Privacy & Cookies Policy

This policy explains what personal data AI Accounts collects, why we collect it, how we use and protect it, and the rights you have over it. We have written it in plain English and kept it as short as we reasonably can.

Who we are

We are AI Accounts LTD (“AI Accounts”, “we”, “us” and “our”), a company registered in England and Wales (company number 12567377) with its registered office at 124 City Road, London, EC1V 2NX. Our website is https://aiaccounts.co.uk.

For the purposes of UK data protection law, including the UK GDPR and the Data Protection Act 2018, AI Accounts is the data controller for the personal data described in this policy. We are registered with the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) under reference ZA929803. The person responsible for data protection at AI Accounts is Anna Stafford, who you can contact at anna@aiaccounts.co.uk.

What we collect

The personal data we hold depends on how you interact with us. In most cases you give it to us directly, when you contact us, book a call, become a client, or use our website.

If you visit our website or get in touch

When you browse our site, complete a form, use one of our free tools or book a call, we may collect your name, email address, phone number, business name and the details of your enquiry, along with technical data such as your IP address and how you use the site.

If you use our website chat assistant

Our website includes an automated chat assistant, powered by AI and clearly labelled as automated, that answers common questions about our services. It records the messages you send it, and, if you choose to share them, your email address and any details you type such as your name or business. You do not need to give an email address to use it. If you do, we use it to follow up on your enquiry and to send you a short series of emails about our services, which you can opt out of at any time.

If you become a client

To provide accounting, tax and finance services, and to meet our legal obligations, we collect more detailed information. Depending on the service this can include your contact and business details, date of birth, national insurance number, tax references (such as UTRs), identification documents for identity verification, details of directors, shareholders and people with significant control, bank and payment information, and the financial records needed to do the work. Where you give us information about other people (for example a co-director or employee), you confirm you are allowed to share it with us for these purposes.

Why we use it, and our lawful basis

We only use your personal data where the law allows. The main reasons we use it, and the lawful basis for each, are:

• To provide our services (delivering accounting, tax, payroll and finance support, and communicating with you about your work). Lawful basis: performance of our contract with you.
• To meet legal and regulatory duties (such as filing with HMRC and Companies House, keeping required records, and anti-money laundering checks). Lawful basis: compliance with a legal obligation.
• To run and improve our business (responding to enquiries, support, security, and improving our services). Lawful basis: our legitimate interests, balanced against your rights.
• To send relevant marketing (occasional updates, guides and news, where you have not opted out). Lawful basis: your consent or our legitimate interests, and you can opt out at any time.

We do not sell your personal data, and we never will.

Who we share it with

We share personal data only where it is needed to deliver our services or meet our obligations. This includes:

• Government and regulatory bodies such as HMRC and Companies House, where we file returns, accounts and registrations on your behalf or are required to report.
• Software and service providers who process data on our behalf under contract, including our cloud accounting platform (Xero), Microsoft 365 (email and document storage), Trello (to manage our work and tasks), Calendly (to schedule calls), our email marketing platform (MailerLite), the AI provider that powers our website chat assistant (Anthropic) and the service that connects the assistant to the AI (Cloudflare), our payment providers (Stripe and GoCardless), our identity verification provider used for anti-money laundering checks (XAMA Technologies), and our website host (20i). These providers act on our instructions and are bound to keep your data secure.
• Professional advisers where necessary, such as our own legal or professional advisers, and only as needed.
• A buyer or successor if we reorganise, sell or transfer part of our business, in which case your data may be shared as part of that process.

The specific providers we use may change over time as we review and improve our systems. If you would like the current list of the main processors we use, just ask.

Anti-money laundering

As an accountancy firm we are supervised for anti-money laundering purposes by HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC), and we must verify the identity of our clients and monitor for suspicious activity. This may involve electronic identity and verification checks through third-party providers. Where the law requires it, we have a duty to report concerns to the National Crime Agency (NCA), and in those circumstances we may be legally prevented from telling you that a report has been made.

Storing and transferring data

We store personal data on secure systems, mostly held electronically with controlled access, and occasionally in paper form which is then securely stored or destroyed. Some of the providers we use may process data outside the UK. Where that happens, we take steps to ensure your data is protected to the standard required by UK data protection law, for example through approved safeguards such as the UK’s international data transfer arrangements.

How we keep it secure

We take the security of your data seriously and use appropriate technical and organisational measures to protect it, including encryption in transit, access controls, secure passwords, backups and restricting who can access systems and premises. No system is ever completely secure, but we work to reduce the risk of loss, misuse or unauthorised access. Where you have a login for any of our systems, please keep your password confidential and let us know straight away if you think it has been compromised.

How long we keep it

We keep personal data only for as long as we need it for the purposes set out in this policy, or for as long as the law requires. For accounting and tax records, this is generally at least six years plus the current year, in line with HMRC requirements. When we no longer need data, we delete or securely destroy it.

Your rights

Under UK data protection law you have rights over your personal data. These include the right to be informed about how it is used, to access a copy of it, to have inaccurate data corrected, to ask us to erase it or restrict how we use it in certain circumstances, to data portability, and to object to processing in certain cases, including direct marketing. You can also withdraw consent at any time where we rely on it.

To exercise any of these rights, email anna@aiaccounts.co.uk. There is normally no charge, and we will respond within one month, though we may extend this for complex requests and will tell you if so. Please note that asking us to delete or stop using certain data may affect our ability to provide our services, and we may need to keep some data to meet our legal obligations.

If you are unhappy with how we have handled your data, please contact us first so we can try to put it right. You also have the right to complain to the Information Commissioner’s Office at ico.org.uk.

Cookies and tracking

Our website uses cookies and similar technologies to help it work, to remember your preferences, and to understand how the site is used so we can improve it. Cookies are small files stored on your device. We use essential cookies needed for the site to function, and analytics and advertising technologies such as Google Analytics, the LinkedIn Insight Tag and the Meta (Facebook) Pixel, which help us understand site traffic and measure our marketing.

You can control or delete cookies through your browser settings, and you can opt out of many advertising cookies through your device and browser controls. Turning off some cookies may affect how the site works for you.

Changes and contact

We may update this policy from time to time to reflect changes in our services or the law. When we do, we will update the date below, and where changes are significant we will take reasonable steps to let you know. Using our website or services after an update means you accept the updated policy.

If you have any questions about this policy or your personal data, please contact Anna Stafford at anna@aiaccounts.co.uk or write to AI Accounts LTD, 124 City Road, London, EC1V 2NX.

Last updated: June 2026.