Privacy policy – Dream Gear Photography Rentals

Who we are

Dream Gear Photography Rentals ("Dream Gear", "we", "us") hires and leases camera and photography equipment in New Zealand through dreamgear.co.nz. This policy explains how we collect, use, store and share personal information, and your rights under the Privacy Act 2020.

It applies to everyone who browses our website, books or leases gear, completes our due diligence form, or contacts us.

What we collect

We only collect what we need to hire gear safely and run the business. Most of it comes straight from you.

Contact details: name, email, phone, delivery and billing address, when you book, enquire or set up an account.
Due diligence information: photo ID, proof of address and the other details and documents our form asks for, before your first hire is prepared.
Booking and lease records: gear hired, serial numbers, dates, lease terms, condition and damage notes, for every order.
Payment and account details: invoices, payments, amounts owing and Auto Pay set-up, for every order and lease.
Communications: emails, messages, calls and notes about your hire, whenever you contact us.
Website data: pages visited, device and browser, and cookies, when you use our website.
Photos you share: the photo, your caption, the name and Instagram handle you want credited, and the camera details stored in the photo file (camera, lens, serial numbers and the date it was taken) so we can check it was taken on our gear. We never keep or show the location data in the file, and your full-size original stays on your device.

Card and bank details are entered directly with our payment providers. We do not store full card numbers.

Sometimes we collect information from someone other than you, such as a courier, an insurer, a debt collector or the Police. When we do, we take reasonable steps to tell you what we collected and why, as the Privacy Act requires.

How we use it

We use your information to:

check your identity and suitability before we release high-value gear, and to help prevent fraud and theft
take, prepare, deliver and manage your bookings and leases
invoice you, take payments and follow up amounts owing
recover gear that isn't returned, and handle damage, loss and insurance claims
answer your questions and send service messages about your hire
keep our records, meet our tax and legal obligations, and protect our legal rights
improve our website and services

We may send you occasional emails about our gear, offers and news, as allowed under New Zealand's Unsolicited Electronic Messages Act 2007. Every marketing email has an unsubscribe link, and we'll stop as soon as you ask. We don't sell your personal information.

If you don't give us the information we ask for, including the due diligence form, we may not be able to hire gear to you.

Who we share it with

We share personal information only with people who help us run the business, or where the law allows or requires it:

Booqable: our booking system (orders, customer records, website checkout)
Xero: accounting (invoices, payments, Auto Pay)
Google Workspace: email, the due diligence form and secure file storage
Make.com: automations that send booking and billing emails. It handles contact and order details only, never your due diligence answers or documents
Google (Analytics) and Meta (Facebook and Instagram): website statistics and advertising, through cookies (see Cookies below)
Payment providers: processing card and bank payments
Couriers: delivering and collecting gear
Insurers, debt collectors, lawyers and accountants: claims, recovering money or gear owed, professional advice
NZ Police and other authorities: when gear is stolen or not returned, or when the law requires it

Several of these providers store data outside New Zealand, for example in Australia, the EU or the United States. We use reputable providers whose privacy protections are comparable to New Zealand's, as the Privacy Act requires.

We may add or change providers as the business grows, for example a shipping label service or a new booking platform. Each one gets only the information it needs for its job, under the same protections. If we start collecting new kinds of information or using it in new ways, we'll update this policy first.

Due diligence information is reviewed only by authorised Dream Gear staff. We don't use it for marketing, and we don't pass it to any automated or AI tool to read or assess.

Cookies

Our website uses cookies and similar technology. You can block or delete them in your browser settings. The site will still work, though some features (like your cart) need essential cookies.

Essential: our booking platform (Booqable) and our hosting provider (Cloudflare) use these to run the site, keep your cart and checkout working, and keep the site secure.
Analytics: Google Analytics tells us how people use the site, such as which pages are visited and how people found us. Google's information is aggregated and doesn't tell us who you are. You can opt out with Google's browser add-on.
Advertising: the Meta Pixel helps us measure our Facebook and Instagram ads and show our ads to people who've visited our site. Meta may link this to your Facebook or Instagram account under Meta's privacy policy. You can manage this in your Meta ad preferences.

We don't use cookies to collect your due diligence information, and we don't share your form answers or documents with Google or Meta.

Storage, security and how long we keep it

We keep your information in secure, access-controlled business systems. Only staff who need it for their job can see it, accounts are password-protected with two-step sign-in where available, and we review who has access.

Due diligence form and documents: while you hire with us, and afterwards only as long as we need them to protect our legal rights, then deleted
Booking, invoice and payment records: 7 years, as NZ tax law requires
Records about unreturned or damaged gear, or money owed: until the matter is resolved, plus 7 years
Marketing preferences: until you unsubscribe or ask us to delete them

If a privacy breach is likely to cause someone serious harm, we will notify the Office of the Privacy Commissioner and the people affected as soon as practicable, as the Privacy Act requires.

Your rights and complaints

You can ask to see the personal information we hold about you and ask us to correct it. Email us at contact@dreamgear.co.nz and we will respond within 20 working days. If we don't correct something, you can ask us to attach a statement of the correction you wanted.

If you have a concern, please contact us first so we can try to fix it. If you're not satisfied, you can complain to the Office of the Privacy Commissioner (0800 803 909).

Other things to know

Our hire services are for people aged 18 and over.
Our website may link to other sites. Their privacy practices are their own.
We may update this policy. The latest version is always on our website, with the date it was last updated.
This policy is governed by New Zealand law. Nothing in it limits your rights under the Privacy Act 2020 or the Consumer Guarantees Act 1993.

Privacy policy.