Privacy Policy - Southfields Carpet Cleaners

This Privacy Policy explains how Southfields Carpet Cleaners collects, uses, stores, shares, and protects personal data in connection with our services. It applies to all Southfields Carpet Cleaners customers in the area, including prospective customers, existing customers, and individuals who contact us for information, quotations, bookings, or support. We are committed to handling personal data in a lawful, fair, and transparent manner in line with the UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR) and the Data Protection Act 2018.

1. Who We Are

Southfields Carpet Cleaners provides carpet cleaning and related cleaning services to customers in the local area. In the course of delivering our services, we may need to collect and use personal information about you. This policy sets out what data we collect, why we collect it, how long we keep it, who may process it on our behalf, and what rights you have in relation to that information.

2. Information We Collect

We only collect information that is necessary for our business and service delivery. The personal data we may collect includes:

Identity details such as your name and title.
Contact information such as your address, phone number, and email address.
Service details such as the type of cleaning requested, property access notes, preferred appointment times, and job history.
Payment information such as billing details and payment confirmation, where needed to process transactions.
Communication records such as emails, phone call notes, messages, and feedback.
Technical information where relevant, such as basic website usage data, if you interact with any online service we use for enquiries or booking.

We do not intentionally collect special category data unless you voluntarily provide it and it is necessary for a specific purpose, such as health or access-related information needed to safely carry out a service. If we do receive such information, we will handle it with extra care and only where there is a valid legal basis.

3. How We Use Your Data

We use personal data for the following purposes:

To respond to enquiries and provide quotations.
To manage bookings and deliver our services.
To communicate with you about appointments, changes, or service updates.
To process payments and maintain financial records.
To handle complaints, queries, and customer support requests.
To maintain business records and meet legal and regulatory obligations.
To improve our services and customer experience.
To protect our business, customers, and staff from fraud, misuse, or security risks.

We will only use your personal data for the purpose for which it was collected, unless we reasonably believe that we need to use it for another compatible purpose and that purpose is permitted by law.

4. Lawful Basis for Processing

Under data protection law, we must have a lawful basis for processing your personal data. Depending on the circumstances, we rely on one or more of the following lawful bases:

Contract

We process your data where it is necessary to enter into or perform a contract with you. This includes arranging appointments, carrying out cleaning services, issuing invoices, and managing payments.

Legitimate Interests

We may process data where it is necessary for our legitimate interests and where those interests are not overridden by your rights and freedoms. This may include managing customer relationships, maintaining service records, preventing fraud, and improving our operations. When using this basis, we consider the impact on your privacy and limit processing to what is necessary.

Legal Obligation

We may process and retain certain information where required to comply with legal obligations, such as accounting, tax, or record-keeping rules.

Consent

In limited cases, we may rely on your consent, for example where you voluntarily provide special category information or agree to receive specific communications that are not required for service delivery. Where consent is used, you may withdraw it at any time.

5. Data Sharing and Processors

We do not sell your personal data. We may share information only when necessary and appropriate for the purposes described in this policy. Some third parties act as processors and handle personal data on our behalf under written agreements that require them to protect your information and use it only as instructed by us.

Examples of processors may include:

Booking and scheduling service providers.
IT and cloud storage providers.
Payment processing providers.
Administrative and communication service providers.
Accounting and record-keeping software providers.

We may also share data with independent third parties where necessary, such as legal, tax, or regulatory authorities, or where required to protect our rights, customers, or staff. If we ever need to transfer personal data outside the UK, we will ensure that appropriate safeguards are in place in accordance with data protection law.

6. Data Retention

We keep personal data only for as long as necessary to fulfil the purposes for which it was collected, including meeting legal, accounting, and reporting requirements. Retention periods depend on the type of data and the reason for holding it.

Customer and booking records are typically kept for the duration of the service relationship and for a reasonable period afterwards.
Financial and invoice records are generally kept for the period required by tax and accounting laws.
Communication records may be retained for as long as needed to resolve issues, manage service history, or defend legal claims.

When personal data is no longer required, we will securely delete, anonymise, or destroy it.

7. Data Security

We take appropriate technical and organisational measures to protect personal data against unauthorised access, loss, misuse, alteration, or disclosure. These measures may include access controls, secure storage, staff confidentiality obligations, and limiting access to data on a need-to-know basis. However, no system can be completely secure, so we cannot guarantee absolute security.

8. Your Rights

You have a number of rights under data protection law in relation to your personal data. These rights may apply depending on the circumstances and the lawful basis for processing.

Right of access: You can request a copy of the personal data we hold about you.
Right to rectification: You can ask us to correct inaccurate or incomplete information.
Right to erasure: In some cases, you can ask us to delete your data.
Right to restriction: You can request that we limit how we use your data in certain situations.
Right to object: You can object to processing based on legitimate interests.
Right to data portability: Where applicable, you can ask for your data in a structured, commonly used format.
Right to withdraw consent: If we rely on consent, you may withdraw it at any time.

If you wish to exercise any of these rights, we will respond in accordance with data protection law. We may need to verify your identity before responding to your request.

9. Children’s Data

Our services are intended for adults. We do not knowingly collect personal data from children unless it is provided by a parent, guardian, or responsible adult as part of a service arrangement. If we become aware that we have collected child data without appropriate consent or legal basis, we will take steps to delete it where required.

10. Cookies and Online Data

If we use any digital tools or online systems for enquiries or bookings, they may collect limited technical information such as usage data or device information. Such data is used only for operational, security, or functionality purposes. Where cookies or similar technologies are used, we will ensure they are handled in a lawful and transparent way.

11. Changes to This Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in our services, legal obligations, or data protection practices. Any updated version will apply from the date it is made available. We encourage customers to review this policy periodically so they remain informed about how their data is used.

12. Summary of Our Commitment

Southfields Carpet Cleaners is committed to respecting your privacy and using your personal information responsibly. We collect only the data we need, process it on a lawful basis, keep it only for as long as necessary, and work with processors who are required to protect it. We also ensure that all customers in the area can exercise their data protection rights and receive fair, transparent treatment in relation to their personal information.

This policy applies to all Southfields Carpet Cleaners customers in the area.