Privacy Policy

LocalHands is an online marketplace that connects homeowners ("Customers") with independent service providers ("Contractors" or "Providers") across South Africa. We facilitate the discovery, communication, booking, and payment for home services including cleaning, gardening, childcare, handyman work, tech support, beauty, catering, moving, and security installations.

This Privacy Policy applies to all users of localhands.co.za, our mobile-optimised site, and any related services or communications. It covers personal information collected from both Customers and Service Providers.

2.1 Information You Provide Directly

• Registration data: Full name, email address, phone number, and password when you create an account.
• Profile information: Profile photo, bio, service descriptions, pricing, years of experience, and portfolio images (for Providers).
• Identity & business details (Providers only): Business name, registration number, CIPC details, and supporting documentation submitted during the provider application process.
• Service requests: Job descriptions, preferred dates, addresses, and any details you share when requesting a service.
• Messages: Content of conversations between Customers and Providers through our in-platform chat system.
• Reviews and ratings: Feedback you submit about Providers or your booking experience.
• Contact forms: Name, email, subject, and message when you contact our support team.

2.2 Information Collected Automatically

• Device & technical data: IP address, browser type and version, operating system, device identifiers, and referring URLs.
• Usage data: Pages viewed, search queries, filters applied, links clicked, and time spent on pages.
• Location data: GPS coordinates if you grant location permission (used to show nearby contractors). See Section 7.
• Session data: Recently viewed contractor profiles stored in your browser session to improve browsing convenience.
• Cookies and similar technologies: See Section 6 for full details.

2.3 Information from Third Parties

• Payment processors: We receive transaction confirmation data (payment status, reference numbers) from PayFast. We do not receive or store full card numbers.

We use the information we collect for the following purposes:

LocalHands does not sell your personal information to third parties. We share information only in the following limited circumstances:

All payment transactions on LocalHands are processed by PayFast (Pty) Ltd, a South African payment gateway. When you submit payment, you are redirected to PayFast's secure environment. LocalHands does not receive, process, or store your:

• Credit or debit card numbers
• CVV / security codes
• Bank account details

We receive only a payment confirmation notification (ITN) from PayFast confirming the transaction status, amount, and a reference number. This information is stored to maintain your booking and payment records. PayFast's privacy practices are governed by their own Privacy Policy, available at payfast.io.

We use the following types of cookies and similar technologies:

You can control cookies through your browser settings. Note that disabling essential cookies will affect platform functionality. For more information, see allaboutcookies.org.

LocalHands offers an optional "Near Me" feature that uses your device's GPS to show contractors closest to your current location. This works as follows:

• Your browser will ask for permission before any location data is accessed. You may decline and still use all other features.
• Coordinates are used only in-session to sort and filter contractor listings. They are not stored on our servers unless you explicitly save a location preference.
• Service Providers list their service areas (cities or provinces) in their profiles. Customer GPS coordinates are never shared with providers.
• You can clear your location at any time using the "Clear" link in the filter sidebar.

We retain your personal information for as long as:

• Your account is active — all profile, service, and transaction data is retained while your account exists.
• Required by law — payment and transaction records are retained for a minimum of 5 years as required by South African tax and financial legislation.
• Necessary to resolve disputes — conversation records and booking data may be retained for up to 12 months after the last activity to support any dispute resolution.
• Account deletion — when you request account deletion, we will anonymise or delete your personal data within 30 days, except where legal retention obligations apply.

We implement appropriate technical and organisational measures to protect your personal information against unauthorised access, disclosure, alteration, or destruction. These include:

While we take all reasonable precautions, no transmission over the internet is 100% secure. If you believe your account has been compromised, please contact us immediately at privacy@localhands.co.za.

The Protection of Personal Information Act (POPIA) grants South African residents the following rights with respect to their personal information. You may exercise any of these rights by contacting us:

LocalHands is intended for use by persons aged 18 years or older. We do not knowingly collect personal information from children under the age of 18. If you are a parent or guardian and believe that your child has provided us with personal information, please contact us immediately at privacy@localhands.co.za and we will promptly delete such information.

Our platform may contain links to external websites (e.g., PayFast, social media platforms, or provider portfolio links). LocalHands is not responsible for the privacy practices of these third-party sites. We encourage you to review their privacy policies before providing any personal information.

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in our practices, technology, legal requirements, or other factors. When we make material changes, we will:

• Update the "Last updated" date at the top of this page.
• Notify registered users via email for significant changes.
• Display a notice on the platform homepage for 30 days after major updates.

Continued use of the platform after any changes constitutes your acceptance of the updated policy.

For any privacy-related queries, data requests, or complaints, please contact our Information Officer: