Privacy policy

The short version

We collect what we need to find you a place and nothing else. We don't sell your information, we don't rent it out, and we don't buy contact lists. You can ask us what we hold on you, and ask us to delete it.

What we collect

• When you message us on WhatsApp: your number, your WhatsApp display name, and what you send us — including photos, voice notes and documents.
• When you create an account: your name, email address and WhatsApp number. If you sign in with Google, we receive your name, email address and profile picture from Google — never your Google password.
• When you apply for a place: your age, budget, who's moving in with you, how you'll pay the rent, and the documents we ask for — identity document, proof of income, bank statements, proof of registration or bursary letter, depending on your situation.
• When you use the website: the searches you save, the places you look at, and basic technical information your browser sends.
• If you're a landlord: your name, contact details, property details, and the documents proving you're entitled to let the property.

Why we collect it

To match you to places that actually fit, arrange viewings, verify who you are before a landlord lets you into their property, prepare and sign a lease, and invoice the placement fee. Screening exists to protect both sides — landlords need to know who's moving in, and tenants need to know the listing is real.

We also use your number to send the things you asked for: viewing reminders, document requests, and alerts when a place matching a search you saved comes up.

Who we share it with

• The landlord or caretaker of a property you've asked to view — your first name, age, budget and viewing time, so they can expect you. Your documents are not sent to them.
• Meta (WhatsApp), because that's how the conversation reaches you.
• Our service providers — the company that sends our email, the service that handles digital lease signing, and our hosting provider. They process data on our instruction and nothing else.
• Nobody else. We do not sell, rent or trade your information.

Automated screening

Documents you upload are read automatically to check they're legible, are the document we asked for, and are recent enough. If that check can't clear a document, we tell you why and ask for another copy. A person reviews anything the automatic check is unsure about, and you can always ask for a human to look at it.

How long we keep it

Your account and its documents stay with us while you're using Sleepsafe. If you're placed, we keep the lease and the invoice for five years, because South African tax and rental law requires it. If you go quiet without being placed, we delete your documents after two years. You can ask us to delete everything sooner.

Your rights under POPIA

The Protection of Personal Information Act gives you the right to ask what we hold about you, to correct anything wrong, to ask us to delete it, and to object to how we're using it. Email us and we'll respond within 30 days at the outside, usually much sooner.

If you think we've mishandled your information you can complain to the Information Regulator of South Africa at complaints.IR@justice.gov.za.

Stopping the messages

Reply STOP to any WhatsApp message and we stop. Every alert email has a link to switch that saved search off, and you can turn any of them off in your portal. Messages about a placement already under way — your lease, your invoice — will still reach you, because those are part of the agreement rather than marketing.

Keeping it safe

Everything travels over an encrypted connection. Documents sit on a server we control, not a public bucket, and only Sleepsafe staff who need them can open them. Passwords are stored hashed, never in plain text. No system is perfect, and if something goes wrong that puts your information at risk we'll tell you and the Regulator.

Children

Sleepsafe is for people aged 18 and over. If you're under 18, a parent or guardian needs to deal with us on your behalf.

Changes

If we change how we handle your information we'll update this page and change the date at the top. If the change is significant we'll tell you on WhatsApp or by email.

Who we are

Sleepsafe Accommodation Agency (Pty) Ltd
Registration 2024/001209/07
11 Lancaster road, Westdene, Johannesburg, 2092
hello@sleepsafe.space · +27 76 348 6686