Privacy Policy - Barnes Carpet Cleaners

Last updated: This Privacy Policy explains how Barnes Carpet Cleaners collects, uses, stores, shares, and protects personal data. It applies to all Barnes Carpet Cleaners customers in our service area, including people who request quotes, book services, receive cleaning services, or otherwise interact with us.

1. Introduction

We are committed to handling personal data in a lawful, fair, and transparent manner. This Privacy Policy is written in line with the UK GDPR and the Data Protection Act 2018. It explains what information we collect, why we collect it, how long we keep it, who may process it on our behalf, and what rights individuals have over their personal data.

For the purposes of data protection law, Barnes Carpet Cleaners acts as the data controller for the personal data described in this policy. This means we decide how and why personal data is used in connection with our services.

2. Personal data we collect

We only collect personal data that is relevant and necessary for providing carpet cleaning and related services, managing our business, and meeting legal obligations. Depending on how you interact with us, we may collect the following categories of information:

Identity information: name, and where relevant, business or household details.
Contact information: address, email address, telephone number, and service location.
Service information: details about the cleaning services requested, appointment dates, property access notes, and service preferences.
Payment information: billing details, transaction records, and payment confirmation information. We do not intentionally store full card details unless necessary through a secure payment provider.
Communication records: messages, emails, call notes, complaints, feedback, and service-related correspondence.
Technical information: limited website or device data if you use digital services, such as IP address or browser type, where applicable.
Special category data: in most cases we do not seek to collect special category data. However, we may incidentally become aware of information relevant to access needs, health conditions, or sensitivities if you choose to share it to support safe service delivery.

We do not collect more information than we need. Where possible, we anonymise or minimise data to reduce privacy risks.

3. How we use personal data

We use personal data for the following purposes:

to provide quotes and arrange bookings;
to deliver carpet cleaning and related services;
to manage customer accounts, scheduling, and service records;
to process payments, invoices, refunds, and receipts;
to respond to enquiries, complaints, and follow-up requests;
to maintain business records and service quality;
to comply with legal, tax, accounting, and regulatory obligations;
to protect our business from fraud, misuse, or security incidents;
to improve our services and customer experience.

We will only use personal data for the purposes for which it was collected, unless we reasonably determine that we need to use it for a compatible purpose or where the law permits otherwise.

4. Lawful basis for processing

Under the UK GDPR, we must have a lawful basis for processing personal data. We rely on the following lawful bases, depending on the situation:

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 providing quotes, confirming bookings, delivering cleaning services, and handling payment arrangements.

Legitimate interests

We may process personal data where it is necessary for our legitimate business interests, provided your interests and rights do not override those interests. Examples include managing customer relationships, improving service delivery, preventing fraud, and maintaining internal records.

Legal obligation

We process certain personal data to comply with legal requirements, including accounting, tax, insurance, safety, and record-keeping duties.

Consent

Where required by law, or where we choose to rely on it for a particular activity, we will ask for your consent. If consent is used, you may withdraw it at any time, although this will not affect processing carried out before withdrawal.

Vital interests and public task

These lawful bases are unlikely to apply in normal circumstances. If they do become relevant in an exceptional case, we will process data only where legally permitted.

5. Data retention

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

In general:

Customer and service records: kept for the duration of the business relationship and for a reasonable period afterward to handle queries, disputes, and warranty-related matters.
Financial and tax records: retained in line with legal and accounting obligations.
Communication records: kept as long as needed to resolve service issues and manage ongoing business needs.
Marketing preferences: kept until you withdraw consent or object to processing, where applicable.

When data is no longer required, we will securely delete, anonymise, or destroy it. We review retention practices periodically to ensure data is not kept longer than necessary.

6. Sharing personal data and processors

We may share personal data only when necessary and appropriate. We do not sell personal data. We may disclose information to trusted third parties where required to operate our business and provide our services.

These third parties may act as processors on our behalf, meaning they process personal data only under our instructions and must follow appropriate security and confidentiality obligations. Examples may include:

Payment processors: to handle secure card or online payments;
Accounting and bookkeeping providers: to manage invoices, records, and tax compliance;
IT and cloud service providers: to store data securely, operate email, scheduling, or business systems;
Customer management or booking software providers: to manage appointments and service records;
Professional advisers: such as accountants, insurers, or legal advisers where needed;
Authorities or regulators: where disclosure is required by law.

Where a third party acts as a controller in its own right, it will be responsible for its own privacy practices. We seek to ensure that any processor we use provides adequate data protection safeguards and processes data only for specified purposes.

7. International transfers

Some service providers may store or process data outside the UK. If this happens, we will take appropriate steps to ensure your personal data receives a similar level of protection to that required under UK data protection law. This may include using approved contractual safeguards or relying on adequacy decisions where available.

8. Data security

We use reasonable technical and organisational measures to protect personal data from unauthorised access, loss, misuse, alteration, or disclosure. These measures may include access controls, password protection, secure storage, staff awareness, and restricted data sharing. While no system is completely secure, we work to reduce risks and respond promptly to any suspected incident.

9. Your rights

Under data protection law, you have a number of rights regarding your personal data. These rights may be subject to certain conditions and exemptions.

Right of access: you can ask for a copy of the personal data we hold about you.
Right to rectification: you can ask us to correct inaccurate or incomplete data.
Right to erasure: in some circumstances, you can ask us to delete your data.
Right to restrict processing: you can ask us to limit how we use your data in certain situations.
Right to data portability: you can ask for data you provided to us in a structured, commonly used format where applicable.
Right to object: you can 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.

We will respond to valid requests within the timeframe required by law. To protect your privacy, we may need to verify your identity before fulfilling a request.

10. Children’s data

Our services are directed to adult customers and property occupants acting on behalf of households or businesses. We do not knowingly collect personal data from children unless it is incidentally provided by an adult customer in connection with a service request. If we become aware that we have collected a child’s personal data inappropriately, we will take steps to delete it where lawful and appropriate.

11. Changes to this policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in our services, legal obligations, or data handling practices. Any updated 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 we handle personal data.

12. How we ensure compliance

We aim to keep our privacy practices proportionate, clear, and secure. This includes limiting access to personal data, using trusted processors, reviewing retention periods, and responding appropriately to privacy requests. We also expect anyone handling data on our behalf to maintain confidentiality and comply with applicable data protection requirements.

By using our services, requesting a quote, or otherwise providing personal data to Barnes Carpet Cleaners, you acknowledge that we may process your information in accordance with this Privacy Policy and applicable law.