Privacy Policy - Merton Carpet Cleaners

This Privacy Policy explains how Merton Carpet Cleaners collects, uses, stores, and protects personal data in connection with the services we provide. It applies to all Merton Carpet Cleaners customers in area, including individuals who request quotations, book appointments, receive cleaning services, or otherwise interact with us in relation to our carpet cleaning and related services.

We are committed to handling personal data in a lawful, fair, and transparent way in accordance with the UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR) and the Data Protection Act 2018. This policy is intended to help you understand what information 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 your personal data.

1. Information We Collect

We collect only the personal data that is necessary for the provision and administration of our services. Depending on how you interact with us, this may include:

Identity information such as your name.
Contact information such as your address, email address, and telephone number.
Service details such as property access notes, cleaning requirements, preferred dates and times, and information relevant to completing the service.
Transaction information such as payment records, invoices, and service history.
Communications such as messages, emails, complaints, feedback, and records of customer enquiries.
Technical information where relevant, such as basic website usage data or device information if you visit our online services.

We do not seek to collect special category personal data unless it is strictly necessary and you have provided it voluntarily, or unless we are required to do so by law. If such data is provided to us incidentally, we will handle it with appropriate safeguards and only for a lawful purpose.

2. How We Use Your Data

We use personal data for the following purposes:

To provide quotations and manage bookings.
To deliver carpet cleaning and related services.
To communicate with you about your service request, appointment, or account.
To process payments, issue invoices, and maintain financial records.
To respond to questions, complaints, or service issues.
To maintain internal records and improve our services.
To comply with legal, tax, accounting, and regulatory obligations.

We will only use your personal data where we have a valid legal reason to do so. We will not use your data for unrelated purposes in a way that is incompatible with the reasons it was collected.

3. Lawful Basis for Processing

Under data protection law, we must have a lawful basis for each type of processing activity. We rely on the following lawful bases:

Contract

We process your personal data when it is necessary to enter into or perform a contract with you. This includes handling booking details, carrying out the service, and processing payments.

Legal Obligation

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

Legitimate Interests

We may process personal data where it is necessary for our legitimate business interests and where those interests are not overridden by your rights and freedoms. Examples include keeping service records, preventing fraud, handling complaints, and improving our service operations. Where we rely on legitimate interests, we assess the impact on your privacy and ensure appropriate safeguards are in place.

Consent

In limited circumstances, we may rely on your consent, for example where it is necessary to send certain optional communications or handle specific information that you have chosen to provide. Where consent is used, you may withdraw it at any time without affecting the lawfulness of processing carried out before withdrawal.

4. Data Sharing and Processors

We may share personal data with trusted third parties who assist us in running our business. These parties act as processors when they process data on our instructions, or as independent controllers where they determine their own purposes for processing.

Typical processors or service providers may include:

Payment processing providers.
Accounting and bookkeeping services.
IT support, cloud storage, and data hosting providers.
Customer communication tools and scheduling systems.
Professional advisers such as accountants, insurers, or legal advisers where necessary.

We require processors to handle personal data securely, confidentially, and only in accordance with our instructions and applicable law. We do not sell your personal data.

We may also disclose data where necessary to comply with legal requirements, enforce our terms, protect our rights, or prevent fraud or misuse.

5. Retention of Personal Data

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 obligations. The retention period may vary depending on the type of information and the purpose for which it is used.

As a general principle:

Customer and service records are retained for as long as needed to manage the customer relationship and handle follow-up queries.
Financial and invoice records are retained for the period required by tax and accounting law.
Communication records may be retained for a reasonable period to support service management, complaint handling, or dispute resolution.

When personal data is no longer required, it will be securely deleted, destroyed, or anonymised so that it can no longer be linked to you.

6. Data Security

We take reasonable technical and organisational measures to protect personal data against loss, misuse, unauthorised access, alteration, or disclosure. These measures are designed to reflect the nature of the data we hold and the risks associated with processing it.

Although we work to protect your information, no system can be guaranteed to be completely secure. You should also take care when sharing information with us and ensure that the details you provide are accurate and up to date.

7. Your Rights

Under data protection law, you have a number of rights in relation to your personal data. These rights may apply in certain circumstances and are subject to legal exceptions.

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 data.
Right to erasure – you can ask us to delete your data in certain circumstances.
Right to restriction – you can ask us to 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 – you can request that certain data be provided in a structured, commonly used format.
Right to withdraw consent – where 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 applicable law. We may need to verify your identity before acting on your request. In some cases, we may not be able to comply fully if the law permits or requires us to retain the data.

8. International Transfers

If any service provider processes personal data outside the United Kingdom, we will ensure that suitable safeguards are in place to protect your information in line with applicable data protection requirements.

9. Changes to This Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in our practices, services, or legal obligations. The most recent version will apply to your use of our services from the date it is made available. We encourage you to review this policy periodically so that you remain informed about how we handle your data.

10. Summary of Key Points

In summary, we collect only the information needed to provide and manage our carpet cleaning services, we process it under lawful bases including contract, legal obligation, consent, and legitimate interests, and we retain it only for as long as necessary. We share data only with trusted processors or where required by law, and you have clear rights over your personal information.

Merton Carpet Cleaners is committed to respecting your privacy and protecting your personal data at all times.