Privacy Policy - Cleaners St Johns Wood

This Privacy Policy applies to all Cleaners St Johns Wood customers in the area. It explains how personal data is collected, used, stored, shared, and protected when you use our cleaning services. We are committed to handling personal information 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

Cleaners St Johns Wood provides domestic and commercial cleaning services to customers in St Johns Wood and the surrounding area. In the course of delivering our services, we may collect and process personal data relating to customers, prospective customers, and, where relevant, property representatives or authorised contacts. We act as a data controller for the personal data we determine the purpose and means of processing.

2. Personal data we collect

We collect only the data that is necessary to manage enquiries, schedule services, deliver cleaning work, maintain records, and meet legal obligations. The types of data we may collect include:

Identity information: name, title, and any account or booking reference.
Contact information: address, email address, telephone number, and preferred contact method.
Service information: booking details, property access notes, service preferences, instructions, and special requests.
Billing information: invoice details, payment status, and transaction records.
Communication records: emails, messages, call notes, complaints, feedback, and service updates.
Technical information: limited device and usage information if you interact with our digital forms or communications systems.
Special category data: we do not usually ask for sensitive data. If you choose to share information that may reveal health or access needs, we will process it only where necessary and with appropriate safeguards.

We do not intentionally collect more information than is needed to provide a safe and effective cleaning service.

3. How we collect data

We may collect personal data directly from you when you make an enquiry, request a quotation, book a service, give instructions, make a payment, or contact us with feedback. We may also receive data from authorised third parties, such as property managers, tenants, landlords, or household members acting on your behalf. In some cases, data may be created internally through scheduling, invoicing, or service management processes.

4. Why we use your data

We use personal data to operate our business and deliver our services effectively. The main purposes include:

responding to enquiries and providing quotations;
booking and managing cleaning appointments;
delivering cleaning services at the correct property;
handling customer instructions, preferences, and access arrangements;
issuing invoices, processing payments, and managing accounts;
maintaining service records and customer history;
responding to complaints, disputes, or requests for support;
meeting legal, tax, accounting, and insurance obligations;
protecting our staff, customers, and property;
improving our service quality and internal operations.

We only process personal data where we have a lawful basis to do so.

5. Lawful basis for processing

Under UK GDPR, we must have a lawful basis before processing personal data. Depending on the activity, we rely on one or more of the following bases:

Contract

We process personal data when it is necessary to enter into or perform a contract with you. This includes taking bookings, confirming service details, carrying out cleaning work, and managing payments.

Legitimate interests

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

Legal obligation

We may process data to comply with legal requirements, such as tax records, accounting rules, employment obligations, or lawful requests from authorities.

Consent

In limited cases, we may rely on consent, for example if you agree to receive certain optional marketing communications. Where consent is used, you may withdraw it at any time.

Vital interests and public interest

These bases are unlikely to apply in routine service delivery, but we may use them in exceptional circumstances where necessary to protect someone’s safety or where required by law.

6. Retention of personal data

We keep personal data only for as long as necessary for the purpose for which it was collected, including legal, accounting, or reporting requirements. Retention periods depend on the type of data and the reason for processing.

Customer service records: retained for the duration of the relationship and for a reasonable period afterwards.
Financial and invoicing records: retained for the period required by tax and accounting law.
Complaints or dispute records: retained for as long as needed to resolve the issue and defend legal claims.
Enquiry data: retained only for as long as needed to manage the enquiry, unless a customer becomes a client.

When data is no longer needed, we will delete it securely or anonymise it so that it can no longer identify you. We do not keep information indefinitely without a valid reason.

7. Sharing data and processors

We may share personal data with trusted third parties who support our business operations. These organisations act as processors when they process data on our behalf and under our instructions. Examples may include:

booking and scheduling providers;
payment processors and invoicing systems;
IT and cloud storage providers;
email and communication service providers;
accounting or bookkeeping services;
professional advisers such as insurers, auditors, or legal advisers;
service partners who help fulfil customer requests where necessary.

We require processors to handle data securely, keep it confidential, and use it only for the agreed purpose. We do not sell personal data. If required by law, we may also share information with public authorities, regulators, or law enforcement agencies.

8. International transfers

If any processor stores or accesses data outside the UK, we will ensure appropriate safeguards are in place. This may include UK adequacy regulations, standard contractual clauses, or other lawful transfer mechanisms. We aim to ensure that your data remains protected to a standard consistent with UK data protection law.

9. Data security

We take appropriate technical and organisational measures to protect personal data against unauthorised access, accidental loss, alteration, or disclosure. These measures may include access controls, secure storage, password protection, staff training, and limited access based on business need. However, no system can be completely secure, so we also encourage customers to share only the information necessary for service delivery.

10. Your rights

As a data subject under UK GDPR, you have rights in relation to your personal data. These rights may include:

Right of access: to request a copy of the personal data we hold about you.
Right to rectification: to ask us to correct inaccurate or incomplete information.
Right to erasure: to request deletion of your data in certain circumstances.
Right to restrict processing: to ask us to limit how we use your data in certain situations.
Right to object: to object to processing based on legitimate interests or direct marketing.
Right to data portability: to request transfer of certain data in a structured, commonly used format where applicable.
Right to withdraw consent: where processing is based on consent, you may withdraw it at any time.

These rights are not absolute and may be subject to legal exceptions or limitations. We will assess each request carefully and respond in accordance with data protection law.

11. How we respond to rights requests

When you exercise your rights, we may need to verify your identity before taking action. This is to protect your information and prevent unauthorised disclosure. We will usually respond within one month, unless the request is complex or multiple requests have been made. If more time is needed, we will inform you within the applicable legal timeframe.

12. Marketing preferences

If we send optional marketing messages, we will do so only where lawful. You can object to direct marketing at any time. Where consent is the basis, you can withdraw it whenever you choose, and this will not affect the lawfulness of prior processing.

13. Children’s data

Our services are intended for adults. We do not knowingly collect personal data from children unless it is provided by an adult customer in connection with the service, for example as part of household or access arrangements. If we learn that we have received child-related data unnecessarily, we will take steps to delete it where appropriate.

14. Changes to this Privacy Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in law, service arrangements, or data handling practices. Any updated version will apply from the date it is published or otherwise made available. We encourage customers to review the policy periodically so they remain informed about how their data is used.

15. Summary of our commitment

We are committed to respecting privacy and using personal data responsibly. Cleaners St Johns Wood customers in the area can expect their information to be collected only where needed, used only for clear purposes, retained for appropriate periods, and shared only with trusted processors or where the law requires it. We aim to process all data with transparency, security, and accountability.