Privacy Policy - Waterloo Carpetcleaning

This Privacy Policy explains how Waterloo Carpetcleaning collects, uses, stores, shares, and protects personal data. It applies to all Waterloo Carpetcleaning customers in the area, including individuals who request quotations, book services, receive cleaning services, or otherwise interact with us in connection with our carpet cleaning operations. We are committed to handling personal data in a lawful, fair, and transparent manner in line 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, Waterloo Carpetcleaning acts as the data controller for the personal data described in this policy. This means we determine why and how your personal data is processed in connection with our services. We take our responsibilities seriously and aim to collect only the information we need to provide cleaning services, manage customer relationships, and meet legal obligations.

2. Personal Data We Collect

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

Identity details: name and title.
Contact details: address, email address, and telephone number.
Service details: property access information, rooms or items to be cleaned, preferred service times, and service notes.
Payment information: payment method details, billing information, and transaction records.
Communication records: enquiries, messages, complaints, feedback, and correspondence.
Technical information: limited website or device information if you contact us electronically, such as IP address, browser type, and usage data where relevant.
Special instructions: information relating to stains, fabric types, access concerns, pets, or health and safety considerations.

We do not intentionally collect special category data unless it is necessary and you choose to provide it, for example if you share health-related access information that affects service delivery. Where such data is collected, we will only process it when a lawful basis applies and, where required, an additional condition under data protection law is satisfied.

3. How We Collect Your Data

We may collect personal data directly from you when you:

request a quote or booking;
communicate with us by phone, email, message, or in person;
arrange access to your property;
make a payment or receive an invoice;
provide feedback, reviews, or complaints.

We may also receive data from third parties where necessary for service delivery, such as a landlord, property manager, letting agent, or another person acting on your behalf. In such cases, the third party should only share information where they have a lawful basis to do so.

4. Lawful Basis for Processing

We process personal data only when we have a lawful basis under UK GDPR. Depending on the context, our lawful bases may include:

Contract

We process data when it is necessary to enter into or perform a contract with you, such as arranging a carpet cleaning service, managing bookings, issuing invoices, and completing the work requested.

Legitimate Interests

We may process data where it is in our legitimate business interests and those interests are not overridden by your rights and freedoms. This may include managing customer relationships, responding to enquiries, improving services, preventing fraud, keeping service records, and handling operational planning.

Legal Obligation

We may process and retain certain information to comply with legal or regulatory requirements, including tax, accounting, insurance, and record-keeping duties.

Consent

In limited cases, we rely on your consent, for example where it is required for optional marketing communications or for processing particularly sensitive information that you voluntarily provide and that cannot be handled under another lawful basis. Where consent is used, you may withdraw it at any time.

5. How We Use Personal Data

We use personal data for the following purposes:

providing quotes and managing bookings;
delivering carpet cleaning and related services;
communicating with customers about appointments, access, and service updates;
processing payments and maintaining financial records;
handling complaints, claims, and service queries;
maintaining internal business records and service history;
improving our operations, customer service, and service quality;
meeting our legal, tax, and insurance obligations;
sending marketing communications where permitted by law or with consent.

We will only use your data for the purposes for which it was collected, unless we reasonably consider that we need to use it for another compatible purpose and the law allows us to do so.

6. Data Sharing and Processors

We may share personal data with trusted third parties who act as processors on our behalf. These processors are only permitted to use your data under our instructions and must protect it appropriately. Examples may include:

payment service providers who handle secure transactions;
accounting or bookkeeping providers who support financial administration;
IT and cloud service providers who store or support systems and communications;
customer management or scheduling tools used to organise appointments and records;
professional advisers such as insurers, legal advisers, or auditors, where necessary;
public authorities where we are legally required to disclose data.

We may also share information with contractors or staff who need it to perform the service, but only to the extent necessary. We do not sell your personal data. If data is transferred outside the UK, we will ensure that appropriate safeguards are in place.

7. Data Retention

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

Customer and service records: kept for a reasonable period to manage the customer relationship and resolve disputes.
Financial records: kept for the period required by tax and accounting law.
Communications: kept as long as needed to respond to queries, document decisions, or support service administration.
Marketing data: kept until you withdraw consent or object where we rely on legitimate interests.

When data is no longer needed, we will securely delete or anonymise it. In some cases, we may retain limited information longer if necessary to defend legal claims or comply with statutory obligations.

8. Your Rights

Under data protection law, you have several rights regarding your personal data. These include:

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 some circumstances, you can request that we delete your data.
Right to restriction: you can ask us to limit how we use your data in certain situations.
Right to data portability: you may request that certain data be provided to you or another organisation in a structured format.
Right to object: you can object to processing based on legitimate interests, including direct marketing.
Right to withdraw consent: where we rely on consent, you may withdraw it at any time.

You also have the right to lodge a complaint with the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) if you believe your data has been misused or that we have not handled your request properly. We encourage you to raise concerns with us first so we can try to resolve the matter promptly.

9. Data Security

We use appropriate 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 awareness, and restricting data access to those who need it. While no system is completely secure, we work to maintain a level of security appropriate to the risk.

10. Marketing Communications

Where permitted, we may send limited marketing information about our services. If we rely on consent, we will only contact you where you have opted in. If we rely on legitimate interests, we will always respect your right to object and will stop marketing if you ask us to do so. You can manage your preferences at any time.

11. Children

Our services are intended for adult customers and property occupants. We do not knowingly collect data from children except where it is incidentally provided by an adult customer and is necessary for service delivery or safety reasons.

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. Any updates will take effect when published or otherwise communicated. We encourage customers to review this policy periodically to stay informed about how we protect personal data.

13. Summary of Our Commitment

Waterloo Carpetcleaning is committed to processing personal data fairly, lawfully, and transparently. We collect only the information needed to provide our services, rely on appropriate lawful bases, use trusted processors under written controls, and retain data only for as long as necessary. We respect your rights and aim to handle all data in a way that is secure, responsible, and compliant with applicable privacy law.