Rubbish Removal Merton Customer Privacy Policy

This Privacy Policy explains how Rubbish Removal Merton collects, uses, stores and shares personal data relating to our customers in the Merton area. It also explains your rights under the UK General Data Protection Regulation and the Data Protection Act 2018. This Privacy Policy applies to all Rubbish Removal Merton customers and prospective customers who live in, operate in, or request our services in the Merton area.

Who We Are and How to Contact Us

Rubbish Removal Merton is a waste removal and clearance service provider operating in the Merton area. For the purposes of data protection law, we are the data controller of the personal data we collect about you in connection with our services.

If you have any questions about this Privacy Policy or how we handle your personal data, or if you wish to exercise any of your data protection rights, you can contact us using the contact details provided on our website or through the communication channels we make available to you when you book our services.

Personal Data We Collect

We collect and process different types of personal data about you depending on how you interact with us and which services you request.

The types of personal data we may collect include:

Identity and contact details such as your name, address, email address, telephone number and any other contact details you provide when you contact us or make a booking.

Service and booking information such as details about the property or site where rubbish removal will take place, access instructions, types and quantities of waste, photos you voluntarily provide, preferred dates and times, job notes and communications related to your booking.

Payment and billing information such as payment method, billing address and records of invoices and payments. We do not store full card details; these are handled securely by our payment processors.

Communication data such as emails, messages, phone call notes and feedback that you provide when you contact us, request a quote, make a complaint or give us a review or testimonial.

Technical and usage data such as your IP address, device data and information about how you use our website or digital services, where this is collected through cookies or similar technologies in accordance with applicable laws.

How We Collect Your Data

We collect personal data directly from you when you contact us by phone, email, online form or other communication channels, when you request a quote, make a booking or use our services, and when you provide feedback or communicate with us for any purpose.

We may also receive limited personal data about you from third parties such as directory services, advertising platforms, referring businesses or property managers who provide your details so that we can arrange a rubbish removal service on your behalf. In such cases, we will process your data in line with this Privacy Policy.

Purposes and Lawful Bases for Processing

We will only use your personal data where we have a lawful basis to do so under data protection law. The purposes for which we process your data and the lawful bases we rely on include the following:

To provide our rubbish removal services to you including processing enquiries, preparing and issuing quotes, arranging visits, carrying out collections, issuing invoices and taking payment. The lawful basis is performance of a contract or taking steps at your request before entering into a contract.

To manage our relationship with you including handling your questions and requests, notifying you about changes to our services or terms, and addressing complaints. The lawful basis is performance of a contract and our legitimate interests in operating and improving our business and customer service.

To maintain our business records including financial records, job records, tax records and service history. The lawful basis is compliance with our legal obligations and our legitimate interests in keeping accurate records.

To send you service-related messages including booking confirmations, reminders, follow-up messages and essential service updates. The lawful basis is performance of a contract and our legitimate interests in ensuring the delivery of our services.

To send you marketing communications about our services where you have given your consent, or where we are permitted to do so because you are an existing customer and we are marketing similar services. You can opt out of marketing at any time. The lawful basis is consent or our legitimate interests in promoting our business, as appropriate.

To protect our business, our staff, and our customers including for security, fraud prevention, dispute resolution and to establish or defend legal claims. The lawful basis is our legitimate interests and, where required, the establishment, exercise or defence of legal claims.

Where we rely on consent as a lawful basis, you have the right to withdraw your consent at any time. This will not affect the lawfulness of processing based on consent before its withdrawal.

Data Sharing and Processors

We may share your personal data with trusted third parties who help us deliver our services and operate our business. These third parties act as data processors and process personal data on our behalf and under our instructions.

Such data processors may include:

Payment service providers who process your payments securely.

IT and hosting service providers who support our systems, website and data storage.

Communication providers who enable us to send emails, text messages or other communications.

Professional advisers such as accountants, insurers and legal advisers who may require access to limited personal data in order to provide their services to us.

We will only share the personal data that is necessary for the relevant purpose, and we require all processors to implement appropriate security measures and to process your data only in accordance with our instructions and applicable law.

We may also share personal data with public authorities, regulatory bodies, law enforcement agencies or courts where we are required to do so by law or where it is necessary to establish, exercise or defend legal claims.

Data Retention

We will keep your personal data for as long as necessary to fulfil the purposes we collected it for, including to provide our services, maintain records, and meet our legal, accounting or reporting obligations.

In general:

Customer and booking records are retained for as long as you remain a customer and for a period afterwards so that we can respond to queries, manage disputes and maintain service history. This is usually up to six years after our last interaction, in line with limitation periods for legal claims.

Financial and invoicing records are typically kept for at least six years to comply with tax and accounting requirements.

Marketing preferences are kept until you opt out or until we determine that you are no longer likely to be interested in our services.

When data is no longer needed, we will securely delete or anonymise it so that it can no longer be associated with you.

Data Security

We take appropriate technical and organisational measures to protect your personal data against unauthorised access, accidental loss, destruction or damage. Access to your personal data is limited to staff and processors who have a business need to know and are subject to confidentiality obligations.

Your Data Protection Rights

You have a number of rights in relation to your personal data under data protection law. These rights apply to all Rubbish Removal Merton customers in the Merton area, subject to certain conditions and exemptions.

Your rights include:

The right of access. You have the right to request a copy of the personal data we hold about you and information about how we process it.

The right to rectification. You have the right to ask us to correct inaccurate or incomplete personal data we hold about you.

The right to erasure. In certain circumstances you may ask us to delete your personal data, for example where it is no longer needed for the purposes for which it was collected, or where you withdraw consent and there is no other lawful basis for processing.

The right to restrict processing. You may request that we restrict the processing of your personal data in certain situations, for example while we investigate a concern about its accuracy.

The right to data portability. Where our processing is based on consent or on a contract and is carried out by automated means, you may request that we provide your personal data in a structured, commonly used and machine-readable format or that we transmit it to another controller where technically feasible.

The right to object. You have the right to object to processing of your personal data where we rely on legitimate interests as the lawful basis, including profiling based on those interests. You also have the absolute right to object to direct marketing, including any profiling related to such marketing.

The right to withdraw consent. Where we rely on your consent to process your personal data, you may withdraw that consent at any time.

If you wish to exercise any of these rights, please contact us using the details provided in the Who We Are and How to Contact Us section. We may need to verify your identity before responding to your request.

You also have the right to lodge a complaint with the UK Information Commissioner's Office if you are unhappy with how we have handled your personal data. We encourage you to contact us first so that we can try to resolve your concerns.

International Transfers

We aim to store and process your personal data within the UK or the European Economic Area where possible. If we ever need to transfer personal data to countries outside the UK or EEA that do not provide the same level of data protection, we will put in place appropriate safeguards, such as standard contractual clauses, to protect your information in accordance with data protection law.

Changes to This Privacy Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in our practices, services or legal obligations. When we make significant changes, we will take reasonable steps to inform you, for example by updating the version date or by providing a notice through our usual communication channels. We encourage you to review this Privacy Policy periodically to stay informed about how we handle your personal data.

This Privacy Policy applies to all Rubbish Removal Merton customers and service users in the Merton area and is intended to give you clear information about how we use and protect your personal data.