Last updated: September 2026
This Privacy Policy explains how Michael Hegeman handles personal information when you visit or contact me through:
michaelhegeman.com
1. Who I Am
The website and consultation and private violin lesson services are operated by:
Michael Hegeman
Business location: Ede, The Netherlands
Email: info[at]michaelhegeman.com
For security and privacy reasons, the full geographical business address is not displayed publicly on this website. Where required for a consumer consultation or violin lesson agreement, the full geographical address will be provided as part of the pre-contractual information before the client is bound by the agreement.
I am responsible for the personal information processed through this website and in connection with my consultation and private violin lesson services.
Claudia Hegeman assists me with appointment scheduling, booking administration and payment administration. She only handles personal information where necessary for these purposes and maintains the same privacy and confidentiality.
2. Information I May Collect
Depending on how you use the website and services, I may collect:
- your name;
- email address;
- a brief description of the physical or playing problem you experience when playing the violin or viola;
- information needed to arrange a consultation or violin lesson;
- information about your playing level, where provided;
- your selected consultation option and preferred consultation format;
- your selected violin lesson option, lesson length and preferred lesson format;
- information about whether a violin lesson student is 18 or over;
- the name and relationship of a parent or legal guardian where this is necessary for a student under 18;
- information provided in connection with a trial lesson, regular monthly lesson arrangement or one-year lesson commitment;
- booking and payment information, where applicable;
- relevant correspondence and information concerning enquiries, bookings, consultations and violin lesson arrangements;
- technical information necessary for the operation and security of the website.
The booking form asks for a brief description of the physical problem because this information helps Michael Hegeman understand your situation and prepare for the consultation.
A brief description of a physical problem — such as pain, discomfort, stiffness, tension or numbness — may be considered health information under the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). Health information is treated as a special category of personal data and is therefore subject to additional protection.
Please provide only information that is relevant and necessary for the consultation or violin lesson enquiry.
Please do not provide medical records, detailed medical histories, detailed diagnostic reports, medication lists or other information that is not necessary for the consultation.
For consultation and violin lesson enquiries, information requested through the relevant enquiry form is used to determine the appropriate service arrangement and to communicate with the client or, where applicable, the parent or legal guardian.
Where a student is under 18, information about the student and the relevant parent or legal guardian may be processed where necessary to arrange and administer the violin lesson service.
3. How I Use Personal Information
I may use personal information to:
- respond to enquiries;
- understand the physical or playing problem described in an enquiry;
- prepare for and provide consultations;
- arrange and provide private violin lessons;
- arrange and administer trial violin lessons;
- manage regular monthly violin lesson arrangements and one-year lesson commitments;
- communicate about consultations, violin lessons and appointments;
- manage lesson cancellations, rescheduling and related arrangements;
- process payments, refunds and other financial administration, where applicable;
- maintain appropriate business records;
- comply with legal obligations;
- maintain the security and proper operation of the website.
For ordinary personal information, the applicable legal basis may include taking steps at your request before entering into a consultation or violin lesson agreement, performing a consultation or violin lesson agreement, complying with a legal obligation, or pursuing legitimate interests where permitted by law.
Information concerning health is subject to the additional requirements of Article 9 of the GDPR.
I will process only the limited health-related information that is relevant to the physical problem described in connection with the requested consultation and will not intentionally request unnecessary medical information.
Health-related information will be processed only where an applicable condition under Article 9 of the GDPR permits that processing and in accordance with any additional requirements of applicable data-protection law.
I do not sell personal information.
Where information is required in order to arrange or provide a consultation or violin lesson, failure to provide necessary information may mean that I am unable to arrange or provide the requested service. Information that is not necessary for the requested service does not need to be provided.
4. Information About Physical Problems
The consultation service specifically concerns physical problems that violinists and violists may experience when playing.
For this reason, the enquiry form asks the client to provide a brief description of the physical problem. This may include information such as where discomfort or pain occurs, what the client experiences when playing, or another brief description of the difficulty.
This information helps Michael Hegeman understand the situation and prepare for the consultation.
Because information about a person’s physical symptoms or health may constitute health data under Article 9 of the GDPR, it receives additional protection.
Only information that is relevant and necessary for the enquiry or consultation should be provided.
Medical records, detailed medical histories, detailed diagnostic reports, medication lists and other unnecessary health information should not be sent through the website enquiry form or email.
The service is not a medical service. Michael Hegeman does not provide medical diagnosis, physiotherapy or medical treatment.
Health-related information will be used only for the purposes described in this Privacy Policy and the consultation service, and will not be used for unrelated purposes.
5. Contact and Confidentiality
If you contact me by email or through a website contact form, the information you provide will be used to respond to your enquiry and, where appropriate, arrange and prepare for a consultation or violin lesson.
Every enquiry, consultation and violin lesson arrangement is private and confidential. Information relating to your enquiry, consultation, violin lesson and personal circumstances will be handled with strict confidentiality. I will not disclose such information to third parties unless disclosure is required by law.
Claudia Hegeman maintains the same privacy and confidentiality when handling personal information.
6. Payment and Transaction Information
Where applicable, I process information relating to payments and transactions for the purpose of arranging and administering consultations and violin lessons, maintaining financial records and complying with legal and accounting obligations.
Payments may be made by PayPal or bank transfer.
Where PayPal is used, payment-related information may be processed by PayPal in accordance with PayPal’s own privacy policy and applicable data-protection law.
Where payment is made by bank transfer, relevant payment information may be processed by the banks or financial institutions involved in processing the transaction.
7. Cookies and Similar Technologies
This website may use cookies or similar technologies.
Cookie consent on this website is managed using Complianz | GDPR/CCPA Cookie Consent.
Some cookies may be necessary for the proper functioning, security or basic operation of the website.
Where non-essential cookies or similar technologies are used and consent is required, they will only be used in accordance with applicable law and after the required consent has been obtained.
Non-essential cookies will not be placed before the required consent has been obtained.
Where consent is used, it must also be possible to withdraw that consent.
The website’s current cookie information identifies the cookies and similar technologies used, their purposes and their applicable retention periods.
8. How Long Information Is Kept
Personal information is not kept indefinitely. Different types of information are retained for different periods depending on why the information is processed and whether there is a legal obligation to retain it.
Enquiries that do not result in a consultation or violin lesson: Information relating to an enquiry that does not result in a consultation or violin lesson will normally be retained for up to 2 years from the last communication, after which it will be deleted unless there is a specific reason or legal obligation to retain it for longer.
Client, consultation and violin lesson information: Information relating to a client and their consultations or violin lessons will normally be retained for up to 2 years after the last consultation or violin lesson, after which it will be deleted unless there is a specific reason or legal obligation to retain it for longer.
Financial and accounting records: Information contained in financial, accounting or other business records will be retained for the period required by applicable tax and accounting law. In the Netherlands, certain basic business administration records are generally subject to a statutory retention period of 7 years. Where another statutory period applies, the applicable statutory period will be followed.
Legal claims and disputes: Where information is necessary to establish, exercise or defend a legal claim or to deal with an ongoing dispute, it may be retained for as long as reasonably necessary for that purpose and for any further period required for the matter to be resolved or enforced.
Earlier deletion: Information will be deleted earlier where it is no longer necessary for the purpose for which it was collected and there is no legal or other legitimate reason to retain it.
The retention periods above apply to personal information under my control. Information processed by payment providers, hosting providers or other service providers may be subject to their own applicable retention requirements and policies.
9. Service Providers and International Data Transfers
The website and consultation and violin lesson services may use technical services necessary to operate the website, including website hosting, cookie management and payment processing.
The website, including the booking and lesson enquiry forms, is hosted by Hostinger. Information submitted through the website may therefore be technically processed and stored through Hostinger’s hosting infrastructure as part of the operation of the website and booking forms.
Hostinger may process personal information relating to visitors and users of websites it hosts in certain circumstances as a data processor on behalf of the website operator.
Cookie consent is managed using Complianz | GDPR/CCPA Cookie Consent.
Payments may be processed through PayPal where the client chooses that payment method.
Where personal information is transferred to or processed outside the European Economic Area, such transfers will be carried out in accordance with applicable data-protection law and appropriate safeguards will be used where required.
Third-party services may have their own privacy policies and terms governing their technical processing of personal information.
10. Your Rights
Depending on the circumstances and applicable law, you may have the right to:
- access personal information held about you;
- request correction of inaccurate information;
- request deletion of information;
- request restriction of processing;
- object to certain processing;
- withdraw consent where processing is based on consent;
- receive your personal information in a portable format where the right to data portability applies.
You also have the right to receive information about the processing of your personal information as required by applicable data-protection law.
To exercise these rights, you can contact me using the contact details provided in this Privacy Policy.
I will normally respond to a request concerning your data-protection rights within one month of receiving the request. Where permitted by law, this period may be extended by a further two months where necessary because of the complexity or number of requests. If an extension is required, I will inform you within the initial one-month period.
There is normally no charge for exercising these rights. Where permitted by law, a reasonable fee may be charged for manifestly unfounded or excessive requests, or a request may be refused.
You also have the right to lodge a complaint with the Dutch data-protection authority, the Autoriteit Persoonsgegevens.
11. Security
Reasonable technical and organisational measures are taken to protect personal information against unauthorised access, loss, misuse, alteration or disclosure.
Where technical service providers process personal information in connection with the operation of the website or payment services, appropriate measures will be taken to ensure that processing is carried out in accordance with applicable data-protection requirements.
However, no method of transmitting or storing information electronically can be guaranteed to be completely secure.
12. Automated Decision-Making
I do not use personal information collected through this website to make decisions based solely on automated processing, including profiling, that produce legal effects or similarly significantly affect you.
13. Changes to This Policy
This Privacy Policy may be updated when necessary to reflect changes to the website, services or applicable legal requirements.
The date at the top of this page indicates when the policy was last updated.
14. Contact
If you have any questions about this Privacy Policy or about how your personal information is handled, or if you wish to exercise a data-protection right, please contact:
Michael Hegeman
Ede, The Netherlands
info[at]michaelhegeman.com
michaelhegeman.com