Privacy Policy

Offkrent (“Offkrent”, “we”, “our” or “us”) operates an online platform that helps students and other users discover accommodation near their campuses, connect with accommodation providers, and use related services, including inspection requests.

We respect your privacy and are committed to handling personal information responsibly. This Privacy Policy explains the categories of personal data we may collect, why we process it, how it may be shared, how long we may retain it, and the choices and rights available to you.

This Policy applies when you use offkrent.com, create or manage an account, browse accommodation, submit or respond to an inspection request, make a payment through an available payment process, participate in our campus programmes, or contact us.

We handle personal data in accordance with applicable Nigerian data protection laws, including the Nigeria Data Protection Act 2023 (NDPA), where applicable. The exact information processed depends on the features you use and the services available to you.

We may collect the following categories of information, depending on your relationship with Offkrent and how you use the platform:

• Account and contact information: name, email address, telephone number, username, profile details, and account credentials or authentication information.
• Accommodation information: property address or general location, room or apartment details, rent, amenities, photographs, availability, and information submitted by accommodation providers or campus scouts.
• Inspection and booking-related information: requested accommodation, inspection dates or preferences, communications, request status, and information needed to coordinate an inspection.
• Payment and transaction information: payment amount, transaction reference, payment status, timestamps, applicable fees, and relevant transaction records. Payment details may also be processed by the payment provider handling your transaction.
• Identity and verification information: identity documents, photographs, contact details, or other information requested for an appropriate verification, fraud-prevention, account-security, or compliance purpose.
• Communications: messages, enquiries, feedback, complaints, and information you provide when communicating with our support team.
• Campus programme information: information reasonably required to manage applications, participation, referrals, rewards, or related activities for Offkrent ambassadors, scouts, and other programme participants.
• Technical and usage information: IP address, browser type, device information, approximate location, pages viewed, referring pages, interaction data, cookie identifiers, and diagnostic logs, where available and appropriate.

We may collect personal data directly from you when you register, update your profile, submit an accommodation or inspection request, provide verification information, make a payment, participate in a programme, or contact us.

Some information is collected automatically when you browse or interact with the website, including technical logs, cookie information, and usage analytics where enabled.

We may also receive relevant information from payment providers, identity-verification services, accommodation providers, or other service partners when necessary for a service you have requested, security, verification, or a lawful purpose.

Where information comes from another source, we will handle it in accordance with applicable data protection requirements.

We process personal data for specific and legitimate purposes related to operating, securing, and improving Offkrent. Depending on the circumstances, these purposes may include:

• Creating, authenticating, maintaining, and securing user accounts.
• Displaying accommodation information and helping users discover relevant rooms, self-contain apartments, and flats.
• Receiving, managing, and coordinating inspection requests and related communications.
• Processing payments, confirming transactions, maintaining records, and resolving payment disputes.
• Verifying account, provider, property, or identity information where appropriate.
• Communicating service updates, responding to questions, and providing customer support.
• Detecting fraud, misuse, suspicious activity, inaccurate information, and potential threats to users or the platform.
• Operating campus ambassador, scout, referral, and reward programmes.
• Understanding website usage, measuring performance, troubleshooting issues, and improving the user experience through analytics.
• Complying with applicable legal obligations and establishing, exercising, or defending legal claims.

Under the NDPA, personal data must be processed on an appropriate lawful basis. Depending on the activity and circumstances, Offkrent may rely on one or more of the following bases:

• Contract or steps taken at your request before entering into a contract, such as creating an account or handling an inspection request.
• Consent, where you have been asked to agree to a particular processing activity, such as certain non-essential cookies or optional communications.
• Legitimate interests, where permitted by law, such as securing the platform, preventing fraud, and improving our services, provided your rights and interests are appropriately considered.
• Legal obligation, where processing is necessary to comply with applicable laws or lawful requests.
• Another lawful basis expressly permitted under applicable data protection law, where relevant.

Where we rely on consent, you may withdraw it at any time. Withdrawal does not affect processing that took place lawfully before withdrawal, and it does not prevent processing where another lawful basis applies.

We do not treat your personal information as a product to sell. We may disclose relevant information only where reasonably necessary for the purposes described in this Policy, where you request or authorise it, or where permitted or required by law.

Depending on the service you use, recipients may include:

• Accommodation providers and relevant users, where information is needed to respond to an enquiry or coordinate an inspection.
• Payment processors and financial service providers, to process or verify transactions and resolve payment issues.
• Hosting, cloud infrastructure, database, security, communications, analytics, and technical support providers that help operate the platform.
• Identity-verification or fraud-prevention providers, where a verification process is used.
• Professional advisers, auditors, insurers, or similar service providers where reasonably necessary and lawful.
• Regulators, law enforcement agencies, courts, or other authorities where required by law or necessary to protect legal rights and safety.

We aim to limit shared information to what is reasonably necessary. Service providers that process data on our behalf should be subject to appropriate contractual, confidentiality, and data protection safeguards where required.

Where payments are available on Offkrent, transaction processing may involve an external payment provider. That provider may collect and process payment information under its own privacy notice and terms.

Offkrent may receive or retain transaction references, amounts, payment status, timestamps, fee details, and other records needed to confirm payments, manage services, provide support, reconcile accounts, and address disputes or legal requirements.

We do not claim that payment details are processed exclusively by Offkrent. The payment methods offered and the information visible to us may depend on the provider and the payment flow used.

Please review the privacy information of the payment provider presented during your transaction. Do not send full payment card details, passwords, PINs, or one-time verification codes to Offkrent through ordinary messages.

Offkrent may request identity or other verification information to help confirm an account or provider, reduce fraud, protect users, investigate suspicious activity, or meet applicable obligations.

We aim to request information that is relevant and proportionate to the verification purpose. Access should be limited to people or service providers who need it for an authorised task.

Verification does not guarantee that a person, property, listing, or transaction is risk-free. Users should continue to exercise reasonable caution when communicating with others, inspecting accommodation, and making payments.

Where a third-party verification service is involved, that service may process information under its own privacy terms and any applicable arrangements with Offkrent.

Accommodation discovery naturally involves location information. Offkrent may process property addresses, campus areas, neighbourhoods, or approximate location information to help users find accommodation in relevant areas.

The website may also infer an approximate area from technical information, such as an IP address, if the relevant services support that functionality.

This does not mean Offkrent necessarily accesses your device GPS or continuously tracks your precise physical location. If a feature requests precise device location in the future, the request and its purpose should be presented separately where required.

Be mindful that information you include in a public accommodation listing or profile may be visible to other users. Avoid publishing private residential or identity details unless they are necessary and you are comfortable sharing them.

Offkrent may use cookies, local storage, similar technologies, and analytics tools to support essential website functions, remember preferences, understand how visitors use the platform, diagnose errors, and improve performance.

Depending on the technologies enabled, these tools may process identifiers, browser or device details, pages visited, interactions, referral information, and approximate technical location.

• Essential technologies help the website operate, maintain sessions, support security, and provide requested functions.
• Preference technologies may remember choices or settings.
• Analytics technologies help us understand aggregate or individual patterns of website use and identify areas for improvement.
• Other non-essential tracking technologies, if used, should be handled according to applicable consent and notice requirements.

You can manage cookies through available website controls and your browser settings. Blocking certain cookies may affect website functionality. Deleting cookies does not necessarily delete information already held by an analytics provider.

The specific cookies and analytics providers may change as the platform develops. A separate cookie notice or settings interface should identify relevant non-essential technologies and available choices where required.

We retain personal data only for as long as reasonably necessary for the purpose for which it was collected, subject to applicable law and legitimate operational needs.

Retention periods may differ by category. For example, account information may be retained while an account remains active; inspection and transaction records may be retained for service administration, accounting, dispute resolution, security, or legal obligations; and technical or analytics information may be retained according to the settings and policies of the relevant systems.

Verification information should not be kept indefinitely without a valid purpose. Where information is no longer needed, we will take appropriate steps to delete it, anonymise it, or otherwise dispose of it securely, subject to lawful retention requirements and technical limitations.

We do not specify a fixed retention period for every category in this Policy because the applicable period can depend on the record, the service used, and legal requirements.

We aim to apply appropriate technical and organisational measures to protect personal data against unauthorised access, disclosure, alteration, loss, or destruction. Depending on the systems involved, measures may include access controls, authentication, secure communications, backups, monitoring, and restricted access to operational systems.

No website, network, or storage system can be guaranteed to be completely secure. We therefore cannot promise absolute security, but we aim to respond appropriately to suspected incidents and comply with applicable legal obligations.

You are responsible for keeping your account credentials confidential and notifying us if you suspect unauthorised use of your account.

Some of our hosting, analytics, payment, communications, or other service providers may operate servers or access information from outside Nigeria. As a result, personal data may be processed in another country.

Where personal data is transferred across borders, we will take steps required by applicable Nigerian data protection law, which may include assessing the transfer conditions and using appropriate safeguards or another legally permitted transfer mechanism.

The protections and legal rules in another country may differ from those in Nigeria. You may contact us for more information about relevant transfers, subject to security, confidentiality, and legal limitations.

Subject to applicable law, exemptions, and the circumstances of the request, you may have rights concerning your personal data, including:

• The right to receive information about how your personal data is processed.
• The right to request access to personal data we hold about you.
• The right to request correction of inaccurate or incomplete information.
• The right to request deletion of personal data where the law provides that right.
• The right to request restriction of processing in applicable circumstances.
• The right to object to certain processing, including processing based on legitimate interests, where applicable.
• The right to withdraw consent where processing relies on consent.
• The right to receive or request transfer of certain personal data in a portable format where applicable.
• The right not to be subject to certain decisions based solely on automated processing where the law provides protection.
• The right to lodge a complaint with the Nigeria Data Protection Commission or another competent authority, as applicable.

To exercise a right, contact us using the details below and explain your request. We may need to verify your identity before responding to protect your information. We will handle requests within the time limits and procedures required by applicable law.

Some information may need to be retained or processing may continue where a lawful exception or another legal basis applies, such as compliance with legal obligations or the establishment or defence of legal claims. If we cannot fulfil a request fully, we will explain the position where required.

We may send service-related messages about your account, inspection requests, transactions, security, or important changes to our terms and policies where necessary to provide our services.

Where we send optional promotional communications, we will provide a way to opt out where required by law. Opting out of promotional messages will not necessarily stop essential service or security communications.

You may contact us if you receive an unexpected communication claiming to be from Offkrent. Do not share your password, PIN, or one-time verification code in response to such a message.

Offkrent may link to external websites, payment pages, maps, communication services, or other third-party platforms. When you use those services, their own terms and privacy policies may apply.

We do not control the privacy practices or security of independent third-party websites. We encourage you to review their policies before providing personal information or completing a transaction.

Offkrent is designed primarily for people seeking or providing accommodation and is not intended to encourage children to submit personal data without appropriate safeguards.

If you are under 18, you should use the platform only where permitted by applicable law and, where required, with the involvement or consent of a parent or legal guardian.

If we become aware that we have collected personal data from a child in circumstances where collection was not appropriate or lawful, we will take reasonable steps to review and address the situation in accordance with applicable law.

We may update this Privacy Policy to reflect changes to Offkrent, the information we process, our service providers, or applicable law.

When changes are made, we will update the date at the top of this page. Where a change materially affects your rights or requires notice under applicable law, we will take reasonable steps to bring it to your attention.

Your continued use of Offkrent after an updated Policy takes effect does not override any consent requirement imposed by law.

If you have questions about this Privacy Policy, want to exercise your privacy rights, or wish to raise a concern about how your information is handled, contact Offkrent using the details below.

Please do not include passwords, payment card details, PINs, or unnecessary identity documents in your initial message. We will explain any additional information needed to process your request securely.

• Website: offkrent.com
• Email: offk.rent@gmail.com
• WhatsApp: 09024116189