Cookie Policy
Last updated 16 June 2026
Last updated: 16 June 2026
This Cookie Policy explains how Vertex Medic uses cookies and similar tracking technologies on vertexmedic.com, and how you can control them.
This policy should be read alongside our Privacy Policy.
1. WHAT ARE COOKIES
Cookies are small text files placed on your device when you visit a website. They help websites remember information about your visit, which can make your next visit easier and the site more useful to you.
Similar technologies include local storage, session storage, and tracking pixels, all of which are governed by the same rules as cookies under UK law.
2. THE LAW THAT GOVERNS COOKIES
Our use of cookies is governed by:
- The Privacy and Electronic Communications Regulations (PECR)
- The UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR)
- The Data (Use and Access) Act 2025, in force from 5 February 2026
Under these laws, we must obtain your active, informed consent before placing any non-essential cookies on your device. Consent must be given before cookies are set, not after. Continued browsing does not constitute consent.
3. COOKIES WE USE
3.1 Strictly Necessary Cookies (no consent required)
These cookies are essential for the website to function. They cannot be switched off. They do not track you for marketing purposes.
| Cookie | Purpose | Duration |
|---|---|---|
| wordpress_* | WordPress login and session management | Session |
| woocommerce_* | Shopping cart functionality | Session/1 year |
| wc_session_* | WooCommerce session | 2 days |
| stripe_* | Payment processing security | Session |
| vertexmedic_cookie_consent | Records your cookie consent decision | 1 year |
First-party enquiry attribution (fmh_attr): when you arrive from one of our own adverts or campaign links, we can store the campaign reference (for example a Google click reference) in a single first-party cookie so that, if you choose to send an enquiry, we can record which advert brought you to us. This cookie is only set once you accept analytics and measurement cookies in our banner, and if you reject them we remove it. It is set by us, is readable only on vertexmedic.com and portal.vertexmedic.com, is never shared with or readable by third parties, and does not follow you around other websites or build any profile of your browsing.
| Cookie | Purpose | Duration |
|---|---|---|
| fmh_attr | Remembers the advert or campaign link that brought you to us so your enquiry carries its source | 90 days |
3.2 Analytics Cookies (consent required)
These cookies help us understand how visitors use our website. All data is aggregated and anonymised where possible. These cookies are only set after you give explicit consent.
| Cookie | Provider | Purpose | Duration |
|---|---|---|---|
| _ga | Google Analytics 4 | Distinguishes users for analytics | 2 years |
| _ga_* | Google Analytics 4 | Session analytics | 2 years |
| _clck | Microsoft Clarity | User behaviour and session recording | 1 year |
| _clsk | Microsoft Clarity | Session identification | 1 day |
Note on GA4: We have configured Google Analytics 4 with IP anonymisation enabled and advertising features disabled to minimise personal data collection.
Note on Microsoft Clarity: Session recordings may capture how you move around and interact with our website. Clarity only runs if you accept analytics cookies, and never before you have chosen. What you type into a form is masked by default. On top of that, we have marked the parts of the site that display personal or health information so their contents are masked out of recordings too: the hair assessment, the enquiry form and the photo upload, including your name, contact details, your answers and your photographs. We can see that a step was used; we cannot read what it said.
3.3 Marketing and Personalisation Cookies (consent required)
We do not currently use third-party advertising cookies or cross-site tracking technologies. If we introduce these in future, this policy will be updated and your consent re-requested.
3.4 Website performance measurement (no cookies used)
Our hosting provider Cloudflare measures aggregate website usage and real-user performance, such as how quickly pages load and render on real devices, so that we can find and fix problems with the site. We use this only to improve the website.
This measurement does not use cookies, and it stores nothing at all on your device. It sets no cookie, writes nothing to local or session storage, and creates no advertising identifier and no persistent visitor ID. Each page view is measured with a one-off reference that is not reused on your next page or your next visit, and the measurement data is sent to our own domain. It is not advertising, it is not profiling, it does not follow you across other websites, it does not record your screen or your session, and it is never used to make decisions about you individually or to match you to any assessment result.
The information collected is technical: page load and network timings, rendering and page speed metrics, browser memory figures and the address of the page being measured.
Because this is statistical measurement that stores nothing on your device, it is not a cookie and does not require cookie consent. You can still object to it. If you turn off Analytics and measurement in Cookie Preferences, or choose Reject all, we stop sending this performance data from your browser as well. See section 4.
4. HOW TO MANAGE YOUR COOKIE CONSENT
When you first visit our website, a cookie consent banner is shown. You can:
- Accept all, allows all categories of cookies
- Reject all, allows only strictly necessary cookies
- Manage preferences, choose categories individually
Both options are presented with equal visual prominence. There are no pre-ticked boxes. You are not penalised for rejecting non-essential cookies, all website functionality remains available.
You can change your consent at any time by clicking the "Cookie Settings" link in the website footer.
5. MANAGING COOKIES IN YOUR BROWSER
You can also control cookies through your browser settings:
- Chrome: Settings → Privacy and security → Cookies and other site data
- Safari: Preferences → Privacy → Manage Website Data
- Firefox: Options → Privacy & Security → Cookies and Site Data
- Edge: Settings → Cookies and site permissions
Note: Blocking all cookies may affect website functionality including the shopping cart and consultation booking form.
6. THIRD-PARTY COOKIES
Some cookies are placed by third-party services we use. These services have their own privacy policies:
- Google: https://policies.google.com/privacy
- Microsoft: https://privacy.microsoft.com/privacystatement
- Stripe: https://stripe.com/privacy
7. CHANGES TO THIS POLICY
We may update this Cookie Policy as our use of cookies changes or as legal requirements evolve. The date at the top of this page shows when it was last updated.
8. CONTACT US
For questions about cookies or to exercise your rights:
Vertex Medic
Email: privacy@vertexmedic.com