regulatory bodies or law enforcement — where required by law or legal process.
All third parties who process personal data on our behalf are required to do so in compliance with applicable data protection law.
6. International Transfers
Some of our third-party suppliers (for example, hotels and airlines in destinations outside the UK) may be located in countries outside the United Kingdom. Where we transfer personal data internationally, we take appropriate steps to ensure that such transfers are made in accordance with UK GDPR requirements, including relying on adequacy decisions, standard contractual clauses or other appropriate safeguards where applicable.
7. Your Rights Under UK GDPR
Under UK data protection law, you have the following rights in relation to your personal data:
- Right of access: You have the right to request a copy of the personal data we hold about you.
- Right to rectification: You have the right to ask us to correct any inaccurate or incomplete personal data we hold about you.
- Right to erasure ("right to be forgotten"): You have the right to ask us to delete your personal data in certain circumstances, including where we no longer need it for the purpose for which it was collected.
- Right to restriction of processing: You have the right to ask us to stop or limit the processing of your data in certain circumstances.
- Right to data portability: Where processing is based on consent or contract and carried out by automated means, you have the right to receive your personal data in a structured, commonly used and machine-readable format.
- Right to object: You have the right to object to processing based on legitimate interests or for direct marketing purposes.
- Right to withdraw consent: Where processing is based on consent, you may withdraw that consent at any time without affecting the lawfulness of processing before withdrawal.
To exercise any of these rights, please contact us at max@masonalpineco.com. We will respond to all requests within one month. We may need to verify your identity before processing your request.
8. Right to Complain
If you are dissatisfied with how we have handled your personal data, you have the right to lodge a complaint with the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO), the UK's data protection supervisory authority. You can contact the ICO at ico.org.uk or by calling 0303 123 1113. We would, however, appreciate the opportunity to address your concerns before you contact the ICO, so please reach out to us first.
9. Data Security
We take the security of your personal data seriously and implement appropriate technical and organisational measures to protect it against unauthorised access, loss, destruction or alteration. Access to personal data is restricted to those who need it to perform their role. However, please note that no method of transmission over the internet is completely secure, and we cannot guarantee the absolute security of data transmitted to us electronically.
10. Links to Third-Party Websites
Our website may contain links to third-party websites, including hotel websites, booking platforms and social media. We are not responsible for the privacy practices of those websites and encourage you to read their privacy policies before providing any personal data to them.
11. Changes to This Policy
We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in our practices or applicable law. We will post the updated policy on this page with a revised "last updated" date. We encourage you to review this policy periodically. Significant changes will be notified to newsletter subscribers by email where practicable.
12. Contact Us
If you have any questions about this Privacy Policy, the data we hold about you, or wish to exercise any of your rights, please contact us:
The Mason Collective
Email: max@masonalpineco.com
WhatsApp: +44 7592 536185