This Privacy Policy explains how BBL Turkey ("we", "us", "our") collects, uses and protects your personal data when you visit bblturkey.uk or contact us about treatment. We are committed to handling your information in line with the EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), the UK GDPR and the Data Protection Act 2018, as well as Turkish Personal Data Protection Law No. 6698 (KVKK).
Who we are
BBL Turkey is a medical tourism service that connects international patients with plastic surgeons and accredited hospitals in Istanbul. For the purposes of data protection law, BBL Turkey is the data controller for personal data collected through this website and our enquiry channels. You can contact us about privacy at info@bblturkey.uk.
What data we collect
When you make an enquiry or request a consultation, we may collect:
- Your name, email address, phone number and country of residence
- Details of the procedure you are interested in and your preferred dates
- Health information you choose to share, such as height, weight, medical history and medications
- Photographs you send us, including via WhatsApp, for surgical assessment
- Technical data such as IP address, browser type and pages visited, collected through cookies (see our Cookie Policy)
Health information and photographs are special category data, and we treat them with extra care.
How we use your data and our lawful basis
- Responding to your enquiry and preparing a quote: taking steps at your request before entering into a contract.
- Assessing your suitability for surgery: your explicit consent, which you give when you send health information or photos.
- Arranging travel, hotel and hospital care: performance of a contract.
- Improving our website and services: our legitimate interests, and your consent for analytics cookies.
- Sending marketing updates: only with your consent, which you can withdraw at any time.
Patient photographs and consent
Photographs you send for assessment are shared only with your surgeon and the medical team involved in your care. We will never publish your photographs, including in our before and after gallery or on social media, without your separate, explicit written consent. Published images are anonymised, with faces, tattoos and other identifying features removed or cropped. You may withdraw publication consent at any time and we will remove the images from our channels.
Who we share data with
We share your data only where necessary with trusted processors and partners, including our partner hospital and surgeons, hotel and transfer partners, our website hosting and email providers, WhatsApp (Meta) for messaging, and Google Analytics for anonymised website statistics. Each processor is bound by contract to protect your data. Where data is transferred outside the UK or EEA, including to Türkiye, we rely on appropriate safeguards such as standard contractual clauses or your explicit consent.
How long we keep your data
Enquiry data from people who do not proceed with treatment is kept for 24 months from your last contact and then securely deleted. Medical records for patients who undergo treatment are retained by the hospital for the period required by Turkish healthcare law. Marketing preferences are kept until you unsubscribe.
Your rights
You have the right to access your data, correct it, request its deletion, restrict or object to processing, receive it in a portable format and withdraw consent at any time. To exercise any right, email info@bblturkey.uk. We will respond within one month. If you are unhappy with how we handle your data, you may complain to the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) in the UK or your local data protection authority.
Security
We use encrypted connections, access controls and secure storage to protect your information. Only staff who need your data to coordinate your care can access it.
Changes to this policy
We may update this policy from time to time. The latest version will always be published on this page.