Privacy Policy - Cleaners NW8

Effective date: This Privacy Policy applies to all Cleaners NW8 customers in the area and explains how personal data is collected, used, shared, stored, and protected when you use our cleaning services.

We are committed to handling personal information in a lawful, fair, and transparent manner in accordance with the UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR) and the Data Protection Act 2018. This policy sets out the categories of data we collect, the purposes for which we use it, the lawful bases we rely on, how long we keep it, the types of processors we may use, and the rights available to you.

1. Who this policy applies to

This policy applies to all customers of Cleaners NW8 in the NW8 area, including individuals who enquire about our services, receive a quotation, book a cleaning appointment, or use our services in any capacity. It also applies where we process data relating to building managers, tenants, landlords, or other authorised representatives connected to a booking.

2. Personal data we collect

We collect only the information necessary to provide and manage our services effectively. Depending on the nature of your interaction with us, we may collect the following categories of personal data:

Identity data such as your name, and where relevant, the name of a company or property contact.
Contact data such as address details, email address, and telephone number.
Service and booking data such as service type, preferred schedule, property access notes, cleaning instructions, and appointment history.
Payment data such as payment status, transaction reference details, and billing records.
Communication data such as messages, complaints, feedback, and correspondence with our team.
Technical data where applicable, such as basic device or usage information collected through secure systems used to manage bookings or communications.

We do not intentionally collect special category data unless you voluntarily provide it and it is necessary for a particular request, for example if access needs or health-related instructions must be taken into account for safety reasons. Where such information is provided, we treat it with extra care and only process it when a valid legal basis applies.

3. How we use your personal data

We use personal data for the following purposes:

To register and manage enquiries, quotes, and bookings.
To deliver cleaning services at the agreed property.
To communicate with you about appointments, changes, follow-ups, or service issues.
To process payments, issue invoices, and maintain accounting records.
To handle complaints, service recovery, and customer support.
To maintain service quality, staff training, and internal record-keeping.
To comply with legal and regulatory obligations.
To protect the security of our business, staff, customers, and property access arrangements.

We only use your information in ways that are compatible with the original purpose for which it was collected, unless we have a lawful reason to use it for another purpose.

4. Lawful basis for processing

Under UK GDPR, we must identify a lawful basis for each use of personal data. Cleaners NW8 relies on the following lawful bases:

a. Contract

We process personal data where it is necessary to enter into or perform a contract with you. This includes taking bookings, providing cleaning services, handling service instructions, and managing invoices or payments.

b. Legitimate interests

We may process data where it is necessary for our legitimate interests, provided those interests are not overridden by your rights and freedoms. This may include managing our business operations, improving customer service, preventing fraud, ensuring security, and maintaining internal records.

c. Legal obligation

We may process and retain certain data to comply with legal duties such as tax, accounting, and record-keeping requirements, or where required by law or a lawful request from a public authority.

d. Consent

In limited situations, we may rely on your consent, for example where you voluntarily provide information that is not strictly necessary for service delivery. Where consent is used, you may withdraw it at any time.

Important: where we rely on legitimate interests, we assess the impact on your privacy and aim to use the least intrusive method possible.

5. Retention of personal data

We keep personal data only for as long as necessary to fulfil the purpose for which it was collected, including satisfying legal, accounting, and reporting obligations. Retention periods may vary depending on the type of data and the reason for processing.

Booking and service records: kept for the duration needed to manage services and for a reasonable period afterwards to handle queries or disputes.
Invoices and financial records: retained for the period required by tax and accounting law.
Communication records: kept as long as needed to resolve issues, support service delivery, and maintain accurate business records.
Consent-based data: retained until consent is withdrawn or the data is no longer needed.

When data is no longer required, we will securely delete it or anonymise it so that it can no longer be linked to an individual.

6. Processors and third parties

We may use trusted third-party service providers, also known as processors, to help us operate our business. These providers process personal data only on our instructions and are required to protect it appropriately.

Examples of processors may include:

Booking and scheduling systems used to organise appointments.
Payment service providers used to process transactions securely.
Accounting and invoicing providers used to maintain financial records.
IT and cloud storage providers used to host secure business systems.
Communication providers used for email, telephone, or message management.

We may also disclose personal data to professional advisers, regulators, law enforcement, or other authorities where required by law. We do not sell your personal data.

Any third party that processes your information on our behalf must have suitable security measures in place and may only use the data for the agreed purpose.

7. Data security

We take the security of your information seriously and use reasonable technical and organisational measures to protect personal data against loss, misuse, unauthorised access, alteration, or disclosure. Measures may include restricted access, secure storage, access controls, staff awareness, and careful management of service records.

Although we do our best to protect information, no system can be guaranteed to be completely secure. If a personal data incident occurs, we will assess the risk and take appropriate action in line with applicable law.

8. Your rights under UK GDPR

You have a number of rights in relation to your personal data. Subject to legal limits and verification of identity, you may have the right to:

Access the personal data we hold about you.
Rectify inaccurate or incomplete information.
Erase your data in certain circumstances.
Restrict how we process your data in certain situations.
Object to processing based on legitimate interests.
Data portability for information you provided to us, where applicable.
Withdraw consent where processing is based on consent.

You also have the right to lodge a complaint with the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) if you believe your data protection rights have been infringed.

We will not discriminate against you for exercising your rights.

9. Children’s data

Our services are intended for adults. We do not knowingly collect personal data from children in the normal course of our business. If we become aware that we have unintentionally received such data, we will take appropriate steps to delete it unless there is a lawful reason to retain it.

10. Changes to this policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in our practices, legal obligations, or operational requirements. Any revised version will apply from the date it is published or communicated, as appropriate. We encourage you to review this policy periodically to stay informed about how we protect your information.

11. Summary of our privacy commitments

In short: we collect only the information needed to provide reliable cleaning services, we use it for clear and lawful purposes, we keep it only as long as necessary, we limit access to trusted processors, and we respect your rights under data protection law. Cleaners NW8 is committed to handling all customer data in the NW8 area with care, transparency, and respect.