Privacy Policy - Harlington Carpet Cleaners

This Privacy Policy explains how Harlington Carpet Cleaners collects, uses, stores, shares, and protects personal data when providing carpet, upholstery, and related cleaning services. It applies to all Harlington Carpet Cleaners customers in area, including anyone who requests a quotation, books a service, receives a visit, or otherwise interacts with us in connection with our services.

We are committed to processing personal data in accordance with the UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR) and the Data Protection Act 2018. We aim to process data fairly, lawfully, transparently, and only for specified purposes.

1. Personal Data We Collect

We only collect personal data that is relevant to providing and managing our services. Depending on the nature of your interaction with us, we may collect:

• Identity information: name, title, and any information needed to identify you as a customer or authorised contact.
• Contact information: address, email address, phone number, and service location details.
• Booking and service information: appointment dates, property access details, cleaning preferences, service history, and notes about work requested or completed.
• Payment information: payment status, transaction references, invoicing details, and billing records. We do not store more payment data than is necessary for processing and accounting.
• Communication records: enquiries, complaints, feedback, and correspondence about estimates, bookings, and follow-up matters.
• Technical and usage information: limited information that may be generated when using digital communication tools, such as device or message metadata, where needed for security and service delivery.

We do not intentionally collect special category data unless it is required and lawful to do so in exceptional circumstances. If such information is ever provided to us accidentally, we will treat it with additional care and only process it where permitted by law.

2. How We Use Your Personal Data

We use personal data for the following purposes:

• to provide quotes, arrange appointments, and deliver cleaning services;
• to manage customer records and service history;
• to communicate with you about bookings, changes, queries, or complaints;
• to issue invoices, record payments, and maintain accounting records;
• to improve service quality, scheduling, and customer experience;
• to comply with legal, tax, insurance, and record-keeping obligations;
• to protect our business, staff, and customers from fraud, misuse, or security incidents.

We only use personal data in ways that are compatible with the purposes for which it was collected, unless we have a valid legal basis for a new purpose.

3. Lawful Basis for Processing

Under data protection law, we must have a lawful basis to process personal data. We may rely on one or more of the following:

Contract

We process personal data where it is necessary to enter into or perform a contract with you. This includes handling bookings, providing services, taking payment-related steps, and responding to service requests.

Legal Obligation

We process certain data to comply with legal obligations, such as tax records, accounting requirements, and other statutory duties.

Legitimate Interests

We may process data where it is necessary for our legitimate business interests and where those interests are not overridden by your rights and freedoms. Examples include managing customer relationships, maintaining service records, improving operations, and protecting against fraud or misuse.

Consent

In limited situations, we may rely on consent. If we do, you will be told clearly what you are consenting to, and you may withdraw your consent at any time.

4. Sharing and Processors

We may share personal data with trusted third parties who help us operate our business. These parties act as processors or, in some cases, independent controllers. We only share data where necessary and subject to appropriate safeguards.

Processors may include:

• Accounting and bookkeeping providers who help with invoicing, financial records, and tax compliance;
• IT and cloud service providers who support data storage, email, backup, and security;
• Payment service providers who process transactions and related records;
• Customer administration tools used for scheduling, record management, or communications;
• Professional advisers such as insurers, legal advisers, or auditors where needed;
• Public authorities where disclosure is required by law or necessary to protect rights and safety.

All processors are required to handle personal data securely, only on our instructions, and only for the agreed purposes. We do not sell personal data.

5. Data Retention

We keep personal data only for as long as necessary for the purpose it was collected, or as required by law. Retention periods may vary depending on the type of record and the reason for processing.

• Customer and service records are generally kept for the duration of the business relationship and for a reasonable period afterwards to manage queries, disputes, or follow-up needs.
• Financial and tax records are retained for the period required by applicable accounting and tax laws.
• Communication records may be retained for as long as needed to deal with service issues, complaints, or legal claims.
• Security-related logs are kept only as long as needed for protection, troubleshooting, and operational oversight.

When data is no longer needed, we will delete it securely or anonymise it so that it can no longer identify you.

6. Data Security

We take appropriate technical and organisational measures to protect personal data against unauthorised access, loss, alteration, or disclosure. These measures may include access controls, secure storage, staff confidentiality obligations, and limited access to records on a need-to-know basis.

Although we work to protect your information, no method of transmission or storage is completely secure. We therefore cannot guarantee absolute security, but we will act promptly and responsibly if a data incident occurs.

7. Your Rights

As a data subject under GDPR, you have rights in relation to your personal data. Subject to legal conditions and exceptions, these rights include:

• Right of access – to request confirmation of whether we process your data and to receive a copy of it;
• Right to rectification – to ask us to correct inaccurate or incomplete data;
• Right to erasure – to request deletion of your data in certain circumstances;
• Right to restriction – to ask us to limit processing in certain situations;
• Right to object – to object to processing based on legitimate interests or direct marketing, where applicable;
• Right to data portability – to receive certain data in a structured, commonly used format where legally applicable;
• Right to withdraw consent – where processing is based on consent, you may withdraw it at any time;
• Right to complain – to raise concerns with the relevant data protection authority if you believe your rights have been infringed.

To exercise your rights, you may make a request using the usual communication channels provided to you. We may need to verify your identity before responding. We will respond within the timeframes required by law.

8. International Transfers

Where personal data is stored or processed using service providers outside the UK, we will ensure that appropriate safeguards are in place, such as approved transfer mechanisms and contractual protections, to keep your data secure and lawful.

9. Children’s Data

Our services are intended for adults and business or household customers. We do not knowingly collect personal data from children unless it is provided incidentally by an adult customer in connection with a service request. If we become aware that we have collected data from a child without a valid basis, we will take appropriate steps to delete it.

10. Changes to This Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect legal, operational, or service changes. Any updated version will apply from the date it is issued. We encourage customers to review this policy periodically so they remain informed about how personal data is handled.

11. Summary of Our Commitment

Harlington Carpet Cleaners respects your privacy and is committed to using personal data responsibly. We collect only what we need, use it for clear and lawful purposes, keep it secure, and retain it only as long as necessary. We also respect your rights and aim to handle all data in a transparent and lawful manner.

This policy applies to all Harlington Carpet Cleaners customers in area.