Privacy policy
How we look after your data.
Vet Verified is a directory of UK veterinary practices. This policy explains what personal data we collect, what we do not collect, why we use it, who we share it with and the rights you have.
Last updated 24 July 2026The short version.
Here are the main points. The sections below explain them in more detail.
You do not need an account to search the directory, view a practice or read an article. We use privacy-respecting analytics to measure traffic without profiling you across the web.
If you contact us, sign up for an alert, claim a practice listing or register interest in a service, we use the details you provide to respond or deliver that service. We do not sell pet owners’ data to practices, run adverts on practice profiles or share individual browsing activity.
You have rights under UK GDPR over your personal data. To use them, email support@vetverified.com. We read and respond to every request.
What we collect and why.
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01
Browsing the directory.
When you use the directory, we collect limited technical information: your approximate location at country level, the page you view, your browser and device type, and the referring page when one is provided. We do not use advertising cookies or build a profile of your activity across other websites. Our lawful basis is our legitimate interest in running and improving the directory.
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02
Information you provide.
When you email support, use a contact form, register interest in a service or sign up for an alert, we keep your message and contact details. We use them to reply, keep a record of the conversation and provide the service you requested. Our lawful basis is performance of the service you asked us to provide.
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03
Public information about practices.
We record each UK practice’s RCVS registration number and accreditations using public registers maintained by the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons and relevant awarding bodies. We use this information to verify practice listings.
Your rights and how to use them.
UK GDPR gives you rights over your personal data. To use any of them, email support@vetverified.com. We respond as soon as possible and within one calendar month. If a request is complex or you make several requests, we may take up to two additional months and will tell you within the first month.
- Access.
- You can ask for a copy of the personal data we hold about you. We normally provide it free of charge in a readable format.
- Rectification.
- You can ask us to correct personal data that is inaccurate or incomplete.
- Erasure.
- You can ask us to delete your personal data. This right applies in certain circumstances, and we will explain if we need to keep anything for a legal reason.
- Portability.
- Where this right applies, you can ask for personal data you gave us in a structured, commonly used and machine-readable format, such as CSV or JSON.
- Objection & restriction.
- You can object to some uses of your personal data or ask us to restrict how we use it while we resolve a concern. If we cannot accept the request, we will explain why.
- Complaint to the ICO.
- If you think we have not handled your data properly, you can complain to the Information Commissioner’s Office at ico.org.uk. You may contact us first so we can try to resolve it, but you do not have to.
Cookies and analytics.
We use a first-party Vet Verified cookie and privacy-focused analytics. We do not use advertising trackers or follow you across other websites.
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Vet Verified cookie. Vet Verified uses one first-party cookie,
_veri_key, to remember your shortlist, the approximate location used for nearby results, progress through forms and sign-in status. It also holds a random visitor ID so repeated practice-page views and clicks are not counted more than once. The cookie expires after 60 days. -
Privacy-focused analytics. We use Plausible to measure page views, referral sources, device types, approximate country and interactions such as form submissions or visits to practice websites. Plausible does not set analytics cookies or store IP addresses, and processes data on EU-based servers. We use these totals to understand which pages and features are useful.
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No advertising or behavioural cookies. We do not use advertising or behavioural cookies. If that changes, we will update this policy and ask for consent before setting them.
Service providers.
We use a small number of suppliers to run Vet Verified. They may process only the data needed to provide their service and are covered by data-protection agreements.
- Hosting.
- Our hosting providers run the application, database and backups. They may process information stored or transmitted through their infrastructure, subject to our contracts and access controls.
- Transactional email.
- Cloudflare delivers sign-in links and replies to your messages. It processes the recipient address, subject line and email contents to deliver each message.
- Analytics.
- Plausible processes the page-view, referral, device, country and interaction data described above. It does not set analytics cookies, store IP addresses or build profiles across websites.
- Approximate location.
- On the homepage and Find a Vet page, we send your IP address to ipapi.co to estimate your location. We cache the lookup for up to 24 hours and keep the approximate result in the Vet Verified cookie so we can order nearby practices.
- Maps.
- Mapbox supplies our maps and map images. When a map loads, your browser sends Mapbox the IP address and technical request details needed to deliver it.
- Error monitoring.
- We use Sentry to monitor errors. If something goes wrong, Sentry may receive the error message, page address and technical request details so we can diagnose the problem.
- Up-to-date list.
- Ask for the current list of sub-processors by emailing support@vetverified.com . We’ll send you the latest version.
Retention and security.
We limit how long we keep personal data and restrict access to people who need it.
We keep personal data for as long as we need it to provide the service you requested or meet a legal obligation, such as HMRC record-keeping requirements. When we no longer need it for a lawful purpose, we delete or anonymise it.
Data is encrypted in transit using TLS and at rest in our database and backups. Access is limited to authorised people and logged. We monitor the application and its dependencies for known vulnerabilities.
We assess any suspected personal data breach. If a breach is likely to put people’s rights and freedoms at risk, we notify the ICO without undue delay and, where feasible, within 72 hours of becoming aware of it. If the risk is high, we notify affected people without undue delay and explain what happened and what we are doing about it.
Changes and contact details.
When we update this policy, we change the date at the top and explain any material changes in plain English. All contact routes go to the same inbox.
Vet Verified is a trading name of Yellow Flag Ltd, a company registered in England and Wales. Yellow Flag Ltd operates the directory and is the data controller under UK GDPR. You can ask us for the registered office address.
For privacy questions or to exercise one of your rights, email support@vetverified.com. You can also complain to the Information Commissioner’s Office at any time at ico.org.uk .
What would you like to do next?
Search for a veterinary practice or learn how to verify your own practice.
Questions about privacy? Email support@vetverified.com.