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Privacy Policy

Melbridge GmbH
Last updated: July 2026

1. Who we are

This Privacy Policy explains how Melbridge GmbH (“Melbridge,” “we,” “us”) collects, uses, and protects personal data submitted through the contact form and email address on melbridge.eu, in accordance with the EU General Data Protection Regulation (Regulation (EU) 2016/679, “GDPR”) and the German Federal Data Protection Act (Bundesdatenschutzgesetz, “BDSG”).

Data controller:
Melbridge GmbH
Schillerstraße 1, 27313 Dörverden, Germany
Commercial Register: Amtsgericht Walsrode, HRB 207361
Managing Director: Gintaras Girdziunas
Email: [email protected]

For any question about this policy or how we handle your data, or to exercise any of your data protection rights, contact us at [email protected].

This policy applies to:

  • The contact form on melbridge.eu
  • Direct emails sent to [email protected]
  • Any other way you voluntarily submit personal data to us through the website

It does not apply to third-party websites we may link to.

2. What personal data we collect

When you use the contact form on melbridge.eu, we collect the information you enter, which currently includes:

  • Name
  • Email address
  • Phone number (optional)
  • Your message (“How can we help you?”)
  • Your consent, given via the checkbox on the form (“I agree that my data is collected and stored”)

If you contact us directly by email instead of using the form, we collect whatever personal data is contained in that email and its attachments (e.g., your name, email address, signature details, and message content).

We may also automatically collect limited technical data when you visit the site (e.g., IP address, browser type, device type, pages visited), generated in the ordinary course of operating the site by our hosting and analytics tools.

We do not knowingly collect any special categories of data (health, religion, biometric data, etc.) through this form, and we ask that you do not include such information in your messages.

3. Why we process your data, and our legal basis

Purpose What we do Legal basis (GDPR Art. 6(1))
Responding to your inquiry Reviewing your message and replying with next steps (a) your consent, given via the form checkbox; and/or (b) necessary to take steps prior to entering into a contract; and/or (f) our legitimate interest in responding to business inquiries
Managing the business relationship If your inquiry becomes a quote, order, or service engagement, using your contact details to deliver it (b) performance of a contract
Internal record-keeping Keeping a record of past inquiries and communications for quality, continuity, and accounting purposes (f) legitimate interest in maintaining accurate business records; (c) legal obligation, for records that must be kept under German commercial and tax law (HGB, AO)
Preventing misuse Basic spam/abuse filtering on form submissions (f) legitimate interest in keeping our systems secure

We do not currently use your data submitted through this form for marketing communications (e.g., adding you to a newsletter) unless you separately and explicitly opt in to that. If this changes, we will update this policy and the relevant form to make that clear at the point of collection.

We do not carry out automated decision-making or profiling based on the data collected through this form.

Where our processing relies on your consent (the form checkbox), you can withdraw that consent at any time by emailing [email protected], without affecting the lawfulness of processing carried out before withdrawal.

4. Who we share your data with

Your data is accessible to Melbridge staff handling inquiries, on a need-to-know basis.

We also share data with service providers who process it on our behalf (“processors”), strictly to operate our website and communications:

  • Website hosting provider: Namecheap (EasyWP) — form submissions are stored in our website database, hosted on Namecheap’s EU data center.
  • WPForms and Contact Form 7 — the plugins that run our contact form. In their free/Lite versions used here, submissions are stored locally on our own server, not synced to an external cloud.
  • Akismet (operated by Automattic, Inc., USA) — automatically checks form submissions for spam, which involves sending submitted content and IP address to Automattic’s servers.
  • WP Mail SMTP, configured to send via Gmail — routes outgoing notification emails (e.g., “you’ve received a new inquiry”) through Google’s mail servers.
  • Newsletter plugin (Stefano Lissa & The Newsletter Team) — if this is actively collecting sign-ups anywhere on the site, subscriber emails are stored on our server, and that sign-up form carries its own explicit opt-in consent.
  • Google Analytics (operated by Google) — see Section 8, Cookies.

Elementor and Elementor Pro are page-building tools used to design the site; in the configuration described, they do not independently transmit visitor personal data off our server. Code Snippets, Disable Gutenberg, One User Avatar, CMS Portal, SWA Import Export Special, Theme Core Options, and Hello Dolly (where used) are administrative/development tools and do not process visitor personal data.

We do not sell personal data, and we do not share it with third parties for their own marketing purposes.

We may disclose data where required by law, for example in response to a valid request from a court or regulator.

5. International data transfers

Our website hosting (Namecheap, EasyWP) runs on an EU data center, so hosting itself does not involve a transfer of data outside the EEA.

Some of our other processors are based outside the European Economic Area (EEA), in the United States:

  • Akismet / Automattic, Inc. — spam-checking of form submissions
  • Google — website analytics (Google Analytics) and outbound notification emails (Gmail, via WP Mail SMTP)

Where personal data is transferred to these providers, the transfer is protected by an adequate safeguard recognized under GDPR Chapter V — such as Standard Contractual Clauses (SCCs), or the provider’s certification under the EU-U.S. Data Privacy Framework where applicable.

6. How long we keep your data

  • Inquiries that do not lead to a business relationship: kept for up to 24 months from your last contact with us, then deleted, unless you ask us to delete it sooner.
  • Inquiries that lead to a quote, order, or ongoing client relationship: kept for the duration of that relationship, plus any period required afterward under German commercial and tax law (generally up to 10 years for accounting/invoicing records under HGB §257 / AO §147).
  • Direct emails to [email protected]: retained in line with the same principles above, as part of normal business correspondence records.

After these periods, data is deleted or anonymized, unless a longer retention period is required to comply with a legal obligation or to establish, exercise, or defend a legal claim.

7. Your rights

Under GDPR, you have the right to:

  • Access the personal data we hold about you
  • Rectify inaccurate or incomplete data
  • Erase your data (“right to be forgotten”), subject to legal retention requirements
  • Restrict how we process your data in certain circumstances
  • Object to processing based on our legitimate interest
  • Data portability, where processing is based on consent or contract and carried out by automated means
  • Withdraw consent at any time, where processing is based on consent, without affecting the lawfulness of processing before withdrawal

8. Cookies

melbridge.eu uses the following categories of cookies:

  • Essential/functional cookies — required for the contact form to work and to protect it from spam (set by WPForms, Contact Form 7, and Akismet). These do not require consent under GDPR/ePrivacy rules.
  • Analytics cookies (Google Analytics) — collect information about how visitors use the site (pages visited, time on site, approximate location, device/browser type) to help us understand traffic and improve the site. These are non-essential and are only set after you give consent through our Cookie Banner.

We do not currently use advertising or retargeting cookies (e.g., Meta Pixel, LinkedIn Insight Tag).

You can give, decline, or withdraw your consent to analytics cookies at any time through the Cookie Banner, accessible via the link in the site footer.

A detailed table of individual cookies, their purpose, and their retention period should be published as a separate Cookie Policy, linked from the Cookie Banner.

9. Security

We take reasonable technical and organizational measures to protect the personal data you submit, including access restrictions and secure handling of email and form data. No system is 100% secure, but we work to keep your data protected against unauthorized access, loss, or misuse.

10. Children

Our services are directed at businesses and professionals in the maritime and vehicle trade sectors. We do not knowingly collect personal data from children, and our form is not intended for use by anyone under 18.

11. Changes to this policy

We may update this policy from time to time, for example if we change our tools, add new forms, or as required by law. The “Last updated” date at the top will reflect the latest version. Material changes will be reflected on this page.

12. Contact us

Melbridge GmbH
Schillerstraße 1, 27313 Dörverden, Germany
Email: [email protected]

[email protected]
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