Privacy Policy - Elephantandcastle Cleaner

This Privacy Policy explains how Elephantandcastle Cleaner collects, uses, stores, shares, and protects personal data when providing cleaning services. It applies to all Elephantandcastle Cleaner customers in the area, including prospective customers, current customers, and former customers who have used our services or requested information about them.

We are committed to handling personal data in a lawful, fair, and transparent way in line 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 process, why we process it, how long we keep it, who may receive it, and what rights you have.

1. Information We Collect

We collect only the personal data needed to deliver our cleaning services, manage bookings, communicate effectively, and meet legal obligations. The types of information we may collect include:

Identity details such as your name and, where relevant, the name of your business or property manager.
Contact information such as telephone number, email address, and service address.
Booking and service information such as appointment dates, requested services, access notes, and service preferences.
Billing information such as invoice records, payment status, and transaction details.
Communication records such as messages, complaints, service feedback, and any instructions you provide.
Technical information if you interact with our digital systems, such as basic device or usage information necessary for security and service administration.

We do not intentionally collect special category data unless you choose to provide it and it is strictly necessary for a specific request, for example, access requirements connected to health or disability-related needs. Where such information is provided, we handle it with extra care and only where lawful to do so.

2. How We Use Your Personal Data

We use personal data for the following purposes:

To arrange, deliver, and manage cleaning services.
To confirm bookings, changes, and cancellations.
To respond to queries, complaints, and service requests.
To issue invoices, process payments, and maintain accounting records.
To improve service quality, train staff, and maintain operational standards.
To protect our business, prevent fraud, and keep records of incidents.
To comply with legal, tax, insurance, and regulatory obligations.

We only use your personal data for purposes that are compatible with the reason it was collected. We will not use it in a way that is unexpected or unfair.

3. Lawful Basis for Processing

Under data protection law, we must have a lawful basis to process personal data. Elephantandcastle Cleaner relies on the following lawful bases:

Contract

We process your data when it is necessary to enter into or perform a contract with you. This includes setting up bookings, delivering cleaning services, handling payments, and managing service-related communications.

Legal Obligation

We may process personal data where required to meet legal obligations, such as tax recordkeeping, accounting requirements, insurance matters, and responding to lawful requests from authorities.

Legitimate Interests

We may process data where it is necessary for our legitimate business interests, provided your interests and fundamental rights do not override those interests. This may include service improvement, internal administration, fraud prevention, secure record management, and defending legal claims. When we rely on legitimate interests, we consider whether the processing is necessary and proportionate.

Consent

In limited cases, we may rely on your consent, for example where you choose to provide optional information that is not required to deliver the service. If we rely on consent, you may withdraw it at any time, without affecting the lawfulness of processing carried out before withdrawal.

4. Sharing Your Data and Processors

We may share personal data with trusted third parties, known as processors, who help us operate our business and provide services. These processors act on our instructions and are required to protect personal data appropriately. They may include:

Payment processors that help us manage transactions.
Accounting and bookkeeping providers that support financial recordkeeping.
Scheduling or administration systems used to organise bookings and service records.
IT and cloud storage providers that support secure data storage and system maintenance.
Professional advisers such as accountants, insurers, or legal advisers where necessary.

We may also disclose data where required by law, to enforce our agreements, to protect our rights, or to prevent harm or fraud. We do not sell your personal data.

5. Data Retention

We keep personal data only for as long as necessary for the purposes for which it was collected, including satisfying legal, accounting, insurance, and reporting requirements. Retention periods may vary depending on the type of information and the purpose of processing.

Customer and booking records are retained for the period needed to manage services and handle follow-up queries.
Invoice and financial records are retained for the period required by tax and accounting law.
Complaint and incident records may be retained for longer where needed to resolve disputes or demonstrate compliance.
Communication records are kept only as long as necessary to respond to enquiries and maintain service history.

When data is no longer needed, we securely delete it or anonymise it so that it can no longer identify you. In some cases, we may retain limited information for legal defence or compliance purposes, even after the main service relationship has ended.

6. Data Security

We take reasonable technical and organisational measures to protect personal data against loss, misuse, unauthorised access, alteration, or disclosure. These measures may include access controls, secure storage, staff confidentiality expectations, and restricted sharing with third parties on a need-to-know basis.

Although we work to protect your data, no system can be guaranteed to be completely secure. If we become aware of a personal data breach that is likely to result in risk to your rights and freedoms, we will take appropriate steps in line with legal requirements.

7. Your Rights

Under data protection law, you have a number of rights in relation to your personal data. These rights may be subject to conditions and exemptions depending on the circumstances.

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 – in certain circumstances, you may ask us to delete your personal data.
Right to restriction – you may ask us to limit how we use your data in certain situations.
Right to object – you may object to processing based on legitimate interests or direct marketing, where applicable.
Right to data portability – where processing is based on consent or contract and carried out by automated means, you may request transfer of your data in a structured format.
Right to withdraw consent – if we rely on consent, you may withdraw it at any time.

If you wish to exercise any of these rights, we will respond within the time limits required by law and may request information to verify your identity. Please note that some rights are not absolute and may not apply in all situations.

8. Children’s Data

Our services are generally intended for adults arranging cleaning services for homes or business premises. We do not knowingly collect personal data from children except where it is incidental and necessary for service delivery, and only in a lawful manner.

9. International Transfers

Where any processor or service provider stores or accesses data outside the United Kingdom, we take steps to ensure appropriate safeguards are in place. These may include standard contractual protections or other legally recognised transfer mechanisms.

10. Changes to This Privacy Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in law, business practices, or services. Any changes will apply from the date of publication of the updated version. We encourage you to review this policy periodically to stay informed about how we handle personal data.

11. Summary of Our Commitment

Elephantandcastle Cleaner is committed to processing personal data responsibly, securely, and lawfully. We collect only what we need, use it for clear and legitimate purposes, retain it for no longer than necessary, and respect your rights under data protection law. This policy applies to all Elephantandcastle Cleaner customers in area and is designed to support transparency and trust in every service we provide.