Privacy Policy

Trubay Stayz respects your privacy. This policy explains what data we collect, why, and how we use it, in clear language that anyone can understand. We follow Kenya’s Data Protection Act (2019), which, like GDPR, requires that personal data be collected legally and used transparently.

What data we collect:

• Account Information: When you sign up, we ask for your name, email, phone number, and password. We may also collect a government ID (or its hash) for identity verification.
• Profile Data: For hosts, this includes property details (address, description, photos, rates). For guests, we may store preferences (e.g., travel dates, group size) to personalize search.
• Booking and Transaction Data: Every time you make or accept a booking, we record reservation details: check-in/check-out dates, guest count, payment amount, dates of booking, and any messages or special requests. We process payments and may store only the minimum payment details needed (we do not store full credit card numbers).
• Usage Data: We use cookies and similar tools to help the site work and to understand how people use it. For example, we keep a temporary login cookie to remember if you’re logged in, and cookies to maintain your currency or language settings. We may use analytics cookies to see which pages are popular, always in an aggregated (non-personal) way. You can disable cookies in your browser, but that may affect site functionality (e.g., staying logged in).
• Communications: When you message other users or leave a review, we record those messages and reviews. This is necessary for customer support and to maintain an accurate review system.

How we use your data:

• Service Provision: We use your data to operate the platform – to create your account, process bookings/payments, and communicate between hosts and guests. For example, we send your contact info (email/phone) to hosts only after a booking is confirmed. We also use your details for verification and to comply with legal obligations (such as tax reporting).
• Safety and Trust: We review user details to prevent fraud, verify identities, and ensure compliance with our community standards.
• Communications and Updates: We use your contact info to send booking confirmations, billing receipts, and updates about reservations. We may also email important notices (like policy changes or safety advisories). You can control marketing emails in your account settings.
• Improvement and Research: Aggregated (anonymized) data helps us improve our service (for example, studying popular destinations or optimizing our website). We may use tools like Google Analytics for site usage (see Google’s own policies).

Data Sharing:

• With Other Users: When a booking is confirmed, we share necessary information with both host and guest (names, contact information, booking details) so the stay can take place.
• Service Providers: We may share data with trusted partners (payment processors, cloud hosting, email/text services). They are only given what’s needed and must protect it.
• Legal Requirements: We might disclose personal data if required by Kenyan law or a court order, or if we believe it’s needed to protect rights or safety. In Kenya, hosts must keep guest registers and report certain data to authorities; we comply with such lawful requests.
• With Consent: Apart from the above, we will only share data in other ways if you consent.

Your Rights:
Kenyan law gives you rights over your data. You can ask us to:

• Provide you with a copy of the personal data we hold about you.
• Correct any errors in your data.
• Delete your data (with some exceptions, e.g., we may need to keep records for tax or legal reasons).

To make these requests, contact us at [email protected]. We will respond within the timeframe required by law. You can also adjust or delete data in your profile yourself (e.g., editing personal details or deleting saved payment methods).

Security:
We take precautions to protect your data. This includes using industry-standard encryption for payments and secure server practices. Only authorized staff and partners can access personal data, and they must keep it confidential. Despite this, no method is 100% secure – we encourage you to keep your login password private and change it regularly.

Data Retention:
We keep data only as long as necessary. For example, reservation records and transaction details are kept for several years to comply with tax and legal requirements. Anonymized data (stripped of personal identifiers) may be kept indefinitely for analytic purposes.

Children:
Our service is not for children under 13. We do not knowingly collect data from anyone under 13. If you believe we have data of a child under 13, please contact us to have it deleted.

Policy Updates:
We may update this Privacy Policy when needed (e.g., if laws change). Any changes will be posted here with a revised date. Significant changes will be communicated to you in advance.

Your trust is important to us. By using Trubay Stayz, you agree to this policy. We always strive to handle your data in a transparent, secure way, as guided by Kenyan privacy principles (consent, purpose limitation, data minimization, security, and transparency