Rubbish Clearance Merton Privacy Policy

This Privacy Policy explains how Rubbish Clearance Merton collects, uses, stores and protects the personal data of its customers and prospective customers. It applies to all individuals who request, use or enquire about our rubbish clearance services within our service area, including Merton and surrounding locations.

We are committed to protecting your privacy and handling your information in accordance with the United Kingdom General Data Protection Regulation and the Data Protection Act 2018. This Privacy Policy sets out the key information you need to understand what we do with your personal data and how you can exercise your rights.

Who We Are

Rubbish Clearance Merton is a rubbish and waste clearance service provider operating in Merton and the surrounding area. For the purposes of data protection law, Rubbish Clearance Merton is the data controller for the personal data described in this Privacy Policy. This means we decide how and why your personal data is processed when you interact with us.

Personal Data We Collect

We collect and process personal data that you provide directly to us and data generated during the course of providing our services. The types of personal data we may collect include:

Identification and contact details such as your name, address, email address and telephone number.

Service information such as service address, property access details that you provide, preferred dates and times, information about the type and amount of waste or items to be collected, and any relevant instructions or notes relating to the service.

Payment and billing information such as payment confirmations, billing address and transaction details. We do not store full card details; card information is handled securely by our chosen payment processor.

Communication data such as records of telephone calls, emails, text messages or other communications between you and Rubbish Clearance Merton, including enquiries, bookings, complaints and feedback.

Technical and usage data such as basic information about how you interact with our website or online forms, including the device and browser used and pages visited. This may be collected through cookies or similar technologies where permitted by law and your browser settings.

How We Collect Your Data

We collect personal data in several ways:

When you contact us by phone, email or online form to make an enquiry, request a quote or book a service.

When you use our services and provide information necessary for us to attend your property and carry out waste clearance.

When you interact with our website or online content, which may involve technical data being collected automatically.

When you provide feedback, submit a review or respond to a customer satisfaction request.

From third parties where lawful and relevant, such as payment processors, referral partners or platforms through which you may have made a booking or enquiry.

Lawful Bases for Processing

We only process your personal data when we have a lawful basis to do so. Depending on the context, we may rely on the following lawful bases:

Performance of a contract. We process your personal data where it is necessary to provide our services, including handling enquiries, supplying quotes, confirming bookings, carrying out rubbish clearance and managing payments.

Legitimate interests. We may process your data where it is necessary for our legitimate business interests, provided those interests are not overridden by your rights and interests. This includes managing and improving our services, responding to queries, maintaining records, training staff, preventing fraud and ensuring the security of our operations.

Legal obligations. We process certain data to comply with legal and regulatory requirements, such as accounting rules, tax regulations, waste handling and disposal obligations and responding to legitimate requests from authorities.

Consent. In limited situations, we may rely on your consent, for example, for certain types of optional marketing communications. Where we rely on consent, you can withdraw it at any time using the contact details listed at the end of this policy.

How We Use Your Personal Data

We use the personal data we collect for the following purposes:

To provide, manage and fulfil our rubbish clearance services, including arranging access to your property, collecting waste and disposing of it in a lawful manner.

To communicate with you about your enquiries, quotes, bookings, changes to appointments, service updates, invoices and payments.

To manage our relationship with you, including handling feedback, complaints, and customer support queries.

To maintain accurate financial and operational records and to meet legal and regulatory requirements relating to waste disposal, health and safety, and accounting.

To improve our services, operations, website and customer experience by analysing how our services are used and identifying issues or areas for development.

To send you information about our services or related offers where you have requested this or where we are permitted to do so under applicable law. You may opt out of marketing at any time.

Data Sharing and Processors

We may share your personal data with carefully selected third parties where this is necessary for the purposes set out in this Policy and where appropriate safeguards are in place. The categories of recipients may include:

Service providers and contractors who act as data processors on our behalf, such as payment processors, IT and website support providers, customer management systems and communication tools. These third parties are only permitted to process your personal data in accordance with our instructions and must protect it in line with data protection law.

Operational partners who help us deliver services, such as subcontractors assisting with waste collection where required. We share only the information necessary to carry out the service.

Professional advisers including accountants, insurers, legal advisers and auditors, to the extent necessary to provide their services to us.

Public authorities, regulators, law enforcement bodies or courts where we are required to do so by law or where this is necessary to protect our rights, property, safety or the rights of others.

We do not sell your personal data to third parties.

International Transfers

Where we use service providers that are located outside the United Kingdom or the European Economic Area, your personal data may be transferred to countries that have different data protection laws. In such cases, we ensure that appropriate safeguards are in place, such as standard contractual clauses or other legally recognised mechanisms, to protect your data.

Data Retention

We keep your personal data only for as long as it is reasonably necessary for the purposes for which it was collected and to meet our legal, regulatory and operational obligations.

In general:

Core customer, booking and invoicing records are typically retained for a period consistent with accounting and tax requirements, usually up to seven years after the end of the relevant financial year.

Routine enquiries that do not lead to a service may be stored for a shorter period that allows us to respond, follow up and manage our business records.

Marketing data related to consent will be kept until you withdraw your consent or we determine it is no longer required for the purposes for which it was collected.

We may retain certain information for longer where necessary in connection with ongoing disputes, investigations, claims or to comply with legal obligations. When data is no longer required, we will securely delete or anonymise it.

Security of Your Data

We take appropriate technical and organisational measures to protect your personal data against unauthorised access, loss, misuse or disclosure. These measures include restricting access to personal data to employees and contractors who need it to perform their duties, using secure systems and taking steps to ensure that our processors provide an adequate level of protection. While we cannot guarantee absolute security, we work to ensure that your information is handled carefully and responsibly.

Your Data Protection Rights

You have several rights under data protection law in relation to the personal data we hold about you. Subject to certain conditions and exceptions, you may have the right to:

Access your personal data and obtain a copy of the information we hold about you.

Request correction of inaccurate or incomplete personal data.

Request deletion of your personal data where there is no good reason for us to continue processing it, for example where it is no longer needed for the original purpose and no legal obligations require us to keep it.

Object to the processing of your personal data where we rely on legitimate interests and you believe your rights and interests override our reasons.

Request restriction of processing in certain circumstances, for example while we verify the accuracy of data you contest.

Request the transfer of your personal data to you or another organisation in a structured, commonly used and machine readable format, where the processing is based on consent or contract and carried out by automated means.

Withdraw your consent at any time where we rely on consent to process your data, for example in relation to certain marketing communications. Withdrawing consent does not affect the lawfulness of processing based on consent before its withdrawal.

If you wish to exercise any of these rights, you can contact us using the details provided in this policy. We may need to verify your identity before responding to your request.

Complaints

If you have concerns about how we handle your personal data, we encourage you to contact us in the first instance so that we can try to resolve the issue. You also have the right to lodge a complaint with the Information Commissioner's Office in the United Kingdom or with the relevant supervisory authority where you live or work if you believe that your data protection rights have been infringed.

Changes to This Privacy Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in our practices, legal requirements or operational needs. Any significant changes will be explained clearly on our website or otherwise communicated to you where appropriate. We encourage you to review this Policy periodically to stay informed about how we handle your personal data.

Contacting Rubbish Clearance Merton

If you have any questions about this Privacy Policy, how we handle your personal data, or if you wish to exercise your data protection rights, you can contact Rubbish Clearance Merton using the contact details provided on our website or via the usual communication channels you use to reach us.

This Privacy Policy applies to all Rubbish Clearance Merton customers and prospective customers within our service area and is intended to provide clear and transparent information about our use of your personal data.