Privacy Policy
Last updated: February 2026
Introduction
Meritage Advisors ("we", "our", or "us") is committed to protecting the privacy of our clients and website visitors. This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, and protect your personal information when you use our website and services. By using our site or engaging our advisory services, you consent to the practices described here.
Information We Collect
We collect information that you provide directly to us when you fill out intake forms, register for services, book a consultation, or communicate with our team. This includes your name, email address, phone number, and information about your student's academic background, interests, and goals. If you upload documents to our client portal, we also retain those files in connection with your engagement.
We may also collect certain information automatically when you visit our website, including your IP address, browser type, device information, pages viewed, and the dates and times of your visits. This information helps us understand how visitors use our site so we can improve it.
Google Analytics
We use Google Analytics, a web analytics service provided by Google LLC, to help us understand how visitors interact with our website. Google Analytics uses cookies and similar technologies to collect information about your browsing behaviour, including pages visited, time spent on the site, and how you arrived at our site. This data is aggregated and anonymised and does not personally identify you.
Google may transfer this information to servers outside of the United Kingdom and process it in accordance with its own privacy practices. You can learn more about how Google uses your data by visiting Google's privacy policy. You may opt out of Google Analytics tracking by installing the Google Analytics Opt-out Browser Add-on, available from Google.
Prohibited Document Uploads
IMPORTANT: The following documents must NOT be uploaded to Meritage systems:
Passports or travel documents, visa or immigration documents, financial statements or bank records, and government-issued identification. Uploading prohibited documents may result in immediate deletion and potential account suspension.
Newsletter
If you subscribe to our newsletter, we collect your email address for the purpose of sending you educational content and updates about our services. Your email address is stored securely and is not shared with third parties for marketing purposes. You may unsubscribe at any time by emailing us at info@meritage.uk with the subject line "Unsubscribe". Upon unsubscribing, your email address will be removed from our mailing list.
Cookies
Our website uses cookies to enhance your browsing experience. When you first visit our site, you will be presented with a cookie consent banner that allows you to accept or reject non-essential cookies.
Essential cookies: These are strictly necessary for the website to function and cannot be switched off. They include cookies for authentication and security.
Analytics cookies: We use Google Analytics cookies to understand how visitors interact with our website. These cookies collect information such as pages visited, time spent on the site, and how you arrived at our site. This data is aggregated and anonymised. Analytics cookies are only loaded if you consent to them.
You can change your cookie preferences at any time by clearing your browser's local storage or contacting us. You may also opt out of Google Analytics tracking by installing the Google Analytics Opt-out Browser Add-on.
How We Use Your Information
We use the information we collect to provide our advising services as outlined in our agreement with you, to communicate with you about your engagement, to process payments, and to improve our services. We may also use your contact information to send you relevant updates about our services, though you may opt out of such communications at any time. Additionally, we use aggregated and anonymised data from website analytics to understand usage patterns and enhance the user experience.
Data Security
We implement appropriate technical and organisational measures to protect your personal information. This includes encryption of data in transit and at rest, secure file storage with access controls, regular security audits, and staff training on data protection. While no system is completely secure, we take reasonable steps to safeguard your information against unauthorised access, alteration, or disclosure.
Data Retention
We retain your personal information for as long as necessary to provide our services and comply with legal obligations. When your engagement with us concludes, we will retain your data only as required by law or for legitimate business purposes. Upon request, we will delete your data subject to any legal retention requirements.
Your Rights
Under applicable data protection laws, you have the right to access your personal information, correct inaccurate information, request deletion of your information, object to the processing of your information, and request data portability. To exercise any of these rights, please contact us using the details provided below.
Third-Party Services
We use trusted third-party services to operate our business, including Stripe for payment processing, Clerk for authentication, Vercel for hosting and file storage, and Google for website analytics. Each of these services has its own privacy policy governing how it handles your data, and we encourage you to review those policies as well.
Contact Us
If you have questions about this Privacy Policy or our data practices, please contact us at info@meritage.uk.