Privacy Policy - Hammersmith Cleaners

This Privacy Policy explains how Hammersmith Cleaners collects, uses, stores, and protects personal data in connection with our cleaning services. It applies to all Hammersmith Cleaners customers in the area, including individuals who enquire about our services, request a quotation, make a booking, or otherwise interact with us. 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.

We recognise the importance of privacy and are committed to respecting the rights of every customer whose data we process. This policy explains what information we collect, why we collect it, the lawful basis we rely on, how long we keep it, who may process it on our behalf, and the rights available to you.

1. Data We Collect

We only collect personal data that is relevant and necessary for the provision and administration of our cleaning services. Depending on how you interact with us, we may collect the following categories of information:

Identity details, such as your name and title.
Contact details, including address, email address, and telephone number.
Service information, such as the type of cleaning requested, property details, instructions, access arrangements, and preferred service times.
Booking and transaction information, including appointment history, invoices, payment status, and records of services provided.
Communication records, such as enquiries, complaints, feedback, and correspondence relating to your booking or account.
Technical information where relevant, such as basic device or browser information if you submit information through digital systems we use for administration.

We generally do not seek to collect special category data. However, if you voluntarily provide information that may reveal sensitive details, we will process it only where necessary and with appropriate safeguards.

2. How We Use Your Data

We use personal data for purposes connected with our business operations and the delivery of our services. These uses include:

Responding to enquiries and providing quotations.
Managing bookings, appointments, and service delivery.
Maintaining records of customer instructions and preferences.
Processing payments, invoices, and accounting records.
Communicating about changes, updates, or issues related to a service.
Handling complaints, feedback, and customer support requests.
Maintaining internal records for business administration, legal compliance, and dispute resolution.
Improving our service quality and operational efficiency.

We will only use your personal data for the purposes for which it was collected, unless we reasonably consider that we need to use it for another compatible purpose and that purpose is permitted by law.

3. Lawful Basis for Processing

Under data protection law, we must have a lawful basis to process your personal data. Hammersmith Cleaners relies on one or more of the following lawful bases:

Contract

We process your personal data where it is necessary to enter into or perform a contract with you. This includes taking bookings, delivering cleaning services, issuing invoices, and managing the customer relationship.

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 responding to enquiries, managing business records, preventing fraud, improving services, and ensuring efficient operations.

Legal Obligation

We may process personal data when needed to comply with legal requirements, such as tax, accounting, insurance, or other regulatory obligations.

Consent

In some cases, we may rely on your consent, for example if we wish to use information for a purpose that is not covered by the bases above. Where consent is used, you may withdraw it at any time.

Where we rely on legitimate interests, we conduct a balancing assessment to ensure your rights are considered and protected. We do not process personal data in a way that is unexpected or unfair.

4. Sharing Your Data and Processors

We may share personal data with trusted third parties where necessary to operate our business and provide our services. These third parties may act as processors on our behalf or, in some cases, as independent controllers.

Processors may include:

Payment service providers who help process transactions.
Accounting or bookkeeping providers who assist with financial records.
Scheduling, administration, or communication service providers that help manage bookings and customer communications.
IT and data storage providers that support our systems and secure data storage.
Professional advisers, such as accountants or legal advisers, where required.

We require our processors to act only on our instructions, to keep personal data secure, and to comply with data protection law. We do not sell your personal data.

We may also disclose data if required by law, by a court order, or to protect our legal rights, property, staff, customers, or the public.

5. Data Retention

We retain personal data only for as long as necessary to fulfil the purposes for which it was collected, including any legal, accounting, or reporting requirements. The exact retention period depends on the type of information and the reason we hold it.

In general:

Customer enquiry records may be kept for a limited period to manage follow-up and business administration.
Booking, invoice, and transaction records may be kept for a longer period to meet accounting and tax obligations.
Correspondence and complaint records may be retained for as long as needed to resolve issues and support recordkeeping.

When personal data is no longer needed, we will delete it securely or anonymise it so that it can no longer identify you. If data is required for legal claims or regulatory purposes, we may keep it for a longer period where permitted by law.

6. Data Security

We take appropriate technical and organisational measures to protect personal data from unauthorised access, accidental loss, destruction, alteration, or disclosure. These measures are designed to reflect the nature of the data and the risks involved. Access to personal data is limited to individuals who need it for legitimate business purposes and who are subject to confidentiality obligations.

Although we do our best to safeguard data, no system can be guaranteed to be completely secure. If we become aware of a personal data breach that affects your rights and freedoms, we will respond in accordance with applicable law.

7. Your Rights

Under data protection law, you have a number of rights in relation to your personal data. These rights may apply depending on the circumstances and the legal basis for processing.

Right of access – you can request confirmation of whether we process your data and obtain a copy of that data.
Right to rectification – you can ask us to correct inaccurate or incomplete personal data.
Right to erasure – in certain cases, you can request deletion of your personal data.
Right to restriction – you can ask us to limit how we use your data in specific situations.
Right to object – you can object to processing based on legitimate interests or direct marketing.
Right to data portability – in some circumstances, you can request your data in a structured, commonly used format.
Right to withdraw consent – where we rely on consent, you may withdraw it at any time.

You also have the right to raise concerns about how your data is handled. While we encourage you to contact us first so we can address your concerns, you also have the right to complain to the relevant data protection authority if you believe your rights have been infringed.

8. Children’s Data

Our services are generally intended for adults. We do not knowingly collect personal data from children unless it is necessary in connection with a service request made by an adult customer and only to the extent required for that purpose. If we become aware that we have collected data from a child without appropriate basis, we will take steps to delete it promptly.

9. Changes to This Privacy Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in our services, legal requirements, or data processing practices. Any updated version will apply from the date it is made available. We encourage customers to review this policy periodically so they remain informed about how their data is handled.

10. Summary of Our Commitment

Hammersmith Cleaners is committed to processing personal data responsibly, transparently, and in compliance with applicable law. We collect only the information we need, use it for clear and lawful purposes, protect it with appropriate safeguards, and retain it only for as long as necessary. We respect your rights and aim to provide a trustworthy service to every customer in the area.

By using our services or contacting us about a booking, you acknowledge that your personal data will be processed in accordance with this Privacy Policy.