Privacy Policy - Cleaners Highbury

This Privacy Policy explains how Cleaners Highbury collects, uses, stores, shares, and protects personal data. It applies to all Cleaners Highbury customers in the area, including current, former, and prospective customers who use or enquire about our cleaning 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

Cleaners Highbury provides domestic and commercial cleaning services. In the context of this policy, we act as the data controller for the personal information we determine the purposes and means of processing. This means we decide why and how your personal data is used when you engage with our services, request a quote, make a booking, or communicate with us.

2. Information we collect

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

Identity details such as your name and title.
Contact details such as address, email address, and telephone number.
Service information including property access notes, preferred cleaning times, service instructions, and appointment history.
Billing and payment details such as invoice records, payment confirmations, and transaction references.
Communication records including emails, messages, and notes from phone conversations.
Technical information if you interact with our online systems, such as device data, IP address, and browser-related information.
Feedback and complaint information including reviews, requests, and dispute records.

We generally do not seek to collect special category data. However, if such information is provided to us by you, for example where it is relevant to access arrangements or health-related service considerations, we will only process it where a lawful basis applies and where it is necessary and appropriate to do so.

3. How we use your data

We use personal data for the following purposes:

To provide quotes and manage bookings.
To deliver cleaning services at agreed locations and times.
To communicate with you about appointments, changes, or service issues.
To issue invoices, process payments, and keep accounting records.
To handle feedback, complaints, and service improvement.
To maintain internal records, quality control, and operational planning.
To comply with legal and regulatory obligations.
To protect our business, staff, and customers from fraud, misuse, or security incidents.

We only use your personal information where it is necessary and relevant to our business relationship, and we do not use it in ways that are incompatible with the original purpose for which it was collected.

4. Lawful basis for processing

Under data protection law, we must have a valid lawful basis to process your personal data. Depending on the circumstances, Cleaners Highbury 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 managing quotations, bookings, cleaning appointments, and payments.

Legitimate interests

We may process data where it is necessary for our legitimate business interests, provided your rights and freedoms do not override those interests. Examples include service administration, record keeping, customer support, fraud prevention, and internal business improvement. We always consider whether such processing is necessary, proportionate, and respectful of your privacy.

Legal obligation

We may process personal data when required to comply with legal obligations, such as tax, accounting, employment, or regulatory duties.

Consent

In limited cases, we may rely on your consent, for example where it is appropriate to use certain optional information or marketing preferences. Where consent is used, you may withdraw it at any time without affecting the lawfulness of processing carried out before withdrawal.

5. Sharing and processors

We may share personal data with trusted third parties only where necessary and appropriate. These third parties may act as processors or independent controllers depending on the service provided.

Examples of processors and service providers may include:

IT and hosting providers that store or support business systems.
Payment service providers that handle card or electronic transactions.
Accounting and bookkeeping providers that assist with financial administration.
Scheduling or communication tools used to manage appointments and messages.
Professional advisers, such as accountants or legal advisers, where required.

Where a third party acts as a processor, it is required to process personal data only on our instructions, to keep it secure, and to use appropriate technical and organisational measures. We do not sell your personal data.

We may also disclose data where necessary to comply with the law, enforce our terms, respond to valid legal requests, or protect the rights, property, or safety of Cleaners Highbury, our customers, staff, or others.

6. Retention of personal data

We keep personal data only for as long as necessary for the purposes for which it was collected, including to meet legal, accounting, and reporting obligations. Retention periods depend on the type of information and the reason it is held.

Customer and service records are generally kept for the duration of the service relationship and for a reasonable period afterwards.
Financial and invoice records may be retained for the period required under tax and accounting laws.
Communication and complaint records may be retained for a period necessary to manage the matter and improve service quality.

When data is no longer required, we will securely delete, anonymise, or archive it in a way that prevents unnecessary use. Retention is always limited to what is reasonably necessary for legitimate business or legal purposes.

7. Data security

We take appropriate technical and organisational measures to protect personal data against unauthorised access, accidental loss, misuse, alteration, or disclosure. These measures may include access controls, secure storage, staff confidentiality obligations, and regular review of our procedures. While no system can be guaranteed completely secure, we work to maintain a high standard of protection and to reduce risks wherever possible.

8. 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, but we will always consider and respond to requests in accordance with applicable law.

Right of access – you may request confirmation of whether we process your data and obtain a copy of it.
Right to rectification – you may ask us to correct inaccurate or incomplete information.
Right to erasure – you may request deletion of your data in certain circumstances.
Right to restriction – you may request limited processing in certain situations.
Right to data portability – you may request that certain data be provided in a structured, commonly used format.
Right to object – you may object to processing based on legitimate interests or direct marketing.
Right to withdraw consent – where processing is based on consent, you may withdraw it at any time.

If you exercise any of these rights, we may need to verify your identity before responding. We aim to respond within the legal timeframes set by data protection law.

9. Children’s data

Our services are generally intended for adults. We do not knowingly collect personal data from children unless it is provided by an adult customer in connection with service delivery, such as household access arrangements. If we become aware that we have collected data unlawfully, we will take appropriate steps to delete or protect it.

10. Changes to this policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in our practices, services, or legal obligations. Any updates will take effect when published in the relevant version of the policy. We encourage customers to review it periodically to stay informed about how personal data is handled.

11. Summary of our privacy approach

Our approach is straightforward: we collect only the data needed to provide and manage our services, use it only for clear and lawful purposes, keep it no longer than necessary, and apply appropriate safeguards. Cleaners Highbury respects the privacy of every customer in the area and aims to ensure all personal data is processed fairly, securely, and transparently.

By using our services, contacting us, or providing information to us, you acknowledge that your personal data will be handled in line with this Privacy Policy and applicable data protection law.