Santander Cycles

Personal information we hold

If you are a registered Santander Cycles member, or Business Account holder, the information we hold about you may include:

• Title
• Name
• Address
• Email address
• Telephone/mobile number
• Password, security question and answer
• Billing preferences
• Payment card information or bank account and sort code
• Marketing and communication preferences
• Cycle Access Key reference number
• The location, date and time a cycle was hired and docked
• Enquiries, complaints or other correspondence from you

On occasion, TfL will ask you for the name and address details of additional users who you have authorised to use the bikes. This may be in connection with a claim made on the scheme's Public Liability Insurance or in relation to the terms and conditions or code of conduct.

Legal basis for using your information

Under data protection legislation, TfL is only allowed to use personal information if we have a proper reason or 'legal basis' to do so. In the case of Santander Cycles, there are a number of these legal grounds we rely on, which are:

• Our statutory and public functions:
  • to undertake activities to promote and encourage safe, integrated, efficient and economic transport facilities and services, and to deliver the Mayor's Transport Strategy
• Where you have given your consent to TfL, for example where:
  • you have opted in to receive marketing messages or in-app notifications from us
  • you have asked the contact centre to resolve an issue or complaint for you
  • you agree to enable location services or notifications within the Santander Cycles app
• For the 'performance of a contract', for example:
  • in connection with the purchase of a cycle hire key, annual membership or short term hire
  • where you have created an online account or downloaded the app so we can provide additional services to you

Obtaining and using your information

The personal information we hold is provided by you when you register to become a Santander Cycles member, either via our website or app. We also record information about your journey on each occasion you hire or dock a bike (ie where you start and finish your trip, together with the date and time).

We use your personal information to provide you with access to the cycle hire scheme, to process your payments and to provide you with customer services associated with being a member.

If you are a registered Santander Cycles member, we may send you information from time to time on issues relating to cycling in London via email. This might include:

• A series of Welcome emails when you first join - with information on how to use the scheme and other useful cycling information
• Important changes to the scheme such as availability of bikes, new docking stations, changes to fees
• Cycling safety
• Monthly and annual summaries of your scheme usage and cycling milestones
• New ways to pay for, or access, the scheme
• Consultations about TfL's plans for cycling in London
• Cycling routes, Cycle Super Highways or Cycle Quietways

You will be able to unsubscribe from any or all of these messages at any time.

We will only send you information about TfL's offers and promotions if you choose to receive it and you will be able to change your marketing preferences at any time.

On occasion we may also send you details of surveys for you to participate in. Some of these surveys will be sent to you based on your use of TfL services (e.g. services used, frequency of use, etc). These emails will include the ability to opt out of receiving future surveys.

We will not pass your personal information on to any other organisation for marketing purposes without your prior consent. In addition we do not sell or rent personal information to third parties for any purpose.

If you contact Customer Services, we will need to collect information from you so that we can respond to your query or request. If you phone us we may record your call and this allows us to train staff, review call quality and have access to a verbal record of what has been said in the event of a subsequent complaint. At the end of your contact with us, we may email you to take part in a customer satisfaction survey about your experience with Customer Services. This will help us to monitor our performance, improve quality and plan for future services.  

We sometimes also undertake analysis or research into the types of subjects that commonly cause customer concerns and complaints.  For example we might look for key words or themes and this helps us improve and plan our services for the future. Pseudonymisation, or other appropriate data minimisation techniques are applied so that we can analyse the subject matter without needing to know the identity of the person themselves. This is a way of protecting people's privacy in line with the Information Commissioner's Anonymisation Code of Practice.

Some of our docking stations have CCTV cameras installed. This is for the purposes of preventing and detecting crime and antisocial behaviour.

Occasionally TfL may use aggregated or depersonalised Santander Cycles information to carry out research and analysis, for example, to assess the effectiveness of road or passenger safety initiatives. We may also use it to identify improvements we might need to make to the scheme. Individuals will not be identified using this information.

Choosing not to provide personal information

If you choose not to provide personal information to us, you will not be able to open an online account or become a registered Santander Cycles member. However, you can still make use of Santander Cycles as a casual user at any time

It may also delay or prevent us from offering other services to you such as the resolution of complaints or concerns.

Length of time we keep your information

TfL will retain personal information in line with its data retention policies. This means that we will not hold information for longer than is necessary for the purposes we obtained it for.

We will keep your personal information for as long as you're a customer or member of Santander Cycles.

After you stop being a customer or member we will keep your information for up to seven years. This is for the following reasons:

• To respond to correspondence, concerns or complaints
• To maintain records according to rules that apply to us (for example financial regulations)
• To establish and defend any legal rights

Call recordings made when you contact Customer Services are kept for 6 months.

Keeping your information secure

We take the privacy of our customers very seriously, and a range of robust policies, processes and technical measures are in place to control and safeguard access to, and use of, personal information associated with Santander Cycles. This includes payment card data which is handled in accordance with the Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI DSS).

We also publish guidance on the steps you can also take to protect your personal information.

Automated processing and profiling

Under data protection legislation we have to let you know when we use your personal information do something 'automatically' using our computers or other systems, or make an automated decision (without human intervention) that significantly affects you.

Any hire charges due are automatically calculated based on the times you undock and then return a cycle to a docking station. Payment is then automatically taken from your credit or debit card.

If you do not return your Santander Cycle or you damage it we may also automatically charge your credit or debit card with the relevant fee.

If you believe you have been incorrectly charged you can ask our contact centre to review those transactions.

If you're a registered member, we use your journey information to send you monthly and annual activity summaries and to send you service updates about Santander Cycles.

Sharing Santander Cycles information

We share information only in limited circumstances. We share users' personal information with our subsidiaries and service providers for the purposes of customer services and administration, payment processing, to provide travel-related information and for customer research and fraud prevention.

If you have a direct debit to pay Santander Cycles, we will share your information with the Direct Debit scheme.

In the event that you make a claim on the scheme's Public Liability Insurance for yourself or on behalf of an additional user we will, on request from the insurance provider, share relevant information with them or their agent for the purposes of verifying and processing your claim.

TfL will share your personal information with the scheme's sponsor for marketing purposes where you have explicitly agreed that we can do so. You can opt out from receiving marketing information from the Scheme Sponsor at any time by amending your marketing preferences via your online account or by telephone on 0343 222 6666.

We sometimes work with our local authority partners and other stakeholders on initiatives to encourage more active or sustainable travel. As part of this we may issue promo codes so that people can make use of Santander Cycles for free or at a reduced rate.

If you hire a bike in this way please then you should check the terms of your use with the body that provided you with your promo code. We may provide them with information relating to your usage of the code, including number of hires, average journey times and start and end points.

At our discretion, we may disclose personal information in response to valid requests from the police. Before we authorise any disclosure, the police have to demonstrate that the personal information concerned will assist them in the prevention or detection of a specific crime, or in the apprehension or prosecution of an offender. Each request from the police is dealt with on a strictly case-by-case basis to ensure that any such disclosure is lawful and in accordance with data protection legislation.

You, and any additional user authorised by you, are expected to adhere to the scheme's terms and conditions and code of conduct while using a hire bike. In the event that the police obtain information regarding non-compliance with these terms and conditions, any applicable laws and/or Santander Cycles code of conduct while you (or an additional user) are using a cycle, the police may provide TfL with details about this. Such information may be used by TfL to exclude or suspend you (or an additional user) from using Santander Cycles.

TfL may also receive or disclose personal information about customers in relation to certain emergency situations or other incidents that require an immediate response. Such events may include those involving public health, public safety or national security matters, when access to personal information is necessary to manage the incident. In some situations, we may also be required by law to disclose your personal data to the police or other enforcement, regulatory or Government body, upon a valid request to do so. These requests will be assessed on a case-by-case basis and take into account privacy considerations before a disclosure is made.

Overseas processing

TfL and its service providers may process your personal information in the UK and countries within the European Economic Area (EEA). Any such processing will be carried out in strict accordance with UK and EU privacy legislation and the appropriate contractual safeguards which TfL has put in place.

Santander Cycles business accounts

If you use Santander Cycles via a pooled or individual business account provided by your employer (or other business or charity), then you should check the terms of your use with them directly.

We may provide your Business Account Holder (or their nominated representative) with information relating to your usage of Santander Cycles, under that account, including number of hires and average journey times.

If you have an individual business account, we may also share information about the start and expiry date of your membership, eg when you activated your promo code.

Using the Santander Cycles app

If you download and use the Santander Cycles mobile app, certain information may be collected automatically, such as the type of mobile device you are using and unique identifier such as the device name or ID, Internet Protocol (IP) address, Media Access Control (MAC) address, and IMEI number.

We also use analytics (similar to cookies on websites) which are small files that capture anonymous data to help us improve the app's performance. We use them to collect information about your use of the app, such as what app content you access most frequently, or if you receive an error message when using the app.

If you opt in, we will also send you notifications via the app, or use location services to provide you with relevant information about your use of the scheme. You can change your mind at any time by amending the settings within your device.

London Riders reward scheme

From July 2021, users of the Santander Cycles app will be able to sign up to our London Riders reward scheme. When you join, we will use your personal data to administer the scheme. This includes 

•    checking your eligibility to join London Riders (eg that you meet the membership criteria)
•    administering prize draws, incentives or promotions that may be offered from time to time
•    informing you if you have won a Prize Draw and if so, issuing your prize
•    responding to queries, questions or complaints 

As part of London Riders, we may also send you updates about prizes available or your progress in the scheme. You can turn off these notification within the Santander Cycles app at any time, or opt out from these emails using the unsubscribe option in each message.  

Dependent on the nature of the reward or prize you have won it may be necessary to share your contact details with our reward prize partners so that your prize can be awarded to you. We will let you know if this is case.  

In the event of a dispute or complaint about a prize we have offered or you have won, TfL may share your personal data with the third party provider of that prize on a case by case basis, where it is  necessary for the purpose of resolving your complaint.

We will never share your personal data with any of our reward scheme partners for marketing purposes without your consent to do so.

In accordance with regulations and codes of practice on running competitions and prize draws, if you win a prize, your surname and the county/city where you live will be made available on request following the end of each prize draw. You can object to this disclosure, by contacting LondonRiders@tfl.gov.uk. Even if you have objected to the disclosure, we may still provide the information to the Advertising Standards Authority if required to do so.