Privacy Policy - Talking Hat

Privacy Policy
Talking Hat
Effective date: 19 September 2026

1. Introduction

Talking Hat (“Talking Hat”, “we”, “us” or “our”) respects your privacy and is committed to protecting your personal information.

This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, store, protect and disclose personal information when you:

visit or use our website (talkinghat.co.za);
create an account;
place an order;
purchase our products;
contact us;
subscribe to marketing communications or newsletters;
submit a review, enquiry or other information; or
otherwise interact with Talking Hat.

We process personal information in accordance with applicable South African data-protection legislation, including the Protection of Personal Information Act 4 of 2013 (“POPIA”), as well as other applicable laws.

This Privacy Policy should be read together with our Terms & Conditions, Shipping Policy and Returns & Refunds Policy (where applicable).

2. Who We Are

The responsible party for personal information processed through the Talking Hat website and business is:

Talking Hat
Based in Mooi River, KwaZulu-Natal Midlands, South Africa
Email: sales@talkinghat.co.za
Telephone: +27 61 517 7338

Where applicable, Talking Hat may use third-party service providers to process personal information on our behalf. These providers may include payment processors, courier and delivery providers, website and hosting providers, analytics services, marketing platforms and other service providers necessary to operate our business.

3. What Personal Information We Collect

Depending on how you interact with us, we may collect the following categories of personal information:

3.1 Contact and identification information
This may include:

name and surname;
email address;
telephone or cellphone number;
billing address;
delivery address;
postal address; and
business or company information where applicable.

3.2 Account information
If you create an account with us, we may collect information associated with your account, including:

username or account details;
order history;
saved addresses;
communication preferences; and
other information you choose to provide.

3.3 Order and transaction information
When you purchase from us, we may collect:

products purchased;
quantities;
order numbers;
order dates;
delivery information;
billing information;
payment status;
refund and return information; and
communications relating to your order.

3.4 Payment information
Payments may be processed through third-party payment providers.
Where a third-party payment provider processes your payment, your payment information may be collected and processed directly by that provider in accordance with its own privacy policy and security practices.
Talking Hat does not need to receive or store your complete card details where these are processed directly by the applicable payment provider.

3.5 Communications
When you contact us by email, telephone, website forms, chat or other communication channels, we may retain the communication and information necessary to respond to your enquiry, provide customer service or maintain appropriate business records.

3.6 Website and technical information
When you use our Website, certain technical information may be collected automatically, including:

IP address;
browser type;
device type;
operating system;
pages visited;
referring pages;
date and time of visits;
website interactions; and
other technical or usage information.

Where appropriate, this information may be collected in aggregated or pseudonymised form.

4. How We Collect Personal Information

We may collect personal information:

directly from you when you place an order;
when you create or update an account;
when you contact us;
when you subscribe to communications;
when you participate in a promotion, competition or survey;
automatically through your use of the Website;
through cookies and similar technologies;
from payment providers where necessary to confirm or process transactions;
from courier or delivery providers in connection with an order; and
from other lawful sources where permitted by applicable law.

We generally collect personal information directly from you where reasonably practicable.

5. Why We Use Your Personal Information

We may use personal information for purposes including:

Order fulfilment
To process your order; confirm payment; prepare products for dispatch; arrange delivery or collection; provide tracking information; process returns and refunds; and communicate with you regarding your order.

Customer service
To respond to enquiries; provide support; investigate complaints; resolve disputes; and maintain appropriate customer-service records.

Account management
To create and maintain customer accounts; manage saved information; provide access to order history; and administer account-related services.

Business administration
To maintain financial and business records; process invoices and payments; manage suppliers and service providers; analyse sales and operational performance; improve our Website and services; and manage our relationship with customers.

Security and fraud prevention
To protect our Website and systems; detect and prevent fraudulent transactions; investigate suspicious activity; prevent misuse of our services; and protect Talking Hat, our customers and third parties.

Legal and regulatory compliance
We may process personal information where necessary to comply with applicable laws; respond to lawful requests from authorities; establish, exercise or defend legal claims; maintain records required by law; and meet other legitimate legal or regulatory obligations.

Marketing
Where permitted by applicable law and where the required consent has been obtained, we may use your contact information to provide information about Talking Hat products, promotions, services and other relevant communications.
You may unsubscribe from marketing communications at any time using the unsubscribe facility provided in the communication or by contacting us.

6. Lawful Processing of Personal Information

Talking Hat will process personal information only where permitted by applicable law.

Depending on the circumstances, processing may be necessary because:

you have requested a product or service from us;
it is necessary to perform a transaction with you;
we have a legitimate business purpose that is not overridden by your privacy rights;
you have provided consent;
we are required to comply with a legal obligation; or
another lawful basis for processing applies.

Where consent is required, we will obtain it in an appropriate manner.
You may withdraw consent where applicable, although withdrawal of consent does not affect processing that was lawfully carried out before the withdrawal.

7. Cookies and Similar Technologies

Our Website may use cookies and similar technologies.
Cookies are small data files stored on your device that can help a website remember information about your visit.

We may use cookies for purposes including:

essential Website functionality;
maintaining shopping carts and sessions;
remembering preferences;
account functionality;
Website performance;
analytics;
understanding Website usage;
measuring advertising effectiveness;
personalising or improving Website content; and
security and fraud prevention.

Some cookies may be placed by third-party service providers whose services are integrated into our Website.
You can generally control or disable cookies through your browser settings. However, disabling certain cookies may affect Website functionality.
Where applicable, we will provide additional cookie controls or notices for non-essential cookies.

8. Analytics and Advertising

We may use analytics and advertising technologies to understand how visitors use our Website and to measure the effectiveness of our marketing.

Depending on the services implemented on our Website, these technologies may collect information such as:

pages visited;
products viewed;
Website interactions;
referring websites;
approximate location derived from technical information;
device and browser information; and
advertising interactions.

Where third-party advertising or analytics providers process personal information, their own privacy policies may also apply.
We will implement such services in accordance with applicable privacy and electronic-communications requirements.

9. Sharing Personal Information

We do not sell your personal information as a commercial product.

We may disclose or provide access to personal information where reasonably necessary to operate our business and provide services to you.

This may include sharing information with:

Payment service providers – to process, verify and administer payments.
Courier and delivery providers – we may provide your name, telephone number, delivery address and other necessary information so that your order can be delivered.
Website, hosting and technology providers – service providers that host, maintain, secure or provide functionality for our Website and business systems.
Analytics and marketing providers – where applicable and lawfully permitted, to assist us with advertising, reporting and Website improvement.
Professional advisers – accountants, auditors, lawyers, consultants or insurers where reasonably necessary.
Government and regulatory authorities – where required or permitted by law, court order or lawful governmental request.
Business transactions – if Talking Hat or part of its business is sold, transferred, merged or reorganised, personal information may be transferred as part of that transaction, subject to applicable legal requirements.

10. Third-Party Service Providers

Where we use third-party service providers to process personal information on our behalf, we take reasonable steps to ensure that appropriate confidentiality and security obligations apply.

Third-party providers may process information according to their own terms and privacy policies where they act independently as responsible parties for particular processing activities.
We do not control the privacy practices of independent third parties and encourage customers to review their applicable privacy notices where appropriate.

11. Marketplace Purchases

If you purchase a Talking Hat product through a third-party marketplace, your personal information may be processed by that marketplace in accordance with its own privacy policy.
The marketplace may provide Talking Hat with information necessary to fulfil your order, communicate with you, process returns or provide customer support.
Talking Hat will process information received from marketplaces in accordance with applicable law.

12. Information Security

We take reasonable technical and organisational measures to protect personal information against:

loss;
unauthorised access;
unauthorised disclosure;
misuse;
alteration; and
unauthorised destruction.

Security measures may include appropriate access controls, authentication, system monitoring, secure communications and restrictions on access to personal information.
No electronic transmission or storage system can be guaranteed to be completely secure. While we take reasonable precautions, we cannot guarantee absolute security.

13. Retention of Personal Information

We retain personal information only for as long as reasonably necessary for the purposes for which it was collected or as required by applicable law.

Retention periods may depend on:

the nature of the information;
the purpose for which it was collected;
whether you maintain an account;
the existence of an ongoing customer relationship;
financial and tax recordkeeping requirements;
legal obligations;
dispute-resolution requirements;
fraud prevention and security requirements; and
other legitimate business requirements.

When personal information is no longer required, we will take reasonable steps to securely delete, destroy or de-identify it where appropriate.

14. Your Rights

Subject to applicable law, you may have rights relating to your personal information, including the right to:

request access to personal information we hold about you;
request correction of inaccurate or incomplete information;
request deletion of personal information where legally applicable;
object to certain forms of processing;
withdraw consent where processing is based on consent;
request information about how your personal information is processed; and
lodge a complaint regarding the handling of your personal information.

These rights are subject to limitations and exceptions provided by applicable law.

15. Updating Your Information

You are responsible for ensuring that information provided to us is accurate and up to date.
If your contact, billing or delivery information changes, please update your account where this functionality is available or contact us.
You may contact us if you believe that personal information we hold about you is inaccurate or incomplete.

16. Requests for Personal Information

To request access to or correction of your personal information, please contact:
sales@talkinghat.co.za

To help us protect your information, we may need to verify your identity before processing a request.
We will respond to requests within the period required by applicable law.
Where we are unable to fulfil a request, we will provide an explanation where legally required.

17. Direct Marketing

Talking Hat may use electronic communications for direct marketing where permitted by applicable law.
Where consent is required, we will obtain consent before sending the relevant marketing communications.

You may opt out of marketing communications at any time by:

using the unsubscribe option provided in the communication; or
contacting us at sales@talkinghat.co.za.

Opting out of marketing communications will not prevent us from sending essential transactional communications, such as order confirmations, payment information, delivery updates or other communications necessary to administer your purchase.

18. Children’s Information

Our Website is intended for general consumer and business use and is not specifically directed at children.
We do not knowingly collect personal information from children where doing so would be unlawful.
If you believe that a child has provided personal information to us unlawfully, please contact us so that we can investigate and take appropriate action.

19. International Transfers

Some third-party technology, payment, hosting, analytics or other service providers used by businesses may process information outside South Africa.
Where personal information is transferred outside South Africa, Talking Hat will take reasonable steps to ensure that the transfer and processing comply with applicable data-protection requirements.
This may include ensuring that an appropriate legal basis, contractual protection or other safeguard applies to the transfer where required.

20. Data Breaches

If Talking Hat becomes aware of a security compromise involving personal information, we will assess the incident and take reasonable steps to contain, investigate and remediate it.
Where applicable law requires notification to affected individuals or the Information Regulator, we will make the required notification in accordance with the applicable legal requirements.

21. Third-Party Websites

Our Website may contain links to third-party websites or services.
Once you leave the Talking Hat Website, your use of those websites is governed by their own terms and privacy policies.
Talking Hat is not responsible for the privacy practices or security of third-party websites that we do not control.

22. Business Customers

Where we provide products or services to businesses, we may process additional business-related information, including:

company name;
business address;
contact-person details;
purchase history;
tax or invoicing information;
delivery information; and
other information necessary to administer the business relationship.

Business customers remain responsible for ensuring that they have the necessary authority to provide personal information relating to their employees, representatives or other contacts to Talking Hat.

23. Communications and Customer Service Records

We may retain records of communications with customers where reasonably necessary to:

respond to enquiries;
resolve complaints;
process returns;
investigate disputes;
verify instructions;
maintain business records; or
protect our legal rights.

Such records will be handled in accordance with this Privacy Policy and applicable law.

24. Changes to This Privacy Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes to:

our business;
the Website;
our products and services;
technology;
third-party service providers;
applicable laws; or
our privacy practices.

The latest version will be published on the Website with its effective date.
Where required by law, we will provide appropriate notice of material changes.

25. Complaints

If you have concerns about how Talking Hat has handled your personal information, please contact us first so that we can investigate and attempt to resolve the matter.

Email: sales@talkinghat.co.za

You may also have the right to lodge a complaint with the Information Regulator of South Africa where applicable.

26. Contact Information

For questions, requests or concerns regarding this Privacy Policy or the processing of your personal information, please contact:

Talking Hat
Email: sales@talkinghat.co.za
Telephone: +27 61 517 7338
Based in Mooi River, KwaZulu-Natal Midlands, South Africa

Privacy Policy version: 19 September 2026