Privacy Policy - Cleaners Bermondsey

This Privacy Policy explains how Cleaners Bermondsey collects, uses, stores, shares, and protects personal data relating to its customers in the Bermondsey area. It applies to all Cleaners Bermondsey customers in the area, including individuals who request domestic cleaning, end of tenancy cleaning, deep cleaning, or related services. We are committed to handling personal information in a lawful, fair, and transparent manner in accordance with the UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR) and the Data Protection Act 2018.

1. Who We Are

For the purposes of data protection law, Cleaners Bermondsey acts as a data controller when deciding how and why personal data is processed in connection with our cleaning services. This means we determine the purposes for which information is collected and the way it is used. We take our responsibilities seriously and aim to ensure that all personal data is processed in a way that respects your privacy and legal rights.

2. Personal Data We Collect

We may collect and process different types of personal data depending on the service requested and how you interact with us. The information we collect may include:

Identity data such as your name and title.
Contact data such as your address, email address, and telephone number.
Service-related data such as property access details, cleaning preferences, requested dates, and service instructions.
Billing and payment data such as invoicing details and payment confirmation.
Communication data such as messages, feedback, complaints, or service queries.
Technical data that may be collected when you interact with our digital systems, where applicable, such as device or browser information.

We generally do not seek to collect special category data, such as information about health, religion, or biometric details. If you choose to share such information with us, it will only be processed where a lawful basis applies and where it is necessary for the service or to meet legal obligations.

3. How We Use Your Data

We use personal data to provide our cleaning services effectively and to manage our relationship with you. Typical uses include:

Processing bookings and managing service schedules.
Delivering cleaning services at your property.
Communicating about appointments, changes, or service updates.
Handling payments, refunds, and invoicing.
Responding to questions, complaints, or service issues.
Maintaining internal records and service quality.
Meeting legal, accounting, and regulatory requirements.

We will only use your personal data for the purposes for which it was collected unless we reasonably believe that we need to use it for another compatible purpose. If we need to use your data for an unrelated purpose, we will explain the legal basis that allows us to do so.

4. Lawful Basis for Processing

Under UK GDPR, we must have a lawful basis to process personal data. Cleaners Bermondsey relies on the following lawful bases:

Performance of a Contract

We process your data where it is necessary to enter into or perform a contract with you. This includes managing bookings, delivering cleaning services, handling customer requests, and processing payments.

Legitimate Interests

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

Legal Obligation

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

Consent

In limited situations, we may rely on your consent, for example where you choose to provide optional information or agree to a particular type of communication. Where consent is used, you may withdraw it at any time. Withdrawing consent will not affect the lawfulness of processing carried out before withdrawal.

5. Data Sharing and Processors

We may share personal data with trusted third parties where necessary to run our business and provide services. These third parties act as processors when they process personal data on our instructions. We require all processors to handle data securely, confidentially, and in line with applicable data protection law.

Examples of processors or service providers may include:

Payment processors that handle card or transfer transactions.
IT and system providers that support our records, communication tools, or data storage.
Administrative service providers that help manage bookings or customer records.
Professional advisers such as accountants or legal advisers, where necessary.

We may also disclose personal data where required by law, court order, or regulatory authority. We do not sell personal data.

6. Data Retention

We keep personal data only for as long as necessary to fulfil the purposes for which it was collected, including for satisfying legal, accounting, or reporting requirements. The retention period may vary depending on the type of data and the service provided.

In general, we consider the following factors when deciding how long to keep information:

Whether the data is needed to deliver a current or future service.
Whether we are required to keep it for legal or tax purposes.
Whether it is necessary to resolve disputes or enforce agreements.
Whether continued retention is justified by our legitimate interests.

When data is no longer needed, we will delete it or anonymise it securely.

7. Security of Your Information

We take appropriate technical and organisational measures to protect personal data against unauthorised access, loss, misuse, or alteration. These measures are designed to ensure a level of security appropriate to the risk. While no system can be guaranteed to be completely secure, we aim to maintain strong safeguards and regularly review our practices.

Access to personal data is limited to individuals who need it for legitimate business purposes. We also encourage data minimisation, meaning we collect and retain only the information needed for the service or legal requirements.

8. Your Data Protection Rights

You have a number of rights under data protection law. Subject to certain conditions and exemptions, these may include:

The right to be informed about how your data is used.
The right of access to receive a copy of the personal data we hold about you.
The right to rectification to correct inaccurate or incomplete information.
The right to erasure in certain circumstances, sometimes called the right to be forgotten.
The right to restrict processing in certain situations.
The right to object to processing based on legitimate interests or direct marketing, where applicable.
The right to data portability where processing is based on consent or contract and carried out by automated means.
Rights related to automated decision-making, where applicable.

If you wish to exercise any of these rights, you should make a request in writing. We may need to verify your identity before responding. We will respond within the time limits set by law unless a valid extension applies.

9. Children’s Data

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

10. International Transfers

Where personal data is transferred outside the United Kingdom, we will ensure that appropriate safeguards are in place to protect the information and to maintain a level of protection required by law. Such safeguards may include adequacy regulations or other legally approved transfer mechanisms.

11. Changes to This Privacy 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 issued. We encourage customers to review this policy periodically to stay informed about how their information is handled.

12. Our Commitment to Privacy

Cleaners Bermondsey is committed to using personal data responsibly and only where necessary for providing our services, meeting legal obligations, and improving customer experience. We aim to keep all information accurate, secure, and retained only for as long as needed. We also respect the importance of transparency, so customers in Bermondsey and the surrounding area can understand how their personal data is handled.

Summary of key points: we collect only the data needed to provide cleaning services, use it under lawful bases such as contract, legitimate interests, consent, and legal obligation, share it only with trusted processors, retain it for appropriate periods, and respect your data protection rights.