Policies at Royal Treasures
Important to know
In today’s shopping market, we believe that honesty is the best policy. That’s why we designed the most generous, fair and transparent store policy for our customers. Read the following sections to find out more about how we ship or exchange products, or about how we secure your personal data.
Our Shipping Policy
Because we care
Courier import and customs fees
We ship from Europe. Import taxes and/or VAT may apply to purchases from other countries outside of the European Union. Buyers are responsible for investigating and paying any import duties that may be due for importing vintage and antique items into their own countries.
We cannot refund postage charges for items returned due to non-payment of import fees as they cannot be reclaimed. We also have to pay a return postage cost for unclaimed items. We would hope all customers keep an eye on tracking which we supply once your package is on it’s way.
Parcel delays or loss
We nearly always ship within one working day but sometimes delays happen when an item is on it’s way that are out of our control. We cannot guarantee the services of our courier services or those in international destinations. Pile ups at customs is the most common cause of delay. It is not uncommon to see delays at borders of a week or so as items need to be checked or customs formalities completed.
An item is usually considered lost when tracking has not been updated for twenty working days and it is at that point we can start an investigation / claim. Loss is very rare, maybe 1 in 1000 parcels. An investigation will often reveal a parcels location but if the courier confirms an item is lost you will receive a full refund. Investigations are usually completed within twenty working days.
Receiving parcels
Please be sure that your receiving location is secure. It is the buyer’s responsibility to provide a secure location for receiving packages. Couriers and postal insurers do NOT cover theft once your package has been marked as delivered by tracking. If a “porch pirate” makes off with your package it won’t be covered by shipping insurance, you will need to file under your home insurance and file a police report.
If your receiving location isn’t secure, you may consider using a package receiving company or asking a family member to receive it. Signed for services are available at checkout to ensure parcels are not left without a signature. Note we can only ship to the shipping address that comes through with your order.
Damaged or unwanted items. Refunds and Exchanges
Returns
How we do it
Due to the difficulties of shopping online and not actually being able to hold and feel items we are happy to provide refunds for unwanted items that do not fit in quite as expected. Buyers will though be responsible for transit costs. Please contact us within 10 days of receipt through our contact form here to make a return.
If your parcel looks severely damaged upon receipt, please check the contents before accepting it or refuse the package if there are signs of the contents being broken. A photo would be very useful too. That way return to us is free and we can issue you a refund quickly.
In the event an item arrives damaged or broken beyond the description in the original listing please photograph any damaged packing and the item itself and contact us through our contact form here. In this case we will ask you to return the item but we will cover all return costs and refund you your full initial payment including postage (sometimes return may not be necessary and photos will suffice for a refund to be issued depending on courier insurance requirements).
Making a claim for broken items only usually takes a few working days once we have all the photos we need. If the insurers decide an item needs to be returned a refund will be issued once the item comes back to us
Warranty Information
Essential information
This is your Warranty Disclaimer section. It’s a great place to inform your site visitors about all the services that are offered once they buy one of your products. This section should include all of the relevant information about the way your customers should use or manage the products that they purchased on your site. The disclaimer is legally binding, so use straightforward language to earn their trust and loyalty.
Privacy at Royal Treasures
Your data is safe
RT – Royal Treasures
Data protection policy
Context and overview
Key details
Policy prepared by: Royal Treasures .
Approved by management on: 9th November 2021
Policy became operational on: 21th February 2015
Next review date: October 2025
Introduction
Royal Treasures needs to gather and use certain information about
individuals.
These can include customers, suppliers, business contacts, employees and other
people the organization has a relationship with or may need to contact.
This policy describes how this personal data must be collected, handled and stored
to meet the company’s data protection standards — and to comply with the law.
Why this policy exists
This data protection policy ensures Royal Treasures :
Complies with data protection law and follow good practice
Protects the rights of staff, customers and partners
Is open about how it stores and processes individuals’ data
Protects itself from the risks of a data breach
Data protection law
The Data Protection Act 1998 describes how organizations — including
Royal Treasures — must collect, handle and store personal information.
These rules apply regardless of whether data is stored electronically, on paper or on
other materials.
To comply with the law, personal information must be collected and used fairly,
stored safely and not disclosed unlawfully.
The Data Protection Act is underpinned by eight important principles. These say that
personal data must:
1. Be processed fairly and lawfully
2. Be obtained only for specific, lawful purposes
3. Be adequate, relevant and not excessive
4. Be accurate and kept up to date
5. Not be held for any longer than necessary
6. Processed in accordance with the rights of data subjects
7. Be protected in appropriate ways
8. Not be transferred outside the European Economic Area (EEA), unless that
country or territory also ensures an adequate level of protection
People, risks and responsibilities
Policy scope
This policy applies to:
The head office of Royal Treasures
All branches of Royal Treasures
All staff and volunteers of Royal Treasures
All contractors, suppliers and other people working on behalf of Royal Treasures
It applies to all data that the company holds relating to identifiable individuals, even
if that information technically falls outside of the Data Protection Act 1998. This can
include:
Names of individuals
Postal addresses
Email addresses
Telephone numbers
…plus any other information relating to individuals
Data protection risks
This policy helps to protect Royal Treasures from some very real data
security risks, including:
Breaches of confidentiality. For instance, information being given out
inappropriately.
Failing to offer choice. For instance, all individuals should be free to choose
how the company uses data relating to them.
Reputational damage. For instance, the company could suffer if hackers
successfully gained access to sensitive data.
Responsibilities
Everyone who works for or with European Vintage Emporium has some
responsibility for ensuring data is collected, stored and handled appropriately.
Each team that handles personal data must ensure that it is handled and processed
in line with this policy and data protection principles.
However, these people have key areas of responsibility:
The board of directors is ultimately responsible for ensuring that Royal Treasures
meets its legal obligations.
The data protection officer is responsible for:
o Keeping the board updated about data protection responsibilities,
risks and issues.
o Reviewing all data protection procedures and related policies, in line
with an agreed schedule.
o Arranging data protection training and advice for the people covered
by this policy.
o Handling data protection questions from staff and anyone else
covered by this policy.
o Dealing with requests from individuals to see the data Royal Treasures
holds about them (also called ‘subject access
requests’).
o Checking and approving any contracts or agreements with third
parties that may handle the company’s sensitive data.
The IT manager, is responsible for:
o Ensuring all systems, services and equipment used for storing data
meet acceptable security standards.
o Performing regular checks and scans to ensure security hardware and
software is functioning properly.
o Evaluating any third-party services the company is considering using
to store or process data. For instance, cloud computing services.
The marketing manager, is responsible for:
o Approving any data protection statements attached to
communications such as emails and letters.
o Addressing any data protection queries from journalists or media
outlets like newspapers.
o Where necessary, working with other staff to ensure marketing
initiatives abide by data protection principles.
General staff guidelines
The only people able to access data covered by this policy should be those
who need it for their work.
Data should not be shared informally. When access to confidential
information is required, employees can request it from their line managers.
Royal Treasures will provide training to all employees to help
them understand their responsibilities when handling data.
Employees should keep all data secure, by taking sensible precautions and
following the guidelines below.
In particular, strong passwords must be used and they should never be
shared.
Personal data should not be disclosed to unauthorized people, either within
the company or externally.
Data should be regularly reviewed and updated if it is found to be out of
date. If no longer required, it should be deleted and disposed of.
Employees should request help from their line manager or the data
protection officer if they are unsure about any aspect of data protection.
Data storage
These rules describe how and where data should be safely stored. Questions about
storing data safely can be directed to the IT manager or data controller.
When data is stored on paper, it should be kept in a secure place where
unauthorized people cannot see it.
These guidelines also apply to data that is usually stored electronically but has been
printed out for some reason:
When not required, the paper or files should be kept in a locked drawer or
filing cabinet.
Employees should make sure paper and printouts are not left where
unauthorized people could see them, like on a printer.
Data printouts should be shredded and disposed of securely when no longer
required.
When data is stored electronically, it must be protected from unauthorized access,
accidental deletion and malicious hacking attempts:
Data should be protected by strong passwords that are changed regularly
and never shared between employees.
If data is stored on removable media (like a CD or DVD), these should be kept
locked away securely when not being used.
Data should only be stored on designated drives and servers, and should
only be uploaded to an approved cloud computing services.
Servers containing personal data should be sited in a secure location, away
from general office space.
Data should be backed up frequently. Those backups should be tested
regularly, in line with the company’s standard backup procedures.
Data should never be saved directly to laptops or other mobile devices like
tablets or smart phones.
All servers and computers containing data should be protected by approved
security software and a firewall.
Data use
Personal data is of no value to European Vintage Emporium unless the business can
make use of it. However, it is when personal data is accessed and used that it can be
at the greatest risk of loss, corruption or theft:
When working with personal data, employees should ensure the screens of
their computers are always locked when left unattended.
Personal data should not be shared informally. In particular, it should never
be sent by email, as this form of communication is not secure.
Data must be encrypted before being transferred electronically. The IT
manager can explain how to send data to authorized external contacts.
Personal data should never be transferred outside of the European
Economic Area.
Employees should not save copies of personal data to their own computers.
Always access and update the central copy of any data.
Data accuracy
The law requires Royal Treasures to take reasonable steps to ensure
data is kept accurate and up to date.
The more important it is that the personal data is accurate, the greater the effort
Royal Treasures should put into ensuring its accuracy.
It is the responsibility of all employees who work with data to take reasonable steps
to ensure it is kept as accurate and up to date as possible.
Data will be held in as few places as necessary. Staff should not create any
unnecessary additional data sets.
Staff should take every opportunity to ensure data is updated. For instance,
by confirming a customer’s details when they call.
Royal Treasures will make it easy for data subjects to update
the information Royal Treasures holds about them. For
instance, via the company website.
Data should be updated as inaccuracies are discovered. For instance, if a
customer can no longer be reached on their stored telephone number, it
should be removed from the database.
It is the marketing manager’s responsibility to ensure marketing databases
are checked against industry suppression files every six months.
Subject access requests
All individuals who are the subject of personal data held by Royal Treasures are entitled to:
Ask what information the company holds about them and why.
Ask how to gain access to it.
Be informed how to keep it up to date.
Be informed how the company is meeting its data protection obligations.
Be allowed to delete any and all data held on them on request
If an individual contacts the company requesting this information or asking for it to
be deleted, this is called a subject access request.
Subject access requests from individuals should be made by email, addressed to the
data controller at info@theroyaltreasure.com The data controller can
supply a standard request form, although individuals do not have to use this.
Individuals will be charged 20$ per subject access request. The data controller will
aim to provide the relevant data within 14 days.
The data controller will always verify the identity of anyone making a subject access
request before handing over any information or deleting any information.
Disclosing data for other reasons
In certain circumstances, the Data Protection Act allows personal data to be
disclosed to law enforcement agencies without the consent of the data subject.
Under these circumstances, Royal Treasures will disclose requested
data. However, the data controller will ensure the request is legitimate, seeking
assistance from the board and from the company’s legal advisers where necessary.
Providing information
Royal Treasures aims to ensure that individuals are aware that their
data is being processed, and that they understand:
How the data is being used
How to exercise their rights
To these ends, the company has a privacy statement, setting out how data relating
to individuals is used by the company.