Bass Warehouse (Pty) Ltd — PAIA Manual
Prepared under section 51 of the Promotion of Access to Information Act 2 of 2000. Version 1.0, approved by the Information Officer on 08 October 2026.
1. Acronyms and purpose
| Term | Meaning |
|---|---|
| PAIA | Promotion of Access to Information Act 2 of 2000 (as amended) |
| POPIA | Protection of Personal Information Act 4 of 2013 |
| Regulator | The Information Regulator (South Africa) |
| IO | Information Officer |
| DIO | Deputy Information Officer |
| BWOS | Bass Warehouse Operating System, the internal order-operations system |
This manual tells anyone how to request access to records held by Bass Warehouse (Pty) Ltd, as section 51 of PAIA requires. It also describes how Bass Warehouse processes personal information, as POPIA requires.
It helps a requester to:
- see which categories of records Bass Warehouse holds, and which are available without a formal request;
- know whom to contact and how to submit a request;
- understand the fees and the grounds on which a request may be refused;
- understand what personal information Bass Warehouse processes, why, and who receives it.
2. Key contact details
Requests and privacy questions go to the Information Officer or the Deputy Information Officer below.
| Role | Details |
|---|---|
| Company | Bass Warehouse (Pty) Ltd, registration number 2018/433187/07 |
| Information Regulator registration | 2026-068701, registered 8 October 2026 |
| Information Officer | Bryan Kenneth Leppan. Email: orders@basswarehouse.co.za. Telephone: 031 765 8743 |
| Deputy Information Officer | Storm Lee Box. Email: storm@basswarehouse.co.za. Telephone: 084 332 3367 |
| Head office (physical and postal) | Shop 29/30 Oxford Village Centre, 9 Old Main Road, Hillcrest, 3650, KwaZulu-Natal |
| Other stores | Shop 10A Epsom Downs Shopping Centre, Bryanston, 2191 · Shop 21 Doringkloof Mall, Doringkloof, Centurion, 0157 |
| Website | www.basswarehouse.co.za |
The Information Regulator, for complaints or for the PAIA Guide:
- Physical address: Woodmead North Office Park, 54 Maxwell Drive, Woodmead, Johannesburg, 2191
- Telephone: 010 023 5200 (toll-free 0800 017 160)
- General enquiries: enquiries@inforegulator.org.za
- PAIA complaints: PAIAComplaints@inforegulator.org.za
- POPIA complaints: POPIAComplaints@inforegulator.org.za
3. The PAIA Guide
The Information Regulator publishes a Guide on how to use PAIA and POPIA (section 10 of PAIA). It explains how to request a record and what remedies a requester has.
- Get it from the Regulator’s website, inforegulator.org.za, or from the Regulator at the contact details in section 2.
- A copy can also be inspected at Bass Warehouse’s head office during normal business hours, or requested by email from the Information Officer or Deputy.
4. Records available without a request, and records held under other laws
The following are available without a PAIA request, free of charge, on the website or in store: the product catalogue and prices, store addresses and trading hours, the privacy policy (www.basswarehouse.co.za/privacy-policy/), and this manual.
Bass Warehouse has not published a separate section 52 notice; the list above is what is freely available.
Bass Warehouse keeps records as required by the laws below, where they apply to its business.
- Companies Act 71 of 2008
- Income Tax Act 58 of 1962 and Tax Administration Act 28 of 2011
- Value-Added Tax Act 89 of 1991
- Basic Conditions of Employment Act 75 of 1997
- Labour Relations Act 66 of 1995
- Employment Equity Act 55 of 1998
- Unemployment Insurance Act 63 of 2001 and Unemployment Insurance Contributions Act 4 of 2002
- Skills Development Levies Act 9 of 1999
- Compensation for Occupational Injuries and Diseases Act 130 of 1993
- Occupational Health and Safety Act 85 of 1993
- Consumer Protection Act 68 of 2008
- Electronic Communications and Transactions Act 25 of 2002
- Protection of Personal Information Act 4 of 2013
5. Subjects and categories of records held
Bass Warehouse holds records in the categories below. A record listed here is not automatically available: access is decided on each request under PAIA.
| Subject | Categories of records |
|---|---|
| Company secretarial | Incorporation documents, share register, director and shareholder records, minutes and resolutions |
| Finance and tax | Financial statements, accounting records, invoices, bank records, VAT and income tax records, audit records |
| Customers and orders | Online and in-store orders, order lines, payment and fulfilment status, delivery records, returns, customer correspondence |
| Suppliers | Supplier agreements, purchase orders, supplier invoices, quotes and correspondence |
| Stock and products | Product catalogue, stock levels by store, pricing, purchase and sales history |
| Staff | Employment contracts, payroll and leave records, tax and UIF records, disciplinary and training records |
| Information technology | System configurations, access and audit logs, security records, service-provider agreements |
| Legal and compliance | Contracts, data processing agreements, POPIA and PAIA records, insurance policies, licences |
| Marketing | Website content, promotional material, WhatsApp group membership |
6. Processing of personal information
Bass Warehouse processes personal information to sell, deliver and support its products, to run its business, and to meet its legal duties.
Purposes
- Taking, paying for and fulfilling online and in-store orders, including delivery and collection
- Customer service, returns and warranty claims
- Managing stock across stores
- Employing and paying staff
- Managing suppliers
- Meeting tax, accounting, employment and consumer-protection obligations
- Keeping systems and records secure
Data subjects and categories of personal information
| Data subject | Personal information |
|---|---|
| Online customers | Name, email, telephone, billing and delivery address, order notes, order and payment details. Held in the online store (WooCommerce). |
| Online customers, in BWOS | Display name only, plus order lines and order, payment and fulfilment status. Email and telephone are kept only as irreversible keyed codes used to recognise a returning customer. Addresses and notes are not stored; BWOS records only whether a delivery address was complete. |
| In-store customers | Name, telephone, email and address where given, and purchase details. Held in the point-of-sale system (Hike). |
| Staff | Identity and contact details, employment, payroll, banking, tax and leave records |
| Supplier contacts | Name and business contact details |
| Website visitors | Website session and shopping-cart cookies. No analytics or advertising trackers were found on the home page (checked 8 October 2026). |
| Quote requesters | The same details as an online order (name, email, telephone, address), sent through the website’s Quote Request page |
Recipients
- Payment providers and banks, for payments and EFT verification
- Couriers, for delivery: The Courier Guy, JKJ Couriers and PostNet
- IT service providers acting as operators: Supabase (database), Vercel (application hosting), the online store’s hosting provider (Afrihost, South Africa), and the point-of-sale provider (Hike)
- SARS and other authorities, where the law requires
- Professional advisers such as auditors, under confidentiality
Cross-border transfers
Some operators are based outside South Africa:
| Operator | Entity and country | Where the data is held |
|---|---|---|
| Supabase | Supabase Pte. Ltd, Singapore | Database hosted in Frankfurt, Germany |
| Vercel | Vercel Inc., United States | Application runs in Frankfurt, Germany; operational logs kept up to 30 days |
| Hike (point of sale) | Hike POS Pty Ltd, Australia | In-store customer and sales records; Australia and other countries, per Hike’s privacy policy |
Supabase and Vercel each operate under a data processing agreement that Bass Warehouse has on file. Hike’s published data processing addendum forms part of its Terms of Use. Bass Warehouse has opted out of Supabase and Vercel using its data to train AI models.
Security measures
- Multi-factor sign-in enforced for everyone with access to the database and hosting accounts
- Role-based access in BWOS, with row-level security on every database table
- Encrypted connections (HTTPS) between users, BWOS and its providers
- Minimum personal information in BWOS: keyed one-way codes instead of email and telephone, no stored addresses
- Daily database backups and an audit trail of staff actions
7. How to request access, and fees
Submit a request on the prescribed request form, available from the Regulator’s website. Send it to the Information Officer or Deputy by email, post or hand delivery (section 2).
- Complete the form with enough detail to identify the record, and state the right you want to exercise or protect.
- Include proof of identity. If you request on someone else’s behalf, include proof of your authority.
- Pay the request fee if it applies (table below). A requester seeking their own personal information does not pay it.
- Bass Warehouse decides within 30 days. This may be extended once, by up to 30 days, with notice and reasons.
- If access is granted, you will be told the access fee and how the record will be provided.
A request may be refused only on the grounds in Chapter 4 of Part 3 of PAIA, for example to protect another person’s privacy, a third party’s commercial or confidential information, someone’s safety, legally privileged material, or Bass Warehouse’s own commercial information. Refusals are given in writing with reasons.
If you disagree with a decision, you may complain to the Information Regulator or apply to court.
Prescribed fees for private bodies
| Item | Fee |
|---|---|
| Request fee (not payable for your own personal information) | R140.00 |
| Photocopy or printed copy, black and white, per A4 page or part | R2.00 |
| Copy on a flash drive or CD you provide | R40.00 |
| Copy on a CD Bass Warehouse provides | R60.00 |
| Transcription of an audio record, per A4 page | R24.00 |
| Transcription or copy of visual images | As quoted by the service provider |
| Search and preparation, per hour or part, after the first hour | R145.00, capped at R435.00 |
| Deposit, if the search will take more than six hours | One third of the access fee |
| Postage, email or other electronic transfer | Actual cost |
8. Availability and updating
This manual is available free of charge:
- on the website, www.basswarehouse.co.za, on the Contact Us page and linked from the site footer;
- for inspection at the head office during normal business hours;
- by email from the Information Officer or Deputy.
The Information Officer reviews this manual at least once a year, and whenever contact details, record categories, processing or operators change. The date of the current version is shown at the top.