Privacy Policy

View Referrals

Last updated: 7th July 2026

1. Who we are

View Referrals (“View Referrals”, “we”, “us”, “our”) is an independent veterinary ophthalmology referral service operating across Central Scotland, led by Michael and Richard McCallum. We provide referral eye-care services to pets, working with referring veterinary practices and directly with pet owners.

Data controller: View Referrals

Registered/trading address: Nether Easter Offerance, Buchlyvie, Stirling, Scotland, FK8 3LZ

Company number: SC838881

Contact email: info@viewreferrals.co.uk

Contact phone: 07344 407 630

If you have any questions about this policy or how we handle your personal data, please contact us using the details above.

This policy explains how we collect, use, store and protect personal data when you:

• Visit our website, www.viewreferrals.co.uk (“the Site”);
• Contact us by phone, email, or through a form on the Site (e.g., “Make a Referral”, “Request Advice”, or “Contact Us”);
• Are referred to us as a pet owner by a veterinary practice, or refer a patient to us as a veterinary professional; or
• Otherwise, interact with us in connection with our veterinary ophthalmology services.

This policy should be read alongside our Cookie Policy, which explains in more detail how we use cookies and similar technologies on the Site.

2. The personal data we collect

We collect personal data about people (pet owners, referring vets and their staff, and other enquirers). We are not required to treat information about an animal patient (e.g. a pet’s name, breed, or clinical history) as “personal data” in its own right, but where that information is combined with, or could identify, an individual person, we treat the combined record with the same care described in this policy.

Depending on how you interact with us, we may collect:

• Contact details – first name, surname, email address, telephone number, postal address.
• Referral and enquiry information – details submitted through our “Make a Referral”, “Request Advice”, or “Contact Us” forms, including the nature of your enquiry, your pet’s details (name, species, breed, age), clinical history and relevant veterinary records shared by you or your referring practice, and any messages or attachments you choose to send us.
• Referring practice details – where a referral is made by a veterinary practice, the name of the practice, the referring vet’s name, and their contact details.
• Correspondence – records of calls, emails, and messages between you and us, including for training, quality, and record-keeping purposes.
• Website usage data – technical and analytics information collected automatically when you browse the Site, such as IP address, browser type, device information, pages visited, and referral source. See our Cookie Policy for details.

We do not knowingly collect financial/payment card data through the Site; if fees are discussed or invoiced, this is typically handled separately (e.g. by phone, in person, or via the referring practice) and any card payments would be processed by a third-party payment provider that does not share full card details with us.

3. How we collect personal data

• Directly from you, when you complete a form on the site, email or call us, or otherwise correspond with us.
• From a referring veterinary practice, when a vet refers your pet to us for ophthalmology assessment or treatment, together with relevant clinical history.
• Automatically, through cookies and similar technologies when you use the Site (see our cookie policy).
• From third parties, such as Google Maps (for directions to our clinic locations) or social media platforms (Facebook and Instagram), where you interact with content we have linked to or embedded.

4. How we use your personal data and our lawful basis

Under UK data protection law (the UK GDPR and the Data Protection Act 2018), we must have a lawful basis for processing your personal data. We rely on the following:

Where we rely on legitimate interests, we have considered that our processing is necessary and proportionate and that it does not unfairly override your rights. You can ask us for more detail about this balancing test at any time.

We do not carry out any automated decision-making or profiling that produces legal or similarly significant effects on you.

5. Who we share your personal data with

We do not sell your personal data. We may share it with:

• Referring veterinary practices and, where relevant, your usual/primary care vet so that your pet receives continuity of care.
• Host veterinary practices where our clinics are based for the purposes of running clinics at their premises and, where applicable, out-of-hours care arrangements.
• IT, hosting, and website service providers, including our website developer/host (Pumpkin Web Design Ltd) and any form, email, or analytics providers used to operate the site.
• Professional advisers, such as accountants, insurers, or legal advisers, where necessary.
• Regulatory or professional bodies, such as the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons (RCVS), where required by our professional obligations.
• Law enforcement or regulators, where we are required to do so by law.
• A prospective buyer or successor, in the event of a sale, merger, or restructuring of the business, subject to appropriate confidentiality protections.

Any third party that processes personal data on our behalf does so under a written agreement requiring them to keep it secure and use it only for the purposes we specify.

6. International transfers

Our website and communication tools may involve service providers (for example, Google, or social media platforms such as Meta) that can transfer data outside the UK. Where this happens, we rely on appropriate safeguards recognised under UK data protection law, such as the UK’s international data transfer provisions or the provider’s own adequacy/standard contractual arrangements. You can contact us for more information about the safeguards in place for a specific transfer.

7. How long we keep your data

We keep personal data only for as long as necessary for the purposes described in this policy, including:

• Clinical and referral records: for as long as required by veterinary professional and regulatory standards (typically several years after the last treatment or contact, in line with RCVS guidance and our insurers’ requirements).
• General enquiries submitted through our forms that do not lead to a referral are typically retained for a limited period (e.g., up to 24 months) to allow us to follow up, then deleted or anonymised.
• Financial and accounting records: as required by HMRC and other legal obligations (generally 6 years).
• Website analytics data: in line with the retention periods of the relevant analytics/cookie tool, as set out in our Cookie Policy.

Where we no longer need personal data, we securely delete or anonymise it.

8. Your rights

Under UK data protection law, you have the right to:

• Be informed about how we use your personal data (this policy).
• Access a copy of the personal data we hold about you.
• Rectification of inaccurate or incomplete data.
• Erasure of your data in certain circumstances (“right to be forgotten”).
• Restrict our processing of your data in certain circumstances.
• Object to processing based on legitimate interests or for direct marketing.
• Data portability, where processing is based on consent or contract and is carried out by automated means.
• Withdraw consent at any time, where processing is based on consent (this does not affect the lawfulness of processing before withdrawal).

To exercise any of these rights, please contact us at info@viewreferrals.co.uk. We will respond within one month, as required by law. We may need to verify your identity before actioning a request.

If you are not satisfied with how we have handled your personal data, you have the right to complain to the UK’s data protection regulator:

Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO)

Website: https://ico.org.uk

Telephone: 0303 123 1113

9. Keeping your data secure

We use appropriate technical and organisational measures to protect personal data against unauthorised access, loss, misuse, or alteration, including secure website hosting, access controls, and staff awareness of data protection obligations. No method of transmission over the internet or electronic storage is completely secure, but we work to protect your data to industry standards.

10. Children

Our services relate to veterinary care and are not directed at children. We do not knowingly collect personal data from children through the site. If you believe a child has provided us with personal data, please contact us so we can remove it.

11. Links to other websites and third-party content

The site may contain links to third-party websites (for example, Google Maps directions or our Facebook and Instagram pages) or embed third-party content. We are not responsible for the privacy practices of those third parties, and we encourage you to review their privacy policies separately.

12. Changes to this policy

We may update this policy from time to time, for example, to reflect changes in our practices or legal requirements. The “Last updated” date at the top of this page shows when it was last revised. We encourage you to review this policy periodically.

13. Contact us

If you have any questions about this Privacy Policy or how we handle your personal data, please contact:

View Referrals

Email: info@viewreferrals.co.uk

Phone: 07344 407 630

Address: Nether Easter Offerance, Buchlyvie, Stirling, Scotland, FK8 3LZ