Privacy Policy

Whitton Carpet Cleaners is committed to protecting the privacy and personal data of every customer and prospective customer. This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, store, share, and protect personal information in connection with our carpet cleaning and related services. It applies to all Whitton Carpet Cleaners customers in the area, including household clients, commercial clients, and anyone who enquires about or receives our services.

1. Who We Are

For the purposes of data protection law, Whitton Carpet Cleaners acts as the data controller for personal data processed in connection with our services. This means we decide how and why your personal information is used. We take our responsibilities under the UK GDPR and the Data Protection Act 2018 seriously and aim to process all personal data lawfully, fairly, and transparently.

2. Personal Data We Collect

We only collect information that is necessary to provide our services, manage our business, and meet legal obligations. The types of personal data we may collect include:

Identity details such as your name.
Contact details such as your phone number, email address, and service address.
Booking and service information including appointment dates, property details relevant to the service, and notes about the cleaning work requested.
Payment-related information such as transaction records, invoice details, and payment status. We do not store unnecessary payment information beyond what is required for administration and compliance.
Communication records including messages, enquiries, complaints, and service updates.
Technical and usage data if you interact with digital systems used for booking or communication, such as device information or log data, where applicable.
Special category data only where strictly necessary and only if you choose to provide it, for example, information that may be relevant to access needs or health considerations related to an appointment.

We do not intentionally collect more personal data than we need for the purposes outlined in this policy.

3. How We Collect Your Data

We may collect personal data directly from you when you:

make an enquiry;
request a quotation;
book or amend a service;
communicate with us by phone, email, text, or other means;
make a payment or receive an invoice;
provide feedback, reviews, or complaints.

We may also receive information from third parties where necessary to deliver our services, such as from a property manager, landlord, tenant, letting agent, or business customer who has arranged a service on your behalf. In such cases, we will process the information in line with this Privacy Policy and applicable law.

4. Why We Use Your Personal Data

We process personal data for the following purposes:

to provide quotes and arrange appointments;
to deliver carpet cleaning and related services;
to manage our customer relationships;
to issue invoices, receive payments, and keep financial records;
to respond to enquiries, feedback, and complaints;
to maintain service quality, training, and internal administration;
to comply with tax, accounting, and other legal obligations;
to protect our business against fraud, misuse, or unlawful activity;
to improve our services and operational efficiency.

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 that such use is permitted by law.

5. Lawful Basis for Processing

Under GDPR, we must have a lawful basis for processing your personal data. Depending on the circumstance, we rely on one or more of the following lawful bases:

Contract

We process personal data where it is necessary to perform a contract with you or to take steps at your request before entering into a contract. This includes arranging services, confirming appointments, and providing invoices.

Legitimate Interests

We may process data where it is necessary for our legitimate interests, provided those interests are not overridden by your rights and freedoms. This may include managing bookings, improving services, keeping internal records, handling complaints, and protecting our business from fraud or misuse.

Legal Obligation

We process certain information to comply with legal obligations, including tax, accounting, and record-keeping requirements.

Consent

In limited circumstances, we may rely on your consent, particularly where the law requires it. If we ask for consent, you have the right to withdraw it at any time. Withdrawal of consent will not affect processing that has already taken place lawfully.

Vital Interests and Public Interest

These bases are unlikely to apply in most routine service situations, but we may rely on them where necessary and lawful in exceptional cases.

6. Sharing Your Data and Processors

We may share personal data with trusted third parties where this is necessary for our operations or legally required. Such third parties may act as processors or independent controllers, depending on the service they provide.

Processors are organisations that process personal data on our behalf and under our instructions. We only use processors that provide appropriate safeguards for data protection. Examples may include:

booking or scheduling systems;
payment processing providers;
accounting or invoicing software providers;
IT support and data storage services;
communication tools used for customer updates or administrative messages.

We may also share information with professional advisers, insurers, regulatory bodies, law enforcement, or public authorities where necessary and lawful.

We do not sell your personal data. Where data is transferred outside the UK or EEA, we will ensure appropriate safeguards are in place in accordance with data protection law.

7. Data Retention

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

Customer and booking records are typically retained for the period needed to manage the service relationship and follow-up administration.
Financial and invoice records are retained for the period required by tax and accounting law.
Communication records may be kept for a reasonable time to manage queries, evidence instructions, or resolve disputes.
Complaints and claims information may be retained longer where needed to defend legal claims or meet insurance requirements.

When personal data is no longer required, we will delete it securely or anonymise it where deletion is not possible or practical.

8. Data Security

We use appropriate technical and organisational measures to protect personal data against accidental loss, unauthorised access, alteration, disclosure, or destruction. These measures may include access controls, secure storage, limited staff access, and careful handling of records. While no system can be guaranteed completely secure, we work to maintain a level of protection appropriate to the risks involved.

9. Your Rights

Under data protection law, you have a number of rights in relation to your personal data. These rights may be subject to certain limitations and exemptions. You have the right to:

Access the personal data we hold about you;
Rectification of inaccurate or incomplete information;
Erasure of your personal data in certain circumstances;
Restriction of processing in certain circumstances;
Object to processing based on legitimate interests or direct marketing;
Data portability where processing is based on consent or contract and carried out by automated means;
Withdraw consent where we rely on consent;
Lodge a complaint with the relevant supervisory authority if you believe your data rights have been infringed.

We will respond to valid requests in accordance with applicable law. To protect your privacy, we may need to verify your identity before responding.

10. Children’s Data

Our services are not directed at children, and we do not knowingly collect personal data from children except where it is incidentally provided in the context of a household or service booking. If we become aware that we have collected data unlawfully, we will take appropriate steps to delete it.

11. Changes to This Privacy Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in the law, our services, or the way we process personal data. The most current version will apply to all customers in the area who use Whitton Carpet Cleaners services. We encourage you to review this policy periodically to stay informed about how we protect your information.

12. Summary of Our Commitments

Whitton Carpet Cleaners will only collect personal data that is necessary, use it for clear and lawful purposes, keep it secure, retain it only as long as needed, and respect your rights under data protection law. We are committed to handling personal data responsibly, transparently, and with respect for your privacy.