1. What are cookies?
Cookies are small text files that websites place on your device (computer, phone, tablet) when you visit them. They help the site remember information about your visit, such as your preferences or login status.
There are different types of cookies:
- Essential cookies – necessary for the website to work properly
- Analytics cookies – help us understand how people use the site
- Functional cookies – remember choices you make (e.g. language)
- Advertising / tracking cookies – used for marketing (we do NOT use these)
2. Cookies we use on buildermaster.co.uk
We keep cookies to a strict minimum. We only use:
Essential cookies
- Cookie consent banner – remembers whether you accepted or refused cookies so we don't show the banner again on every visit
- Session cookies – temporary files needed for basic site navigation and functionality
Tawk.to live chat cookies
We use Tawk.to for live chat support (the chat bubble in the bottom corner).
Tawk.to places the following cookies:
- Visitor recognition & chat session management
- Chat history (if you start a conversation)
- Basic analytics about chat usage (anonymous)
These help us respond to your questions in real time. You can see Tawk.to's full cookie & privacy policy here: tawk.to/privacy-policy
Google Analytics
We use Google Analytics 4 (GA4) to understand how visitors use our website (e.g. which pages are popular, how long people stay).
Google Analytics sets the following cookies:
- _ga – unique visitor identifier (anonymised)
- _gid – used to distinguish users (24-hour lifespan)
- _ga_XXXXXX – stores session data (anonymised)
We have configured Google Analytics to:
- Anonymise IP addresses
- Disable data sharing with Google products
- Exclude personal identifiers
Google's privacy policy: policies.google.com/privacy
3. Cookies we do NOT use
We do **not** use:
- Advertising cookies
- Retargeting / remarketing cookies
- Third-party tracking cookies (except Tawk.to & Google Analytics as described)
- Cookies that collect personal information such as name or email
4. How to manage or delete cookies
You can control cookies through your browser settings:
- Block all cookies (may break some site features)
- Delete cookies after each session
- Receive a warning before cookies are set
Most browsers allow you to manage cookies via:
- Chrome: Settings → Privacy and security → Cookies and other site data
- Firefox: Preferences → Privacy & Security → Cookies and Site Data
- Safari: Preferences → Privacy
- Edge: Settings → Cookies and site permissions
You can also use the cookie banner on our site to accept or refuse non-essential cookies at any time.
5. Changes to this policy
We may update this Cookie Policy if we add or change cookies. The date below shows when it was last revised.
Last updated: February 03, 2026
