Data Deletion Policy

1. How to request deletion

SitEasy is operated by Refone (Pty) Ltd, trading as SitEasy (South Africa, registration 2022/408691/07). You can request account closure and deletion of personal information without installing an app or creating another account.

• Account settings: sign in, open Settings, find Danger Zone and choose Delete Account. The current self-service path asks for your password to verify the request.
• Email: contact support@siteasy.co.za with the subject "Account deletion request", preferably from your account email address. If you cannot access it, explain that; we will need an appropriate alternative ownership check.

If you use a sign-in provider or cannot complete password confirmation, use the email route. Do not send your password, one-time codes, bank credentials or identity-document attachments in the initial request. We may need to verify your identity and authority before acting.

2. What happens to the request

Submitting a request is not confirmation that all personal information has been erased. Active bookings, held payments, unresolved disputes or payouts needing review can prevent self-service deletion. Contact support to resolve a blocker or discuss your rights; do not assume a failed or blocked attempt completed deletion.

Timing depends on verification, the records involved, unresolved services and applicable obligations. We handle requests under POPIA; this policy does not promise immediate complete erasure or a fixed 48-hour, seven-day or 30-day completion deadline for every request. You can contact us for progress and the reason for any unresolved issue.

3. Account closure and eligible information

The current deletion path removes or reduces eligible account/profile information and attempts associated uploaded-file cleanup. Where booking history must remain, it retains history while reducing direct profile identifiers rather than deleting every related record.

Personal information can include contact/profile details, addresses and care instructions, messages, pets, verification documents, profile photos, videos and check-in media. The appropriate outcome depends on the particular record, ownership, sharing, legal requirements and whether cleanup has actually succeeded. A success message for the account operation is not proof that every uploaded file, cache, provider record or previously downloaded copy has been removed.

If you are concerned that information remains after account closure, contact us with the category of information. Do not send a private access link or sensitive document unnecessarily. This policy does not claim that every follow-up or provider cleanup step is automatic.

4. Records that may need to remain

• Booking, payment, refund, payout and company records required for applicable statutory obligations or unresolved financial matters.
• Specific evidence necessary for a legal claim, safety matter, dispute or another person's rights; shared participation is not a reason to keep every part of an account indefinitely.
• Records used to make decisions about you, including any retention needed under POPIA section 14(3) to provide a reasonable opportunity to request access where no period is prescribed.
• Necessary request, verification, outcome and recovery/reconciliation evidence. Such records can remain identifying even when names or contact details are removed.

Retention periods depend on record category and the correct trigger. Relevant tax-supporting records generally have a five-year period from return submission; company-record requirements differ and may be longer, with extensions for relevant proceedings or obligations. There is no universal five-year period from account closure for all documents, or universal two-year period for all incident records.

Statutory processing restrictions under POPIA section 14(6)–(8), permitted processing and any required notice before lifting a restriction are distinct from an internal legal or safety hold. An ordinary expiry date or internal hold release does not override those requirements.

5. Providers, files and recovery copies

Account closure does not itself prove deletion from every provider's records, backup, cache, recipient's mailbox or another user's downloaded copies. Payment providers and other recipients may have independent legal obligations. Closing a SitEasy account does not delete your Google or other external provider account.

Where recovery copies exist, their retention and disposal depend on the provider and dataset. We do not promise a universal 30-day backup expiry, permanent unrecoverability or that a database backup contains uploaded file contents. Database records and uploaded files need separate consideration.

For information about residual copies, a restriction, or the effect of recovery on a previous deletion request, contact our privacy address. We do not present a planned recovery or deletion control as an already operating guarantee.

6. Privacy contact and complaints

Contact Selez Massozi, our privacy contact and Information Officer, at support@siteasy.co.za. You can also request access, correction or information about a decision or restriction, subject to POPIA's requirements.

See our Privacy Notice for data categories, processing purposes, providers and retention criteria. You may also complain to the Information Regulator of South Africa, whose website lists current procedures and contact details.