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Privacy Policy
Last updated: May 2026
The Catering Lark respects your privacy and is committed to protecting your personal information in accordance with the Protection of Personal Information Act, 4 of 2013, also known as POPIA.
This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, store, share and protect your personal information when you visit our website, contact us, request a quote, place an order, subscribe to updates, interact with us on social media, or use any of our catering services.
This is practical guidance and not legal advice. The Catering Lark should have this policy reviewed by a qualified legal professional if required.
1. Who We Are
The Catering Lark is a South African catering business offering catering services for corporate events, private functions, weddings, parties, platters, braais, cakes, frozen meals, bar services, décor and related event services.
Our website is: https://cateringlark.co.za
For privacy-related questions, you can contact us using the details below:
Email: kitchen@cateringlark.co.za
Phone/WhatsApp: 011 452 4490
Physical address: 122 13th Ave, Edenvale, Johannesburg, 1610
For POPIA purposes, The Catering Lark is the Responsible Party for the personal information we collect and process.
2. What Personal Information We Collect
We may collect and process personal information that is reasonably necessary for us to respond to enquiries, prepare quotes, manage bookings, provide catering services and communicate with customers.
This may include your name, surname, email address, phone number, WhatsApp number, event date, event type, venue or delivery location, guest count, catering requirements, budget range and any other information you choose to provide when contacting us.
We may also collect delivery details, access instructions, dietary requirements, allergy information, food preferences, religious dietary requirements, invoice details, proof of payment, billing information, emails, WhatsApp messages, website form submissions, social media messages, marketing preferences and consent records.
When you visit our website, limited technical information may also be collected, such as your IP address, browser type, device information, pages visited and cookie or analytics data.
If you share photos, reviews, testimonials or event content with us, we may also process that information with your permission where required.
3. How We Collect Personal Information
We may collect personal information when you complete a contact or quote form on our website, contact us by phone, WhatsApp, email or social media, request a menu or quote, place an order, confirm a booking, subscribe to marketing updates, attend an event where we provide catering services, send us feedback, or interact with our website.
We may also collect limited information through cookies, analytics tools and third-party platforms connected to our website or marketing activity.
4. Why We Use Your Personal Information
We use your personal information to respond to enquiries, prepare quotes, confirm bookings, provide catering services, manage event logistics, process invoices and payments, communicate with you about your order or event, handle feedback or complaints, send marketing communications where allowed, improve our website and meet our legal or accounting obligations.
We only use your personal information for purposes that are lawful, reasonable and connected to our business.
5. Legal Basis for Processing Your Personal Information
We process personal information where we have a lawful reason to do so.
This may include your consent, the need to provide a quote or fulfil a booking, compliance with legal or accounting obligations, our legitimate business interests, or information you have voluntarily provided to us.
Where we rely on consent, you may withdraw your consent at any time.
6. Dietary, Allergy and Special Catering Information
Because we provide catering services, we may ask for dietary, allergy, religious or health-related food information.
We use this information only to prepare suitable menus, reduce the risk of serving unsuitable ingredients, communicate requirements to relevant staff or suppliers where necessary, and provide a safer and more appropriate catering service.
Customers are responsible for informing us clearly and in writing of any allergies, intolerances or strict dietary requirements before the event.
While we take reasonable care, we cannot guarantee that food will be completely free from allergens unless this has been specifically agreed in writing.
7. Direct Marketing and Email Communication
We may send you marketing communications, such as seasonal menus, catering offers, event ideas or business updates, where you have given consent, where you are an existing customer and the communication relates to similar services, or where POPIA otherwise allows us to do so.
You can opt out of marketing at any time by clicking the unsubscribe link in an email, replying “unsubscribe” or “stop”, or contacting us directly.
We will not sell your personal information to third-party marketers.
8. Cookies and Website Analytics
Our website may use cookies and similar technologies to improve your browsing experience, understand how visitors use the site and measure marketing performance.
Cookies may help us keep the website working properly, understand which pages are visited, improve website content and user experience, and support analytics or advertising activity.
Our website may use tools provided by platforms such as Wix, Google, Meta, Facebook, Instagram or other analytics and advertising platforms.
You can disable cookies in your browser settings. However, some parts of the website may not work properly if cookies are disabled.
9. Sharing Personal Information With Third Parties
We may share personal information with trusted third parties where necessary for our business operations or service delivery.
This may include website hosting providers, email or CRM platforms, accounting or payment providers, delivery or event staff, suppliers, service partners, professional advisers, legal advisers, regulators or authorities where required by law.
We only share the minimum information reasonably necessary and expect third-party service providers to handle personal information responsibly and securely.
We do not sell your personal information.
10. International Transfers of Personal Information
Some of the tools and platforms we use may store or process information outside South Africa.
This may include website hosting, email, cloud storage, analytics, social media, payment or business management platforms.
Where this happens, we take reasonable steps to ensure that your personal information is protected through appropriate security, contractual or privacy safeguards.
11. How We Protect Your Personal Information
We take reasonable technical and organisational steps to protect your personal information from loss, misuse, unauthorised access, disclosure, alteration or destruction.
These steps may include password-protected accounts, limited access to customer information, secure website and platform access, email and device security measures, careful record-keeping, regular review of stored information, and the use of reputable third-party service providers.
No online system is completely secure, but we take reasonable steps to reduce privacy and security risks.
12. How Long We Keep Your Personal Information
We keep personal information only for as long as reasonably necessary for the purpose for which it was collected, unless we are legally required or allowed to keep it for longer.
Quote enquiries may be kept for a reasonable follow-up period. Confirmed bookings, invoices and payment records may be kept for service, tax, accounting and record-keeping purposes.
Marketing consent records may be kept until consent is withdrawn or the information is no longer needed.
Dietary and event details are kept only for as long as reasonably necessary to provide the service and manage any related follow-up.
When personal information is no longer needed, we will delete, destroy or anonymise it where reasonably possible.
13. Your Rights Under POPIA
Under POPIA, you have the right to ask what personal information we hold about you, request access to your personal information, ask us to correct inaccurate or outdated information, ask us to delete information we are no longer authorised to keep, object to certain types of processing, withdraw consent where we rely on consent, opt out of direct marketing, and lodge a complaint with the Information Regulator.
To exercise your rights, please contact us at:
Email: [Insert privacy email address]
Subject line: POPIA Request
We may need to verify your identity before acting on your request.
14. Children’s Personal Information
Our services are generally intended for adults booking catering services.
We do not knowingly collect personal information from children without the consent of a parent or legal guardian.
If a parent or guardian believes that a child has provided us with personal information without appropriate consent, they can contact us and request that the information be deleted.
15. Photos, Reviews and Testimonials
We may ask customers for reviews, testimonials or photos of catered events.
We will not knowingly publish private customer photos, identifiable guest images, names, testimonials or event details without appropriate permission.
If you would like us to remove a published review, photo or testimonial that we control, please contact us.
Reviews posted directly on third-party platforms such as Google, Facebook or Instagram may need to be edited or removed through that platform.
16. Links to Third-Party Websites and Platforms
Our website may link to third-party websites or platforms, including Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp, Google Maps or other external services.
We are not responsible for the privacy practices, content or security of third-party websites.
Please review their privacy policies before sharing personal information with them.
17. Data Breach Notification
If we become aware of a security compromise involving your personal information, we will take reasonable steps to investigate and respond.
Where required by POPIA, we will notify affected individuals and/or the Information Regulator as soon as reasonably possible.
18. Complaints
If you believe that we have not handled your personal information properly, please contact us first so that we can try to resolve the issue.
You may also contact the Information Regulator South Africa:
Information Regulator South Africa
Website: https://inforegulator.org.za/
POPIA complaints email: POPIAComplaints@inforegulator.org.za
19. Updates to This Privacy Policy
We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in our business, website, services, legal requirements or privacy practices.
The updated version will be posted on our website with a revised “last updated” date.