Removing a Property from Propbar

Propbar is a property research platform operated by Vepler Ltd. The information we show about a property comes from a combination of official records, licensed data providers, and our own analysis and modelling. Some of it, such as sale records from HM Land Registry, is open public data. Other parts are supplied to us under licence, and some is produced by us from those inputs, for example area insights and estimated figures.

The information on our public property pages is information about the property, rather than private information about any individual. We do not publish the names of owners or occupiers on those pages, and the same underlying information is widely available from the original sources and on other property platforms. Because of this, our starting point is that property information is not simply hidden on request. Even so, we look at the specific circumstances of every request and will act where the facts or the law require it. You can see the sources we rely on, and the licences they fall under, on our data sources page. Our aim is simply to present property information clearly and accurately.

We understand that many people who contact us mention the UK GDPR or the Data Protection Act 2018, and we take those laws seriously. They give individuals rights over their personal data, which means information that identifies and relates to them as a person.

The property information we publish, such as address attributes, sale history, area statistics and estimated values, is information about a property rather than personal data about the person contacting us. The rights in Articles 15 to 22 UK GDPR attach to personal data; they do not attach to information about a building. The right to erasure, often called the right to be forgotten, is not an absolute right. It is balanced against other interests, including the public availability of property and public-record information, so it does not usually require us to remove accurate information of this kind. Where it does apply to genuine personal data, we will give it effect.

To the extent our publication of property information involves personal data at all, it relies on the legitimate interests basis in Article 6(1)(f) UK GDPR. We have carried out a documented legitimate interests assessment for this processing and keep it under review. That assessment weighs the public value of accurate, transparent property information, drawn from official and publicly available sources, against the interests of individuals connected with a property, and it is the framework against which we assess every objection we receive.

Where genuine personal data does appear, we will of course consider it properly. If you believe something shown identifies an individual, for example a photograph that includes a person or a vehicle registration, tell us and we will assess and act on it appropriately. You can read more about how we handle personal data in our privacy policy. If, after we have worked through your concern together, you remain unhappy with how we have handled your personal data specifically, you have the right to raise it with the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO).

You also have the right to object under Article 21 UK GDPR to processing of your personal data. To be valid, an objection must identify the personal data concerned and set out grounds relating to your particular situation. We do not refuse valid objections out of hand: we weigh the grounds you raise against our documented legitimate interests assessment, decide each case on its own facts, and explain our reasoning to you. A request that identifies no personal data of yours, or that raises no grounds particular to your situation, does not engage Article 21. Where requests are manifestly unfounded or excessive, including repetitive or template requests, Article 12(5) UK GDPR permits us to refuse them or to charge a reasonable fee, and we will explain our decision where we rely on it. To make a request, email us at [email protected] with the property address or page link, the specific information concerned, and your grounds. We respond within one calendar month with our reasoning.

Where we have reasonable doubts about who is making a request, Article 12(6) UK GDPR allows us to ask for information to confirm your identity and, where relevant, your connection to the property, and we do ask. A request made by someone misrepresenting their identity or their connection to a property is declined, and we keep a record of it.

If any detail shown against a property is factually inaccurate, please tell us and we will investigate and put it right as quickly as we reasonably can. That includes an incorrect attribute, a wrong boundary, a mismatched record, or a sale figure that does not match the underlying record.

With that detail we can give you a proper, substantive response rather than a generic one.

Propbar sometimes picks up a photograph associated with a property. If you would prefer an image not to be shown, let us know which property it relates to and we will look into removing it. As these requests are occasionally misused, we may ask you to confirm your connection to the property before we do so.

It is worth being clear about this so we can set the right expectation. Removing or correcting something on Propbar only affects Propbar. Because the same information is drawn from external records and providers and appears on many other platforms, it will usually still exist at the original source and elsewhere. We can only act on what we ourselves publish.

When a property is recorded as sold, we will still consider a request about it on its facts. As a general rule, though, property records form part of the public history of a home, so that history usually stays available to the next owner and to anyone researching the property in future. This is the same principle that lets you research the past of a home before you buy it.

Most requests we receive fall into one of a few situations, so here is how each one usually works.

My property shows as being marketed, but it is not for sale

Marketing status reflects information that was published about the property, such as a past or current listing. If a property is no longer being marketed and the status shown is genuinely out of date or incorrect, send us the address or page link and we will check it against our sources and correct it where it is wrong.

It was withdrawn from the market but still appears

A property's marketing history can remain part of the record even after it is taken off the market. If you believe the current status is being shown incorrectly, let us know and we will look into the specific detail and put right anything that is factually wrong.

The sold price or a sale record looks wrong

Sale information comes from official records. If a figure does not match the underlying record, that is exactly the kind of inaccuracy we will investigate and correct. Please include the address and, if you can, a pointer to the correct figure so we can verify and update it.

I am acting for an owner who has passed away

We are sorry to hear that. Data protection rights apply to living individuals, and property information remains part of the public record, so that alone does not usually require us to remove it. Even so, we will consider the specific circumstances, and we can help with image removal or with correcting anything that is inaccurate. We will always handle these messages with care.

I am an agent or business, not the homeowner

We are happy to help with image removal and with correcting inaccurate details in the same way. Please let us know your connection to the property so we can deal with the request appropriately.

It appears when I search for the property online

How a page appears in a search engine such as Google is controlled by that search engine rather than by us, and is separate from the information on the page itself. If a specific detail on the Propbar page is inaccurate, tell us and we will correct it, and we will help where we reasonably can.

I am preparing to sell and want the history removed first

We are sometimes asked to remove accurate marketing or price history shortly before a property is put up for sale. We do not do this. Accurate history is precisely the information the next buyer relies on, and removing it to support a transaction would mislead the people the record exists to inform. Genuine inaccuracies are corrected in the normal way at any time.

I own the property and want everything taken down

We understand why you ask, and we are glad to help with anything inaccurate or with image removal. Ownership on its own does not generally require us to remove accurate property and public-record information, for the reasons set out above. If there is a specific concern beyond the general principle, please tell us what it is and we will assess it on its facts and give it our full attention.

We aim to acknowledge every request within two working days and to give you a full response within one calendar month, which is the period data protection law allows for requests of this kind. If you have written to us and not yet heard back, please do follow up, as occasionally messages are missed.

Very occasionally, someone has a genuine personal safety reason for not wanting a property linked to them to be easily found, for example where they are at risk of harm. We take these situations seriously and will consider them individually and sensitively. Because this route can be misused, we may ask for appropriate confirmation of the circumstances, and any steps we take are decided case by case. If this applies to you, please contact us and mark your message as confidential.

The best way to reach us is by email at [email protected]. Please include the property address or page link and the detail described above, and we will come back to you promptly. We would always rather resolve things directly and helpfully with you.

However you contact us, we log your request, acknowledge it, and respond within one calendar month with a reasoned, case-by-case answer. We respond to every request made in good faith; correspondence that is abusive or threatening towards our team may be answered only to the extent the law requires.