Privacy Policy

Effective Date: 31 May 2026

Bookably (“we,” “our,” “us”) is committed to protecting your privacy. This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, disclose, and safeguard your information when you visit our website and use our services.

1. Information We Collect

We collect different types of information to improve our services, including:

Personal Information: Name, email address, phone number, payment details, and booking history.
Account Information: If you create an account, we collect login credentials and profile details.
Listing Information: Hosts provide property details, descriptions, pricing, and availability.
Usage Data: Information about how you interact with our website, including IP address, browser type, and device information.
Location Data (Optional): Our site provides an optional location feature that, when used by a user, will attempt to determine their location via GPS to display available properties nearby using Google Maps. This data is used only for this purpose and is not stored permanently.
Identity Verification Data: When required, we collect a minimal record of your identity verification. This is limited to your verified or not-verified status with a timestamp. We do not store the document images, selfie, name, date of birth, or any other personal details from your ID. Those are held by Stripe, not by Bookably. See section 8 for details.
GST and Tax Data (Hosts): For hosts only. Each listing carries a GST-registration declaration and an IRD number so Bookably can act as the marketplace GST operator. See section 9 for details.

2. How We Use Your Information

We use the collected information for the following purposes:

To provide and manage our booking and listing services.
To process transactions and facilitate payments.
To verify user identities and prevent fraud.
To communicate with you regarding bookings, inquiries, or customer support.
To improve our website, personalize user experience, and analyze website traffic.
To comply with legal obligations and enforce our Terms of Use.

3. How We Share Your Information

We do not sell your personal data. However, we may share information with:

Service Providers: Third-party companies that help us operate our website, process payments, and improve services.
Hosts and Guests: When you make a booking, certain details are shared between hosts and guests to facilitate the reservation.
Stripe: We share information with Stripe Payments Europe Ltd. and its affiliates (Stripe) to process payments and, where applicable, to verify your identity through Stripe Identity. Stripe acts both as our processor and as an independent data controller for verification data. See section 8 for details.
Legal Compliance: If required by law, regulation, or legal request, we may disclose user data to authorities.

4. Data Retention

We retain personal data for as long as necessary to fulfil our business and legal obligations. Specifically:

Account and booking data: for as long as you have an active account, plus a reasonable period afterwards to satisfy legal and tax obligations.
Identity verification status (held by Bookably): for as long as you have an active account with us.
Identity verification data held by Stripe: biometric data is retained for no longer than 12 months under Stripe’s New Zealand privacy provisions, or until you revoke your consent, whichever is earlier. Other parts of the verification record are retained per Stripe’s general retention policy.
GST and tax data (hosts): see section 9 for the retention of IRD numbers, monthly statement PDFs, and related accounting records.

You may request deletion of your data by contacting us. See section 7 for how.

5. Security Measures

We store and process data in a secure data centre located in the European Union. EU data protection laws provide safeguards that are similar to, or stronger than, the protections under the New Zealand Privacy Act. We implement industry-standard security practices to protect user data. However, no online platform can guarantee 100% security.

6. Cookies and Tracking Technologies

We use cookies and similar technologies to enhance your browsing experience. These include:

Essential Cookies: Required for site functionality.
Analytics Cookies: Help us analyze user activity.
Marketing Cookies: Used for advertising purposes.

You can manage your cookie preferences in your browser settings.

7. User Rights

Depending on your location, you may have rights to:

Access, correct, or delete your personal information.
Object to certain data processing activities.
Withdraw consent where applicable.

To exercise these rights, contact us at [email protected].

8. Identity Verification

When you make your first booking on Bookably, we may ask you to complete a one-off identity verification. This check is provided by Stripe Identity, a verification service operated by Stripe Payments Europe Ltd. and its affiliates. Stripe Identity collects images of your government-issued photo ID and a selfie, and uses biometric matching technology to confirm the photos correspond to the same person.

What Stripe stores. Stripe holds your ID document images, your selfie, the biometric measurements extracted from them, and the full verification record. Stripe uses access controls and security standards at least as stringent as those used to handle their own KYC and payments compliance data.

What Bookably stores. Bookably keeps a minimal record of the outcome: your verified or not-verified status, and the date and time of verification. We do not store the document images, selfie, name, date of birth, document type, country of issuance, or any other personal details from your ID. Our verification policy checks (such as minimum age) are applied at the moment of verification using data Stripe provides, and that data is discarded immediately after the check.

Your rights. Stripe holds verification data both as Bookably’s processor and as an independent data controller. To exercise your rights fully you should contact both Bookably and Stripe. Email [email protected] for the data Bookably holds, and for the verification data Stripe holds on our behalf as our processor (we can action redaction of the latter via Stripe’s Identity API). For data Stripe holds as an independent data controller, including any opt-out of Stripe using your biometric data for their own purposes, contact [email protected] directly.

Alternative verification. If you prefer not to use Stripe Identity, please contact us at [email protected] or call us to arrange a short video call as an alternative.

For the full process, including how Stripe handles your data, see our dedicated identity verification page, Stripe’s Privacy Policy, and Stripe’s Privacy Center.

9. GST and Tax Data (Hosts)

This section applies to hosts only. Under New Zealand’s Goods and Services Tax Act 1985, Bookably acts as the electronic marketplace operator for short-term accommodation listed on the platform. To operate that role we collect and process tax-related data tied to each listing.

What we collect. For each of your listings: the GST-registration declaration (whether the listing operates under a GST-registered entity, and if so whether it is opted out of marketplace GST collection), and the corresponding IRD number.

Why we collect it. To compute the correct GST treatment on each payout, to remit GST to Inland Revenue on your behalf where required, to generate your monthly GST statements, and to maintain internal accounting and reconciliation records.

Who can see it. You, when viewing or editing your listings. Bookably staff who require access for marketplace GST operations. Inland Revenue, when GST remittance and reporting requires it. We do not share your IRD number with guests, with other hosts, or with any other third party.

How we protect it. IRD numbers are stored against your listing record in our database. We never expose IRD numbers in URLs, logs, or filesystem paths. Monthly statement PDF files use a hashed identifier in their storage path rather than the literal IRD number. Access is limited to Bookably staff with a clear operational need.

Retention. We retain your IRD number for as long as you have an active listing under that IRD number. Tax records associated with payouts (statement PDFs, internal ledger entries) are retained for the period required under New Zealand tax law.

Your rights. You can update or correct the IRD number on any of your listings at any time, by editing the listing on Bookably or via the host assistant. To remove or change other GST-related data Bookably holds about you, contact [email protected]. Some tax records must be retained even after a listing or account is closed; see the retention paragraph above.

10. Third-Party Links

Our website may contain links to third-party sites. We are not responsible for their privacy practices.

11. Bookably Loyalty

When a host takes part in Bookably Loyalty, we keep a count of your completed stays with that host, together with any loyalty credits granted to you (for example when you scan a loyalty card during a stay, or when a host credits stays from before Bookably). We use this only to apply your returning guest discount and to show you and the host your standing.

Hosts may give us email addresses of their past guests so that returning guests are recognised automatically. We never store those addresses. Each address is converted immediately to a one-way cryptographic fingerprint, the original is discarded, and we never send any email to an imported address. If you create an account or book with a matching email address, your returning guest status attaches automatically. You can ask us to delete imported fingerprints connected to your email address at any time by contacting [email protected].

12. Updates to This Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. Any changes will be posted on this page with an updated effective date.

13. Contact Us

If you have any questions, please contact us at:

Bookably (Istria.Holiday Ltd)
Phone: 0800 448 938
Email: [email protected]
Address: 6 Remuremu Street, Long Bay, Auckland, New Zealand