Privacy Policy - Bow Cleaners

Bow Cleaners is committed to protecting the privacy and personal data of all customers in the area. This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, store, share, and protect personal information in connection with our cleaning services. It also explains the rights available to you under the UK GDPR and the Data Protection Act 2018.

This policy applies to all Bow Cleaners customers in area, including individuals who enquire about our services, book appointments, receive quotations, make payments, or otherwise interact with us in the course of using our services.

1. Information We Collect

We collect only the information necessary to provide our services effectively, communicate with customers, manage our business operations, and meet legal obligations. The personal data we may collect includes:

Identity details such as your name and, where relevant, title.
Contact details such as address, email address, telephone number, and service location.
Booking information such as preferred dates, service type, instructions, and notes relevant to the job.
Payment information such as transaction records and billing details. We do not store full card details unless provided through a secure payment provider.
Communication records including emails, messages, feedback, complaints, and service-related correspondence.
Service history including previous appointments, quotations, preferences, and outcomes.
Technical data such as basic device or website usage information if you interact with our online systems, where applicable.

We generally do not intentionally collect special category data, such as information about health, religion, or political beliefs. If such information is incidentally shared with us, we will only process it where lawful and necessary, and we will take appropriate protection measures.

2. How We Use Your Data

We use personal data for the following purposes:

To provide quotations and confirm bookings.
To carry out cleaning services at the requested location.
To communicate about appointments, service updates, and customer requests.
To process payments, refunds, and account-related matters.
To keep internal records for administration, quality control, and business management.
To handle complaints, queries, and service issues.
To comply with legal, tax, accounting, and regulatory obligations.
To improve our services and customer experience.

We only process personal data for clear and legitimate purposes. We do not sell your personal data and we do not use it in ways that are incompatible with the purposes described in this policy.

3. Lawful Basis for Processing

Under data protection law, we must have a lawful basis to process personal data. Bow Cleaners relies on the following lawful bases depending on the circumstances:

a. Contract

We process personal data where it is necessary to enter into or perform a contract with you. This includes taking bookings, delivering services, sending quotations, and processing payments.

b. 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 business records, improving services, preventing fraud, and responding to customer enquiries.

c. Legal Obligation

We may process personal data where required to meet legal obligations, including accounting, tax, insurance, health and safety, and record-keeping requirements.

d. Consent

In limited situations, we may rely on your consent, for example where it is needed for certain optional communications. Where consent is used, you may withdraw it at any time.

Where special category data is processed, additional conditions under data protection law will apply and we will only do so when necessary and lawful.

4. Sharing Your Data and Processors

We may share personal data with trusted third parties who help us operate our business. These third parties act as processors or, in some cases, independent controllers. They are only allowed to process personal data on our instructions or for their own lawful purposes where applicable.

Examples of processors or service providers may include:

Payment processors that handle secure card or online payments.
Booking and scheduling providers that manage appointments and service coordination.
IT, cloud storage, and software providers that support our business systems and data storage.
Accountants and professional advisers who help with financial records and compliance.
Insurance providers where necessary for claims or risk management.
Legal or regulatory bodies where disclosure is required by law.

We require processors to keep personal data secure, use it only for agreed purposes, and apply appropriate safeguards. Where data is transferred outside the UK, we will ensure suitable protections are in place in line with applicable law.

5. Data Retention

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

As a general approach:

Booking and service records are retained for a reasonable period to support customer service, dispute resolution, and business administration.
Financial and transaction records are kept for the period required by tax and accounting law.
Correspondence and complaint records are retained as needed to manage ongoing issues and maintain service standards.
Data that is no longer required is securely deleted, anonymised, or archived where appropriate.

We regularly review the personal data we hold and ensure it is not kept longer than necessary. Retention periods may vary depending on legal requirements and the nature of the service provided.

6. Your Rights

As a customer of Bow Cleaners, you have rights under data protection law. These rights may apply depending on the circumstances and any exemptions permitted by law.

Right of access – you can ask for a copy of the personal data we hold about you.
Right to rectification – you can request correction of inaccurate or incomplete data.
Right to erasure – you may request deletion of your data in certain situations.
Right to restrict processing – you can ask us to limit how we use your data in certain cases.
Right to data portability – you may request that certain data be provided to you or another controller in a structured format.
Right to object – you can object to processing based on legitimate interests or direct marketing.
Right to withdraw consent – if processing is based on consent, you may withdraw it at any time.

If you wish to exercise any of these rights, we will respond in line with legal timeframes and requirements. In some cases, we may need to verify your identity before acting on a request.

7. Data Security

We take the security of personal data seriously and use appropriate technical and organisational measures to protect it from unauthorised access, loss, misuse, alteration, or disclosure. These measures may include access controls, secure storage, staff awareness, and limiting access to data on a need-to-know basis.

While we work hard to protect your information, no system is completely secure. If a data breach affecting your rights and freedoms occurs, we will respond in accordance with legal requirements and take appropriate steps to reduce any risk.

8. Children’s Data

Our services are intended for adults or for use by adults arranging services on behalf of a household. We do not knowingly collect personal data from children except where it is incidentally provided by an adult customer and only where necessary for service delivery. If we become aware that we have collected children’s data unlawfully, we will take steps to delete it.

9. Changes to This Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect legal, operational, or service changes. Any updates will take effect when published in the revised version. We encourage customers to review this policy periodically so they remain informed about how their personal data is handled.

10. Summary of Our Commitment

Bow Cleaners respects your privacy and aims to handle personal data responsibly, fairly, and transparently. We collect only what we need, use it for lawful purposes, keep it secure, and retain it only for as long as necessary. We also ensure that any processors we use are bound by appropriate contractual and security obligations.

By using Bow Cleaners services, you acknowledge that your personal data may be processed in accordance with this Privacy Policy and applicable data protection laws. This policy applies to all Bow Cleaners customers in area.