Privacy Policy

This Privacy Policy is the plain-English explanation of how Thomas Plumbing, a residential and commercial plumbing business based at 56 Beverly Rd, North Bay, Ontario, collects, uses, stores, and protects the personal information of people who visit thomasplumbing.ca, request a quote, book a service call, or pay an invoice. It applies to every channel we operate: this website, phone calls, text messages, email, and in-person service visits across North Bay and the surrounding 60 km service area.

1. Who We Are

Thomas Plumbing is a sole proprietorship owned and operated by Tyler Thomas, a Red Seal certified plumber serving North Bay, Callander, Corbeil, East Ferris, Nipissing, Mattawa, South River, Temagami, and surrounding communities. For privacy questions, we are the data controller responsible for any personal information you share with us. You can reach us using the contact details at the bottom of this page.

2. What Information We Collect

We only collect what we need to quote, schedule, deliver, and invoice plumbing work, plus standard website analytics.

Information you give us

• Contact form submissions and phone or text inquiries: your name, service address, phone number, email address, and a description of the plumbing issue you want help with.
• Service-call records: the work performed, parts used, time on site, location of the service address, photos of completed work if relevant, and any warranty notes.
• Billing and payment details: invoice number, amount owed, payment method (cash, e-transfer, Visa), and proof of payment. We do not store full credit card numbers on our systems; card transactions are processed by our payment provider.
• Reviews and testimonials: if you leave a public Google review or send us a written testimonial, the content and the name you choose to publish.

Information we collect automatically

• Website analytics: IP address, approximate location (city level), browser type and version, device type, the pages you visit on thomasplumbing.ca, the pages that referred you, and the date and time of your visit. This is collected through Google Analytics (or a similar privacy-respecting analytics tool) on every page.
• Cookies: small text files saved in your browser. See the Cookies section below for the full list.
• Server logs: our web host keeps standard access logs that include IP address, timestamp, and request details for security and uptime monitoring.

3. How We Use Your Information

We use the information above only for purposes a reasonable person would expect from a local plumbing business:

• Responding to your quote requests, phone calls, texts, and emails.
• Scheduling, dispatching, and completing service calls at the address you provide.
• Preparing and sending invoices and accepting payment.
• Sending follow-up communications such as appointment confirmations, on-the-way texts, warranty reminders, and the occasional check-in after a job.
• Improving the website by reviewing which pages get visited and where visitors come from.
• Meeting our legal obligations under Ontario consumer-protection law, Canada Revenue Agency tax rules, the Ontario College of Trades, and any warranty documentation we are required to keep.

We will not use your information for any purpose unrelated to running this plumbing business without asking you first.

4. Third-Party Services We Use

To run the business we rely on a small set of well-known service providers. Some of these may handle limited information you share with us. We list them all here, even ones we may add in the future, so you are not surprised when a tool gets switched on.

• Google Analytics: measures aggregate website traffic. Google may set cookies and process visit data on servers outside of Canada (typically the United States).
• GoHighLevel (CRM): stores your contact details and the history of our communication with you so we can manage quotes, jobs, and follow-ups.
• Twilio (SMS): delivers appointment confirmations, on-the-way texts, and review-request messages. Your phone number and the message content pass through Twilio's network.
• Email providers (Gmail and Yahoo Mail): we use these to read and reply to email.
• Payment processor (Visa or e-transfer through our bank): handles card and bank transactions when you pay an invoice.
• Accountant and bookkeeper: sees invoices and payment records for tax filing purposes.
• Web hosting and domain provider: stores the website files and processes standard server logs.

Each of these providers operates under their own privacy policies. We pick them because they are widely used and have published security practices. We do not sell, rent, or trade your personal information to anyone, and we do not use it for behavioural advertising.

5. How Long We Keep Your Information

Active customer records (contact details, quotes, invoices, service history) are kept for as long as we have a working relationship with you, plus a minimum of seven years after the last invoice. That retention period matches the Canada Revenue Agency standard for tax records and gives us a paper trail for warranty work, insurance, and any legal matter that might come up.

Website analytics data is retained at the default Google Analytics period (currently 14 months). Marketing contact information is kept until you ask to be removed. Server logs are kept for up to 90 days.

6. Your Rights Under PIPEDA

Because Thomas Plumbing operates in Ontario, we follow the federal Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act (PIPEDA). Under PIPEDA you have the following rights:

• Right of access: ask us for a copy of the personal information we hold about you.
• Right of correction: ask us to fix any information that is inaccurate or incomplete.
• Right of withdrawal: withdraw your consent for us to use your information for non-essential purposes (such as marketing emails or follow-up texts) at any time.
• Right of deletion: ask us to delete personal information that is no longer required for the original purpose, subject to our legal obligation to keep tax and warranty records.
• Right to complain: if you are not satisfied with our response, you can file a complaint with the Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada.

To exercise any of these rights, email or phone us using the contact details below. We will respond within 30 days.

7. Cookies and Tracking

Our website uses two categories of cookies. We do not currently show a cookie banner because we only use the basics and we do not run advertising trackers, but if Ontario or federal law changes we will add one.

• Essential cookies: needed for the site to function. These remember things like whether you have already dismissed a notification. They are set by our web host and cannot be disabled.
• Analytics cookies: set by Google Analytics so we can see how many people visit each page, what device they are on, and where they came from. These do not identify you personally.

You can block or delete cookies in your browser settings at any time. Doing so will not stop you from reading or contacting us through the website. If you want to opt out of Google Analytics across every site, install Google's browser opt-out add-on.

8. How We Protect Your Information

We keep your information on password-protected devices, on reputable cloud services that use encryption in transit and at rest, and on paper records stored at our business address when paper is required. Only Tyler Thomas and the staff or contractors who need information to do their job (such as our bookkeeper) have access. We will never email a copy of your invoice or service record to someone we cannot verify is you.

9. Children

Thomas Plumbing is a residential and commercial plumbing service. We do not knowingly collect personal information from anyone under 18. If you believe a minor has submitted information through our website, contact us and we will delete it.

10. Changes to This Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy as our business or the law changes. The "Last updated" date at the top of this page will always reflect the most recent revision. Material changes will also be announced on the homepage for at least 30 days.

11. Contact Us About Privacy