Privacy Policy - Carpetcleaning Stjohnswood

This Privacy Policy explains how Carpetcleaning Stjohnswood collects, uses, stores, shares, and protects personal data when providing services to customers in the St John’s Wood area. It applies to all Carpetcleaning Stjohnswood customers in the area, including anyone who requests a quotation, books a service, communicates with us, or receives cleaning services from us. We are committed to handling personal data in accordance with the UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR) and the Data Protection Act 2018.

1. Who we are

Carpetcleaning Stjohnswood is a local service provider offering carpet cleaning and related cleaning services. For the purposes of data protection law, we act as the data controller in relation to the personal data we collect and use about our customers, prospects, suppliers, and website or communication users where applicable.

This policy describes the standards we apply to personal data across all stages of customer interaction, from initial enquiry to service completion and any follow-up communication.

2. Personal data we collect

We only collect personal data that is necessary for the purposes described in this policy. The information we may collect includes:

Identity and contact details such as your name, address, email address, and telephone number.
Service information such as the type of cleaning requested, property details, preferred appointment times, and special instructions.
Payment and transaction information such as billing records, payment status, and limited payment-related details necessary to process charges.
Communication records including messages, emails, notes from calls, complaint details, and service feedback.
Technical information if you interact with digital systems, such as device information, log data, and basic usage data.
Operational records such as service history, quotes, invoices, and scheduling details.

We do not intentionally collect special category data unless it is directly relevant and you choose to provide it, for example if you share information about accessibility needs or health-related concerns that affect how a service should be delivered. Where such information is provided, we handle it with extra care and only where a lawful basis permits.

3. How we use personal data

We use personal data for clear and legitimate business purposes. These include:

responding to enquiries and providing quotations;
arranging, delivering, and managing cleaning services;
processing payments and keeping accurate accounting records;
communicating about bookings, service updates, and post-service matters;
handling complaints, disputes, or service issues;
maintaining business records and improving service quality;
meeting legal, tax, and regulatory obligations;
preventing fraud, misuse, or unauthorised access;
sending service-related administrative messages.

We will only use personal data for purposes that are compatible with the reasons it was collected, unless we obtain consent or are otherwise permitted by law to use it differently.

4. Lawful basis for processing

Under UK GDPR, we must have a lawful basis for each processing activity. Carpetcleaning Stjohnswood relies on the following lawful bases:

Contract

We process personal data where it is necessary to enter into or perform a contract with you. This includes managing bookings, delivering cleaning services, issuing invoices, and dealing with service-related communications.

Legal obligation

We process certain information to comply with legal obligations, such as tax rules, accounting requirements, record keeping, and responding to lawful requests from authorities.

Legitimate interests

We may process personal data where it is in our legitimate interests and where those interests are not overridden by your rights and freedoms. This may include service administration, quality control, safeguarding our systems, preventing fraud, and keeping business records. We ensure that any such use is proportionate and relevant.

Consent

Where required, we rely on your consent, for example for optional communications or the processing of certain information you voluntarily provide. You may withdraw consent at any time, without affecting the lawfulness of processing carried out before withdrawal.

5. Retention of personal data

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

Customer and service records are usually retained for the period necessary to complete the service and manage any follow-up matters.
Financial and tax records are kept for the duration required by applicable law.
Communication records are retained as needed to handle queries, complaints, and service history.
Consent-based records are kept until consent is withdrawn or the information is no longer needed.

When personal data is no longer required, we securely delete, anonymise, or otherwise dispose of it in a safe and appropriate manner.

6. Processors and third parties

We may share personal data with trusted processors who carry out services on our behalf. These may include:

booking and scheduling providers;
payment processing services;
accounting and bookkeeping services;
IT support and data storage providers;
communication and messaging tools;
professional advisers such as lawyers or accountants;
regulatory, tax, or law enforcement bodies where required by law.

All processors are required to act only on our instructions, keep data secure, and comply with applicable data protection obligations. We do not sell personal data. Where personal data is transferred outside the UK, we take appropriate steps to ensure adequate protection in line with legal requirements.

7. Data security

We take reasonable technical and organisational measures to protect personal data from loss, misuse, unauthorised access, disclosure, alteration, or destruction. These measures are designed to reflect the nature of the data we hold and the risks involved. While no system can be guaranteed to be completely secure, we work to keep your data safe and limit access to those who need it.

Confidentiality is an important part of our data handling standards, and only authorised persons are permitted to access personal information for legitimate business purposes.

8. Your rights

Under data protection law, you have a number of rights regarding your personal data. These rights are not absolute and may be limited by law, but we will always review and respond to requests appropriately. Your rights may include:

Right of access – to request a copy of the personal data we hold about you.
Right to rectification – to ask us to correct inaccurate or incomplete information.
Right to erasure – to request deletion of your data in certain circumstances.
Right to restriction – to ask us to limit the way we use your data in specific situations.
Right to object – to object to processing based on legitimate interests or direct marketing.
Right to data portability – to request transfer of certain data in a structured, commonly used format.
Right to withdraw consent – where processing is based on consent, you may withdraw it at any time.

If you believe your data protection rights have been infringed, you also have the right to raise a concern with the relevant supervisory authority. We encourage you to contact us first so we can try to resolve the matter.

9. Children’s data

Our services are intended for adult customers and household or business clients. We do not knowingly collect personal data from children as part of our ordinary service operations. If we become aware that we have inadvertently collected such data, we will take reasonable steps to delete it where appropriate.

10. Changes to this policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect legal, operational, or service changes. Any revised version will apply from the date it is published or otherwise communicated. We encourage customers to review this policy periodically so they remain informed about how their data is handled.

11. Summary of our commitment

Carpetcleaning Stjohnswood handles personal data lawfully, fairly, and transparently. We collect only the information needed to deliver our services, use it for clear purposes, retain it for no longer than necessary, and work with processors under appropriate safeguards. All Carpetcleaning Stjohnswood customers in the area are covered by this policy, and we are committed to respecting your privacy and your rights under data protection law.