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Carwow is a high-growth European marketplace platform that has transformed how people buy, sell, advertise and lease cars. The company operates across the UK, Germany, Spain and Portugal, combining technology, media and automotive expertise. Last year the platform facilitated nearly £3bn in car transactions and has grown over 50% year-on-year. Carwow also owns major automotive media properties including AutoExpress and Evo magazines, and operates one of the world's largest YouTube channels with nearly 10 million subscribers.
As Senior Privacy Counsel, you will be Carwow's dedicated in-house privacy lawyer and operational privacy lead, playing a pivotal role in enabling the business to grow and scale with integrity. This is a rare opportunity to join a high-performing legal function as the first dedicated in-house privacy hire, taking ownership of the day-to-day privacy programme while acting as a senior legal and strategic advisor to the business.
You will own and develop Carwow's enterprise privacy governance framework, encompassing policies, Records of Processing Activities (RoPAs), privacy notices, risk registers and retention schedules. You will act as the principal in-house legal advisor on privacy and data protection matters, developing strong business partnerships across Product, Engineering, Data, Marketing and commercial teams. You will provide pragmatic, risk-based legal advice that enables commercial objectives while appropriately managing privacy risk.
Key responsibilities include: leading privacy governance and framework development; providing legal advice and business partnering across the organisation; designing and delivering role-specific privacy training; leading data breach and incident response; drafting and negotiating Data Processing Agreements (DPAs) and Data Sharing Agreements (DSAs); owning processes for responding to data subject rights requests; providing legal and operational support on retail media and ad-tech propositions; embedding Privacy by Design throughout the product lifecycle; operationalising compliance processes including Data Protection Impact Assessments (DPIAs); monitoring regulatory developments; providing privacy support on M&A and corporate transactions; advising on AI and emerging technology implications; and supporting Carwow's multi-jurisdictional operations across the UK, Germany, Spain and Portugal.
You will work autonomously as Carwow's principal privacy specialist, moving comfortably between complex legal analysis and hands-on operational delivery. The role requires someone who is equally comfortable advising and doing—interpreting complex legal requirements and providing sound legal judgment, but also rolling up sleeves to build, operate and continuously improve the mechanisms that make privacy work in practice. You will have the mandate to validate data flows, identify legal and operational privacy risks, and work directly with technical and commercial teams to keep the business safe and moving fast.
The company currently has an external DPO, established policies, templates, a RoPA and a risk register in place, so this is not a greenfield build.
REQUIREMENTS:
- Qualified lawyer admitted to practise in England & Wales or another relevant UK or European jurisdiction
- Significant experience advising on privacy and data protection matters
- Significant in-house experience balancing legal and regulatory requirements with commercial objectives and operating as a trusted advisor
- Strong working knowledge of UK and European data protection law, with ability to interpret legislation, regulatory guidance and emerging issues
- Experience building, operating or materially contributing to a privacy programme, including DPIAs, RoPAs, privacy notices, data rights, retention, incident response and privacy governance
- Ability and willingness to work autonomously as principal in-house privacy specialist, moving between complex legal analysis and hands-on operational delivery
- Passionate about the intersection of AI and privacy
- Team player with growth mindset, high EQ and low ego, excited to be part of a scale-up
- Ability to work in fast-paced environment with teams that move and pivot quickly
- Fluency in English with strong written and verbal communication skills
- Proactive, persuasive and adaptable manner
- Driven to ensure Legal & Compliance Team is viewed as genuine business partner
- Ability to lead cross-functional projects and influence stakeholders without formal authority
- Track record of working effectively with all organisational levels, including senior management and executives
BONUS: Experience in tech platform/marketplace, Mar-Tech or Ad-Tech, automotive industry, AI governance, multi-jurisdictional European operations, or CIPP/E and/or CIPM qualification from IAPP.
