Privacy Policy - Hampton Wick Carpet Cleaners

This Privacy Policy explains how Hampton Wick Carpet Cleaners collects, uses, stores, shares, and protects personal data in connection with its services. It applies to all Hampton Wick Carpet Cleaners customers in the Hampton Wick area, including prospective customers, existing customers, and individuals who enquire about our services. We are committed to handling personal information lawfully, fairly, and transparently in accordance with the UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR) and the Data Protection Act 2018.

1. Who this policy applies to

This policy applies to any person whose personal data is processed when using or enquiring about our carpet cleaning, upholstery cleaning, stain removal, and related household cleaning services. It covers customers, homeowners, tenants, landlords, letting agents, and other authorised representatives who interact with Hampton Wick Carpet Cleaners in the local area.

By using our services or providing personal information to us, you acknowledge that your data may be processed as described in this Privacy Policy. We keep our practices under regular review to ensure we remain compliant and that our processing remains proportionate to the services we provide.

2. Personal data we collect

We may collect and process the following categories of personal data:

Identity data such as your name.
Contact data such as phone number, email address, and service address.
Service information such as details of the cleaning services requested, property access notes, and preferred appointment times.
Payment-related data such as transaction records and payment status.
Communication data such as messages, enquiries, complaint details, and feedback.
Technical data such as basic website or device information if you submit an enquiry online, where applicable.
Special instructions that may relate to access, floor type, cleaning priorities, or sensitivities in the property.

We only collect the data necessary to deliver our services, manage customer relationships, and meet legal, accounting, and operational obligations. We do not collect more information than we need for the purposes set out in this policy.

3. How we use your personal data

We process personal data for the following purposes:

To respond to enquiries and provide quotations.
To schedule, deliver, and manage cleaning appointments.
To communicate with customers about services, changes, or follow-up matters.
To process payments and keep financial records.
To handle complaints, questions, or aftercare requests.
To maintain internal records and service quality.
To comply with legal and regulatory obligations.
To protect our business from fraud, misuse, or security incidents.

We may also use information to improve service operations, such as understanding common requests or tracking service performance. Where possible, we rely on aggregated or anonymised information for improvement purposes.

4. Lawful basis for processing

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

Contract

We process personal data where it is necessary to perform a contract with you or to take steps at your request before entering into a contract. This includes arranging appointments, providing cleaning services, and managing customer accounts or bookings.

Legitimate interests

We may process data where it is necessary for our legitimate business interests, provided these interests do not override your rights and freedoms. This includes answering enquiries, managing schedules, improving services, maintaining business records, and protecting the security of our operations.

Legal obligation

We may process and retain personal data where required to comply with legal obligations, such as tax, accounting, or record-keeping requirements.

Consent

In limited situations, we may rely on your consent, for example where you have expressly agreed to receive certain marketing communications. Where consent is used, you may withdraw it at any time.

5. Data retention

We keep personal data only for as long as necessary for the purposes for which it was collected, and no longer than required by law. Retention periods may vary depending on the type of data and the reason for processing.

Customer and service records are generally retained for the period needed to manage the customer relationship and deal with any queries or disputes.
Payment and invoicing records are retained for the period required by tax and accounting law.
Communication records may be kept for a reasonable period to allow us to resolve issues and maintain service continuity.
Enquiry records relating to unsuccessful bookings or general questions are retained only as long as needed for follow-up or internal administration.

When data is no longer required, we will securely delete, destroy, or anonymise it. Retention is based on legal necessity, operational need, and risk management, rather than keeping records indefinitely.

6. Processors and third parties

We may use trusted third-party service providers, known as processors, to support our business operations. These processors only handle personal data on our instructions and are required to protect it appropriately.

Examples of processors or third parties may include:

Administrative service providers who assist with scheduling or record management.
Payment service providers who process card or electronic payments.
IT and system providers who store or maintain business data securely.
Professional advisers such as accountants or legal advisers, where necessary.
Authorities where disclosure is required by law or necessary to establish, exercise, or defend legal claims.

We only share personal data with third parties where it is necessary, lawful, and subject to appropriate safeguards. Where a processor is used, we ensure suitable contractual protections are in place.

7. Data security

We take appropriate technical and organisational measures to protect personal data against accidental loss, unauthorised access, alteration, disclosure, or destruction. These measures may include access controls, secure storage, password protection, and limiting data access to staff or contractors who need it for legitimate business purposes.

While no system can be guaranteed completely secure, we work to reduce risk and maintain reasonable safeguards suitable to the type of data we handle. We also review security practices periodically to keep them effective.

8. International transfers

If any personal data is transferred outside the United Kingdom, we will ensure that appropriate safeguards are in place and that the transfer complies with applicable data protection requirements. This may include using recognised contractual protections or relying on adequacy arrangements where available.

9. Your rights

Under data protection law, you have a number of rights in relation to your personal data. These rights may apply depending on the circumstances and the legal basis for processing.

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

To protect privacy, we may need to verify your identity before responding to a request. We will respond within the time limits required by law and, where appropriate, explain any legal reasons why a request cannot be fully satisfied.

10. Marketing communications

If we send marketing communications, we will do so in line with applicable law. You can opt out of direct marketing at any time. Where a message is based on consent, you may withdraw consent easily and without affecting the lawfulness of processing carried out before withdrawal.

We do not sell personal data and we do not use personal data for purposes unrelated to our cleaning services unless permitted by law or clearly explained to you.

11. Complaints and supervisory authority

If you have concerns about how your personal data is handled, you may raise them with us so that we can review the matter. You also have the right to complain to the relevant data protection supervisory authority if you believe your rights have been infringed. We encourage individuals to contact us first where possible so that we can try to resolve concerns promptly and fairly.

12. Changes to this policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in our services, legal requirements, or data handling practices. When changes are made, the revised policy will apply to future processing and, where appropriate, to ongoing customer relationships. We encourage customers to review this policy periodically.

13. Summary of our commitment

Hampton Wick Carpet Cleaners is committed to processing personal data responsibly, transparently, and securely. We collect only the information needed to deliver our services, use it only for lawful and legitimate purposes, retain it for appropriate periods, and share it only with trusted processors or where legally required. We respect user rights and aim to handle all requests and concerns in a fair and timely manner.