Privacy Policy - Cleaner Westminster

This Privacy Policy explains how Cleaner Westminster collects, uses, stores, shares, and protects personal data relating to all Cleaner Westminster customers in the Westminster area. It applies to every customer, whether services are booked once, arranged on a recurring basis, or requested through any business channel. We are committed to handling personal information in a lawful, fair, and transparent way and to respecting the privacy rights of every individual whose data we process.

1. Who We Are

Cleaner Westminster provides professional cleaning services to customers in Westminster and the surrounding local area. In the course of delivering those services, we may need to process personal data about customers, property occupants, payment contacts, and, in some cases, authorised representatives. This policy describes how that information is handled under the UK GDPR and the Data Protection Act 2018.

2. Data We Collect

We only collect personal data that is relevant and necessary for providing our services, managing customer relationships, meeting legal obligations, and improving our operations. The types of data we may collect include:

Identity data: name, title, and, where needed, business or organisation name.
Contact data: address, email address, telephone number, and preferred communication details.
Service data: cleaning instructions, service preferences, property access notes, scheduling details, and service history.
Payment data: payment status, billing records, and transaction references. We do not store card details unless a secure third-party payment processor requires them to complete a transaction.
Correspondence data: messages, complaints, feedback, and service-related communications.
Technical data: limited device or usage information if submitted through digital systems, such as logs necessary for security and fraud prevention.

We generally do not seek to collect sensitive personal data unless it is absolutely necessary and permitted by law. If such data is ever provided, we will process it only where a valid legal basis exists and where appropriate safeguards are in place.

3. How We Use Personal Data

We use personal data for the following purposes:

to arrange, deliver, and manage cleaning services;
to confirm appointments, update schedules, and respond to requests;
to issue invoices, process payments, and handle account administration;
to maintain accurate service records and customer preferences;
to manage complaints, queries, and customer support matters;
to meet legal, regulatory, and tax obligations;
to protect our business, staff, customers, and property from fraud, misuse, or security incidents;
to improve our services, training, and internal procedures.

We will not use your personal data for purposes that are incompatible with the reasons it was collected unless we have a lawful basis to do so and, where necessary, provide further notice.

4. Lawful Basis for Processing

Under data protection law, we must have a lawful basis for every processing activity. Cleaner Westminster relies on one or more of the following lawful bases:

4.1 Contract

We process personal data where it is necessary to enter into or perform a contract with you. This includes managing bookings, carrying out cleaning services, handling customer instructions, and processing payments.

4.2 Legal Obligation

We may process data to comply with legal obligations, such as accounting rules, tax requirements, record-keeping duties, and lawful requests from authorities.

4.3 Legitimate Interests

We may process data where it is necessary for our legitimate interests and where those interests are not overridden by your rights and freedoms. This may include service management, maintaining security, preventing misuse, improving operations, and responding to complaints.

4.4 Consent

In limited situations, we may rely on consent, for example where you explicitly agree to receive certain optional communications or where consent is required by law. When we rely on consent, you have the right to withdraw it at any time.

5. Data Sharing and Processors

We may share personal data with trusted third parties who act as processors on our behalf. These providers are only permitted to process data according to our instructions and must keep it secure and confidential. Processors may include:

booking and scheduling systems;
accounting and invoicing providers;
payment processing services;
cloud storage and secure data hosting providers;
IT support, maintenance, and cybersecurity services;
customer communication platforms used for service administration.

We may also disclose data where required by law, for example to comply with a legal request, court order, or regulatory obligation. If a business reorganisation, sale, or transfer takes place, personal data may be transferred to the relevant party as permitted by law and subject to appropriate protections.

We do not sell personal data to third parties. Where any sharing is necessary, we ensure that suitable contractual safeguards and technical measures are in place.

6. Data Retention

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

Customer and service records: retained for the duration of the customer relationship and for a reasonable period afterwards.
Financial and tax records: retained for the period required by applicable law.
Complaints and correspondence: retained long enough to resolve the issue and support record-keeping obligations.
Technical or security logs: retained for limited periods unless needed for investigation or legal compliance.

When personal data is no longer needed, we will delete it securely or anonymise it so that it can no longer identify an individual.

7. Data Security

We use appropriate technical and organisational measures to protect personal data against loss, misuse, unauthorised access, disclosure, alteration, or destruction. These measures may include access controls, secure storage, password protection, staff confidentiality requirements, and restricted internal access on a need-to-know basis.

While no system can guarantee complete security, we regularly review our practices to reduce risk and improve protection. If a personal data breach occurs that is likely to result in a risk to your rights and freedoms, we will take appropriate action in line with legal obligations.

8. Your Rights

As a customer in the Westminster area, you have rights under data protection law regarding your personal data. These 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 data.
Right to erasure: to request deletion of your data in certain circumstances.
Right to restrict processing: to request limited use of your data in certain situations.
Right to data portability: to request your data in a usable format where applicable.
Right to object: to 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.

These rights are not absolute and may be subject to legal exceptions. If you make a request, we may need to verify your identity before responding. We will handle requests within the time limits required by law.

9. Children’s Data

Our services are intended for adults and businesses arranging cleaning services. We do not knowingly collect personal data from children, and we do not intentionally market services to them. If we become aware that we have collected a child’s personal data without proper authority, we will take reasonable steps to delete it.

10. International Transfers

Where personal data is transferred outside the United Kingdom, we will ensure that suitable safeguards are in place to protect it. These safeguards may include adequacy decisions, contractual protections, or other lawful transfer mechanisms required by data protection law.

11. Changes to This Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in law, operational practices, or service arrangements. Any revised version will apply from the date it becomes effective. We encourage customers to review this policy periodically so they remain informed about how their information is handled.

12. Summary of Our Commitment

Cleaner Westminster is committed to lawful, transparent, and responsible data processing. We collect only what we need, use it for clear and legitimate purposes, keep it no longer than necessary, and protect it with appropriate safeguards. We also respect your rights and will respond to valid requests in accordance with applicable law.

Italic note: This policy applies to all Cleaner Westminster customers in the area, including one-off and recurring service users.

We aim to maintain trust by treating personal data with care, accountability, and respect.