Privacy Policy - Cleaners Brixton

This Privacy Policy explains how Cleaners Brixton collects, uses, stores, shares, and protects personal data when providing cleaning services. It applies to all Cleaners Brixton customers in the area, including prospective customers, current customers, former customers, and anyone who communicates with us about our services. We are committed to handling personal information lawfully, fairly, and transparently in line with the UK GDPR and the Data Protection Act 2018.

1. Who We Are

For the purposes of data protection law, Cleaners Brixton acts as the data controller for the personal data collected and used in connection with our cleaning services. This means we decide why and how your personal data is processed. We take our responsibilities seriously and aim to collect only the information needed to manage bookings, deliver services, maintain records, and meet legal obligations.

2. Personal Data We Collect

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

Identity information such as your name and title.
Contact details such as address, email address, and telephone number.
Service information such as booking details, service preferences, special instructions, and property access notes.
Payment-related information such as payment status, transaction references, and billing records.
Communication data such as messages, complaints, feedback, and correspondence relating to our services.
Technical information if you interact with us electronically, including basic usage or device information where relevant to security and service administration.
Marketing preferences where you have chosen to receive or decline updates from us.

We do not intentionally collect special category data unless you provide it voluntarily and it is necessary for a specific service request, such as access needs or health-related cleaning instructions. If such information is provided, we will only process it where we have a lawful basis to do so and where additional safeguards are appropriate.

3. How We Use Your Data

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

Managing enquiries, quotes, and bookings.
Delivering cleaning services to the required standard.
Communicating about appointments, changes, or issues.
Processing payments and maintaining accurate accounts.
Handling complaints, claims, and service follow-up.
Meeting legal, accounting, tax, and insurance obligations.
Improving our services, internal processes, and customer experience.
Protecting our business, staff, and customers from fraud or misuse.

We will never use your personal information in a manner that is incompatible with the purposes outlined in this policy. Where we need to use your data for a new purpose, we will ensure that it is lawful and transparent.

4. Lawful Basis for Processing

Under GDPR, we must have a lawful basis for every use of personal data. Cleaners Brixton relies on the following lawful bases:

Contract

We process your personal data where it is necessary to perform a contract with you or to take steps at your request before entering into a contract. For example, we use your contact and address details to arrange and provide cleaning services.

Legitimate Interests

We may process data where it is necessary for our legitimate business interests, provided those interests are not overridden by your rights and freedoms. This may include maintaining records, responding to customer enquiries, preventing fraud, improving our services, and protecting our operations.

Legal Obligation

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

Consent

In limited situations, we may rely on your consent, particularly for optional marketing communications or the processing of sensitive information that is not otherwise necessary. Where consent is used, you may withdraw it at any time without affecting the lawfulness of processing already carried out.

5. Data Sharing and Processors

We may share personal data with trusted third parties who act as processors on our behalf. These parties may only process your data according to our instructions and must protect it appropriately. Processors may include:

Payment service providers that process transactions securely.
Booking and scheduling systems used to organise appointments and service records.
IT and cloud storage providers that support secure data hosting, email, and administrative tools.
Accountants and professional advisers assisting with financial, legal, or compliance matters.
Insurance providers or claim handlers where required for a specific incident.

We may also disclose data where required by law, court order, or a lawful request from public authorities. We do not sell personal data. When sharing data, we take reasonable steps to ensure that appropriate safeguards are in place and that access is limited to what is necessary.

6. Data Retention

We keep personal data only for as long as necessary for the purposes for which it was collected and to satisfy legal, accounting, or operational requirements. Retention periods vary depending on the type of data and the reason we hold it. In general:

Customer and booking records are kept for as long as needed to manage the service relationship and resolve any follow-up matters.
Financial records are retained for the period required by tax and accounting law.
Correspondence and complaint records may be retained for a reasonable period to defend legal claims or demonstrate compliance.
Marketing records are retained until you opt out or your consent is withdrawn, where applicable.

When personal data is no longer required, we will securely delete, anonymise, or archive it in accordance with our retention practices. We do not keep data longer than necessary.

7. Data Security

We use appropriate technical and organisational measures to protect personal information against unauthorised access, accidental loss, alteration, or disclosure. These measures may include access controls, password protection, secure storage, staff confidentiality obligations, and restricted data access. While no system can be guaranteed completely secure, we work hard to reduce risk and handle data responsibly.

8. International Transfers

If any of our service providers process data outside the United Kingdom, we will ensure that suitable safeguards are used to protect your information. This may include the use of approved contractual protections or transfers to countries recognised as providing adequate data protection. We take care to ensure that any such transfer is lawful and proportionate.

9. Your Rights

Under data protection law, you have several rights in relation to your personal data. Subject to legal limits and exemptions, these may include:

The right of access to request a copy of the personal data we hold about you.
The right to rectification to correct inaccurate or incomplete data.
The right to erasure in certain circumstances, also known as the right to be forgotten.
The right to restrict processing where you want us to limit how we use your data.
The right to object to processing based on legitimate interests or direct marketing.
The right to data portability for data you provided to us, where processing is based on consent or contract and carried out by automated means.
The right to withdraw consent at any time where consent is the legal basis for processing.

If you wish to exercise any of these rights, we will respond in accordance with applicable law. We may need to verify your identity before acting on your request. We will always handle such requests respectfully and in a timely manner.

10. Children’s Data

Our services are intended for adults who arrange cleaning services on behalf of a household or property. We do not knowingly collect personal data from children for marketing or service purposes. If we become aware that we have inadvertently collected such data without proper justification, we will take appropriate steps to delete it or handle it in accordance with the law.

11. Changes to This Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in law, our services, or our processing practices. Any revised version will continue to apply to all Cleaners Brixton customers in the area. We encourage you to review this policy periodically so that you remain informed about how we protect your information.

12. Summary of Our Commitment

Cleaners Brixton is committed to processing personal data lawfully, securely, and transparently. We collect only the information needed to provide cleaning services, rely on lawful bases such as contract, legitimate interests, consent, and legal obligation, retain data only as long as necessary, and share it only with trusted processors or where required by law. We also respect your rights and aim to make it easy for you to understand and control how your data is used. Your privacy matters to us, and we are dedicated to protecting it responsibly.