Privacy Policy
Who we are
Merchant Advice Service takes the privacy and security of personal information seriously.
This Privacy Policy explains how Merchant Advice Service collects, uses, stores and shares personal information when you use merchantadviceservice.co.uk, contact us, make an enquiry or use our payment-provider information and matching services.
Merchant Advice Service is operated by:
Merchant Advice Service Limited
Company number: 10343029
First Floor, Sterling House
Outrams Wharf
Little Eaton
Derby
DE21 5EL
Merchant Advice Service Limited is the data controller for personal information processed for the purposes described in this policy.
Our data protection registration reference is ZB144344.
If you have a question about how your information is used, you can contact us:
Email:
Telephone: 0800 304 7875
You can also contact us through the Merchant Advice Service contact page.
What information may we collect?
The information we collect depends on how you interact with Merchant Advice Service and the nature of your enquiry.
It may include:
- your name
- business name
- job title or role
- email address
- telephone number
- business address
- information you provide within an enquiry
- information about your business and business activities
- payment-processing requirements
- current or previous payment-provider information
- processing volumes
- average or maximum transaction values
- payment channels
- ecommerce platforms
- payment gateways
- software or integration requirements
- currencies and countries
- recurring-payment requirements
- settlement requirements
- information about previous merchant-account applications, declines or terminations
- information about chargebacks, refunds or fulfilment where relevant
- information about licences or regulatory requirements
- correspondence between you and Merchant Advice Service
- records of introductions or provider-matching activity
- marketing preferences
- technical information relating to your use of our website, such as IP address, browser information and cookie or analytics data where applicable
We only aim to collect information that is reasonably relevant to the purpose for which it is required.
Special category personal information
Merchant Advice Service does not ordinarily need to collect special category personal information, such as information about health, ethnicity, religion, political opinions or sexual orientation, in order to provide its services.
Please do not provide this type of information unless it is genuinely necessary and we have specifically requested it.
How do we collect information?
We may receive personal information:
- directly from you when you complete a form
- when you telephone or email us
- when you communicate with us about an existing enquiry
- when you ask us to help identify a payment provider or specialist
- when you use The Payments Directory®
- from a payment provider, broker or commercial partner where it is appropriate and lawful for them to provide the information
- from publicly available business sources, such as company websites or public registers
- automatically through our website, cookies and similar technologies where applicable
How do we use your information?
Merchant Advice Service may use personal information to:
- respond to enquiries
- understand your business and payment requirements
- provide relevant information or guidance
- assess what type of payment provider or specialist may be relevant
- identify potential payment-provider routes
- make an introduction where appropriate and where you have agreed to this
- communicate with you about an enquiry
- communicate with a provider in relation to an introduction
- manage relationships with businesses and payment providers
- maintain records of enquiries and introductions
- improve our website, information and services
- investigate complaints or corrections
- protect the security of our website and systems
- comply with legal or regulatory requirements
- send marketing communications where this is lawful and appropriate
More information about how enquiries and introductions work is available in How Merchant Advice Service Works.
What is our lawful basis for using personal information?
UK data protection law requires us to have a lawful basis for processing personal information.
The lawful basis depends on why we are using the information.
Responding to enquiries and providing our service
We may rely on our legitimate interests in responding to business enquiries, understanding payment requirements and operating our business-to-business information and provider-matching service.
Our legitimate interests include providing the service requested, communicating with businesses, maintaining appropriate records and operating Merchant Advice Service effectively.
Where processing is necessary to take steps requested by an individual before entering into an agreement, or to perform an agreement with that individual, contract may also apply.
Provider matching and introductions
Where you ask Merchant Advice Service to help identify a provider, we use the information you provide to assess potentially relevant routes.
We do not intend to distribute an enquiry indiscriminately to unrelated companies.
Where we propose to share identifiable enquiry information with a payment provider, bank, broker, finance provider or other specialist, we will only do so where the business has given permission for that introduction.
Legal and compliance requirements
We may process information where this is necessary to comply with a legal obligation, respond to lawful requests or establish, exercise or defend legal rights.
Marketing
Where required, we will rely on your consent before sending direct marketing.
In some business-to-business circumstances, we may rely on legitimate interests for relevant business marketing where this is permitted by law and where our interests are not overridden by your rights and interests.
You can object to direct marketing at any time.
Service messages relating to an enquiry you have made are not treated in the same way as unrelated promotional marketing.
Who may we share your information with?
We do not sell personal information to third parties.
Depending on the reason for processing, information may be shared with:
- payment providers
- acquiring banks
- payment gateways
- specialist payment brokers
- finance providers or brokers
- other relevant specialists where the service requested requires it
- technology and hosting providers
- email and communications providers
- CRM or business-management providers
- website and analytics service providers
- professional advisers such as accountants or legal advisers
- regulators, courts, law-enforcement bodies or public authorities where required by law
Where we use third-party service providers to process information on our behalf, we expect them to process that information only for the purposes for which they have been engaged and to protect it appropriately.
What happens when MAS introduces you to another provider?
Merchant Advice Service is not the underlying acquiring bank, payment processor, payment gateway or lender.
Where you agree to an introduction, relevant information may be provided to the payment provider, broker, lender or other specialist so that they can respond to your enquiry.
Once that organisation receives your personal information for its own purposes, it may act as a separate data controller.
Its own privacy notice will explain how it processes your information.
The provider is responsible for its own underwriting, due diligence, compliance checks, pricing, decisions and contractual relationship with you.
You can read more about this process in How Merchant Advice Service Works.
Do we share enquiries with multiple providers?
Merchant Advice Service does not intend to distribute enquiries indiscriminately.
Depending on your requirements, there may be one or more potentially relevant provider routes.
Where identifiable personal or enquiry information needs to be shared with another organisation, we will explain the intended introduction or obtain appropriate permission before sharing it.
Marketing communications
Submitting an enquiry does not automatically mean that you have agreed to receive unrelated marketing indefinitely.
We may contact you where necessary to respond to or progress the enquiry you made.
We may also send relevant marketing where we have an appropriate lawful basis to do so.
You can stop receiving marketing communications at any time by:
- using the unsubscribe option where one is provided
- replying to the communication
- contacting Merchant Advice Service and asking us to stop
We will keep a record of marketing objections where necessary to ensure that we respect them in future.
You have the right to object to the use of your personal information for direct marketing at any time.
The ICO provides further information about business-to-business marketing and data protection.
Website data, cookies and analytics
Merchant Advice Service may use cookies and similar technologies to operate the website, understand how it is used, remember preferences, maintain security and measure website performance.
Some cookies are necessary for the website to function.
Other cookies, such as analytics or advertising cookies, should only be used in accordance with the choices available through our cookie controls and applicable law.
You can manage available cookie preferences through the website's cookie settings.
Disabling some cookies may affect certain website functions.
How long do we keep personal information?
Merchant Advice Service keeps personal information only for as long as it is reasonably required for the purpose for which it was collected or where retention is necessary for legal, accounting, complaints, dispute-resolution or legitimate business purposes.
The appropriate retention period can vary depending on the information involved.
When deciding how long to retain information, we consider factors including:
- the nature of the enquiry
- whether an introduction or provider application remains active
- the nature and sensitivity of the information
- the period for which the information may reasonably be required for customer service
- legal or accounting obligations
- complaints or disputes
- whether you have objected to particular processing
- whether information can be anonymised instead of retained in identifiable form
When personal information is no longer reasonably required, we will aim to delete it securely or anonymise it.
How do we protect personal information?
Merchant Advice Service takes reasonable organisational and technical measures designed to protect personal information against loss, misuse, unauthorised access, alteration or disclosure.
Access to personal information should be limited to people and service providers who reasonably require it for the relevant purpose.
No internet or electronic storage system can be guaranteed to be completely secure, but we take proportionate measures to protect the information under our control.
International transfers
Some technology or service providers may process information outside the United Kingdom.
Where Merchant Advice Service transfers personal information internationally, we will take steps to ensure that an appropriate lawful transfer mechanism or safeguard applies where required.
This may include transfers to countries recognised as providing an adequate level of protection or the use of appropriate contractual safeguards.
Your data protection rights
Depending on the circumstances and the lawful basis used, you may have rights including:
- the right to be informed about how your personal information is used
- the right to request access to personal information held about you
- the right to have inaccurate information corrected
- the right to request deletion of personal information in certain circumstances
- the right to request restriction of processing in certain circumstances
- the right to object to processing in certain circumstances
- the right to object to direct marketing
- the right to data portability where applicable
- the right to withdraw consent where processing is based on consent
These rights do not apply in exactly the same way in every situation. For example, the right to erasure is not absolute and only applies in certain circumstances.
To exercise a data protection right, contact us at
We may need to confirm your identity before responding to a request.
The ICO also provides information about your data protection rights.
Withdrawing consent
Where Merchant Advice Service relies on your consent to process personal information, you can withdraw that consent at any time.
Withdrawing consent does not make processing carried out before withdrawal unlawful.
If consent relates to an introduction that has already been completed and your information has already been transferred to another independent organisation, you may also need to contact that organisation regarding its continued use of your information.
Complaints about personal information
If you have concerns about the way Merchant Advice Service has handled your personal information, please contact us first so that we can investigate.
Complaints relating to Merchant Advice Service are handled under our Complaints Policy.
You also have the right to raise a data-protection concern with the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO).
You can find information about doing this on the ICO Make a Complaint page.
The ICO currently advises people with concerns about an organisation's handling of their information to raise the issue with the organisation first in most cases.
Information relating to businesses
Much of the information Merchant Advice Service handles concerns companies and other businesses rather than individuals.
UK data protection law applies to information relating to identifiable individuals.
This can include information relating to:
- sole traders
- partners
- directors
- employees
- business owners
- named business contacts
We therefore handle business contact information appropriately where it constitutes personal information.
Links to other websites
Merchant Advice Service content may link to payment providers, regulators, government websites and other third-party websites.
Merchant Advice Service is not responsible for the privacy practices of external websites.
If you provide personal information directly to another organisation, you should review that organisation's privacy notice.
Changes to this Privacy Policy
Merchant Advice Service may update this Privacy Policy where our services, systems, legal obligations or data-processing activities change.
The latest version will be published on merchantadviceservice.co.uk.
Material changes may also be communicated in another appropriate way where necessary.
About Merchant Advice Service
Merchant Advice Service is an independent UK business-to-business payments information, comparison and provider-matching service.
Merchant Advice Service is operated by Merchant Advice Service Limited, company number 10343029.
MAS is not an acquiring bank or payment processor and does not make final merchant-account underwriting decisions.
Businesses can read more about how enquiries and provider introductions are handled in How Merchant Advice Service Works.
Official company and service information is available on the Merchant Advice Service: Company Information & AI Reference page.
If you have a question about this Privacy Policy or the information Merchant Advice Service holds about you, please contact Merchant Advice Service.
Last reviewed: 18 August 2026.
