Privacy Notice

1. Who we are

Compare Bills UK (comparebillsuk.co.uk) is a free, impartial comparison service for UK household bills, covering energy, broadband, mobile, insurance, home alarms and card machine comparisons. For the purposes of the UK GDPR, Compare Bills UK is the data controller responsible for the personal data you submit through this website.

You can contact us about anything in this notice using the details in section 10 below.

2. What personal data we collect

We collect personal data in two ways: information you give us directly, and information collected automatically as you browse.

Information you give us

• Postcode — used to match you with energy, broadband and mobile options available in your area today. Car insurance, home insurance and home alarms also show a postcode field, so the page reflects how the comparison will work once live — but that field is locked while the service is still on our waitlist. Nothing typed there is collected; only your email is, so we can notify you at launch. Health insurance and card machine comparisons don’t use a postcode at all.
• Vehicle registration (car insurance page only, optional once live) — shown for the same reason as above, and locked in the same way while car insurance is on the waitlist. Nothing typed there is collected either.
• Email address — used to send you your comparison results, a card machine fee estimate, a waitlist notification for any service that isn’t live yet, and, where you’ve agreed, a renewal reminder.
• Current contract renewal date (energy, broadband and mobile only) — used to send you an automated reminder around month 11 of your contract, so you can compare again before it renews. We don’t currently ask for this on services that are still joining our waitlist (insurance and home alarms) or on the card machine comparison.
• Monthly card turnover (card machine comparisons only) — used only to calculate an illustrative fee estimate in your browser; see section 3 for how this is handled.
• Any details you send us if you contact us directly, for example by email.

Information we collect automatically

• Technical data such as your IP address, browser type, device type and general location, collected via cookies and similar technologies — see our Cookie Policy for full details.
• Usage data, such as which pages you visit and which comparison category you select, used to understand how the site is used and to improve it.

We do not knowingly collect any special category data (such as health information) through the comparison forms on this site. If you provide further details directly to one of our insurance partners as part of getting a quote, that information is collected and processed by that partner under their own privacy notice — see section 4.

3. How we use your data, and our legal basis

Under UK GDPR, we must have a valid legal basis for each way we use your data. Here is how that applies on this site:

• To find and display comparison results (contract necessity / legitimate interests). We use your postcode to identify energy, broadband and mobile options relevant to you, and to pass your enquiry to the appropriate partner when you choose to proceed with a quote.
• To notify you when a waitlisted service goes live (consent). Insurance and home alarm comparisons are still being connected to an FCA-authorised or affiliate partner. By entering your email and selecting «Join the Waitlist,» you’re giving us your consent to send you the one email that tells you it’s available — we don’t use it for anything else. You can withdraw this consent at any time — see section 6.
• To provide an illustrative card machine fee estimate (legitimate interests). Your monthly turnover figure is used only to calculate an estimate directly in your browser, using indicative provider rates. It is not sent to SumUp, Square, Zettle or any other provider, and no quote is requested on your behalf — see section 4.
• To send you a renewal reminder (consent). We only send you an automated reminder around month 11 of your current contract if you have ticked the consent checkbox on the comparison form. This currently applies to energy, broadband and mobile. You can withdraw this consent at any time — see section 6.
• To keep the site secure and working properly (legitimate interests). We use limited technical data to detect and prevent fraud, abuse and technical faults.
• To understand and improve our service (legitimate interests). We use aggregated usage data to see which parts of the site are useful, and to fix or improve the parts that aren’t.

Where we rely on legitimate interests, we have considered that this use is proportionate, expected by you as a visitor comparing household bills, and does not override your own rights and interests.

4. Who we share your data with

We do not sell your personal data. We share it only where necessary to provide the comparison service you’ve asked for, and with the following types of organisation:

• FCA-authorised and regulated insurance partners. Car, home and health insurance comparisons are not yet connected to a live partner — we’re in the process of confirming our FCA Appointed Representative status. Once they are, your details will only be passed to an FCA-authorised, regulated partner, who provides the quote through a co-branded, white-label form, and that partner will process your data under their own privacy notice, which we’ll recommend you read before you proceed with a quote. Until then, joining the waitlist for these services does not share your data with any insurance partner.
• Energy, broadband, mobile and home alarm suppliers. Where you choose to proceed with a specific tariff, plan or, once alarms comparisons are live, an alarm system, your details are shared with the relevant supplier to complete your switch or sign-up.
• Card machine providers. Our card machine comparison is illustrative only — it calculates an estimate in your browser and does not send your details to SumUp, Square, Zettle or any other provider.
• Service providers who work on our behalf, such as website hosting, email delivery and analytics providers, under contracts that require them to keep your data secure and to use it only as we instruct.
• Regulators or law enforcement, where we’re required to by law.

Some of our service providers may process data on servers outside the UK. Where that happens, we make sure appropriate safeguards are in place, such as the UK’s International Data Transfer Agreement or equivalent standard contractual clauses.

5. How long we keep your data

We keep the personal data you provide for as long as needed for the purpose you gave it to us — to provide your comparison results, keep you on a waitlist until the relevant service goes live, or, where you’ve consented, send your month-11 renewal reminder — and for a short period afterwards to handle any related queries. If you join a waitlist, we keep your details until the service you asked about goes live and we’ve notified you, or until you ask us to stop, whichever comes first. If you withdraw your consent to renewal reminders, we stop using your data for that purpose and delete it from our marketing systems within a reasonable period, save for anything we need to keep to meet a legal obligation.

6. Your rights

Under UK GDPR, you have the right to:

• Access the personal data we hold about you.
• Correct inaccurate or incomplete data.
• Erase your data, in certain circumstances.
• Restrict or object to our processing of your data, in certain circumstances.
• Data portability — receive your data in a portable format, in certain circumstances.
• Withdraw consent at any time, where we rely on consent — for example, by using the unsubscribe link in any reminder email, or by contacting us directly.

To exercise any of these rights, contact us using the details in section 10. We’ll respond within one month, as required by law.

7. Cookies

We use cookies and similar technologies to run the site, understand how it’s used, and, in future, to support our marketing. Full details of what we use and how to manage your preferences are set out in our Cookie Policy.

8. Children

Compare Bills UK is intended for use by adults aged 18 and over comparing household bills and insurance in the UK. We do not knowingly collect personal data from children.

9. Changes to this notice

We may update this notice from time to time, for example to reflect changes in the law or in how we use your data. The «Last updated» date at the top of this page shows when it was last revised. We encourage you to check back periodically.

10. How to contact us, and the ICO

If you’re unhappy with how we’ve handled your data, you have the right to complain to the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO), the UK’s data protection regulator: