Privacy Policy - Earlsfield Storage

Effective date: This Privacy Policy applies to all Earlsfield Storage customers in the area and explains how personal data is collected, used, shared, stored, and protected when you use our storage services.

1. Introduction

Earlsfield Storage is committed to handling personal data in a lawful, fair, and transparent manner in line with the UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR) and the Data Protection Act 2018. This Privacy Policy explains what information we collect, why we collect it, the legal grounds we rely on, how long we keep it, the third parties we may use to process it, and the rights available to you as a data subject.

We only collect and use personal data where it is necessary for legitimate business purposes or where the law permits us to do so.

2. What Personal Data We Collect

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

Identity data: name, title, date of birth, and identification details used to verify your identity.
Contact data: address, email address, telephone number, and emergency contact details where provided.
Contract and account data: storage unit details, booking records, tenancy or storage agreement information, payment status, invoices, and communication preferences.
Financial data: payment card information, bank details, billing information, and transaction records, where relevant.
Security data: CCTV footage, access logs, time stamps, and records of site access or entry permissions.
Correspondence data: emails, letters, messages, complaints, feedback, and service-related enquiries.
Technical data: device, browser, IP address, and system usage data if collected through digital systems used to manage services.

We do not intentionally collect special category data unless it is necessary, lawful, and supported by an appropriate legal basis. If such information is provided to us by you, it will be handled with additional care and only for a valid purpose.

3. How We Collect Your Data

We may collect personal data directly from you when you:

make an enquiry;
book or use a storage unit;
complete forms or agreement documents;
make payments or set up billing arrangements;
contact us by phone, email, or in writing;
enter our premises or use access-controlled facilities.

We may also receive data from third parties such as payment processors, identity verification providers, insurers, debt recovery services, or public authorities where the law allows it.

4. Why We Use Your Data

We use your personal data to:

provide and manage storage services;
create and maintain customer accounts;
process bookings, payments, refunds, and account administration;
verify identity and prevent fraud;
maintain security at our premises;
respond to enquiries, complaints, and service requests;
meet legal, tax, accounting, and regulatory obligations;
protect our business, customers, staff, and property;
manage insurance, claims, and disputes;
improve our services and internal operations.

We do not use your personal data for purposes that are incompatible with the reasons for which it was collected.

5. Lawful Basis for Processing

We rely on one or more of the following lawful bases under UK GDPR:

5.1 Contract

We process personal data where it is necessary to enter into or perform a contract with you, including setting up your storage account, managing access, taking payment, and providing the services you request.

5.2 Legal Obligation

We may process data to comply with legal requirements, including tax, accounting, fraud prevention, record-keeping, and requests from lawful authorities.

5.3 Legitimate Interests

We may use personal data where it is necessary for our legitimate interests or those of a third party, provided your rights and freedoms do not override those interests. Examples include protecting our premises, preventing misuse, improving service operations, and handling disputes.

5.4 Consent

In limited cases, we may rely on your consent, for example where it is needed for certain marketing activities or optional services. Where consent is used, you can withdraw it at any time.

5.5 Vital Interests and Public Interest

These bases are unlikely to be used in routine storage services, but may apply in exceptional circumstances where necessary to protect life or comply with a public task.

6. Data Sharing and Processors

We may share personal data with trusted third-party processors and service providers who act on our instructions and are bound by contract to protect your information. These may include:

payment service providers;
IT and cloud hosting providers;
security and CCTV system providers;
identity verification and fraud prevention services;
accounting and bookkeeping providers;
customer management software providers;
insurance providers and claims handlers;
professional advisers such as lawyers, auditors, and consultants;
debt recovery agencies where lawful and necessary.

We may also disclose data to courts, regulators, law enforcement agencies, or other public bodies where required by law or where necessary to defend legal rights.

All processors are selected carefully and are required to implement appropriate technical and organisational measures to safeguard personal data.

7. International Transfers

If any processor stores or accesses data outside the United Kingdom, we will ensure appropriate safeguards are in place, such as adequacy regulations, standard contractual clauses, or equivalent legal protections. Such transfers will only occur where lawful and necessary.

8. Data Retention

We retain personal data only for as long as necessary to fulfil the purposes for which it was collected, including legal, accounting, tax, insurance, and dispute-resolution requirements. Retention periods depend on the type of data and the purpose for which it is used.

Customer and contract records: retained for the duration of the relationship and for a reasonable period afterwards to manage claims or obligations.
Financial and tax records: retained for the period required by law.
Security and access records: retained only as long as needed for safety, investigations, or operational needs.
Enquiry and correspondence records: retained for a limited period unless they are needed longer for legal or service reasons.

When data is no longer required, we will securely delete, anonymise, or archive it in accordance with applicable law and our retention procedures.

9. Security of Personal Data

We use appropriate technical and organisational measures to protect personal data against unauthorised access, loss, misuse, disclosure, or alteration. These measures may include access controls, encryption where appropriate, staff confidentiality obligations, secure systems, and physical security arrangements.

Although no system can be guaranteed to be completely secure, we take data protection seriously and continually review our safeguards.

10. Your Rights

Under data protection law, you may have the following rights in relation to your personal data:

Right of access: request a copy of the personal data we hold about you.
Right to rectification: ask us to correct inaccurate or incomplete data.
Right to erasure: request deletion of your data where legally permitted.
Right to restriction: ask us to limit how we use your data in certain circumstances.
Right to object: object to processing based on legitimate interests or direct marketing.
Right to data portability: request transfer of certain data in a machine-readable format where applicable.
Right to withdraw consent: withdraw consent where processing is based on consent.

To exercise these rights, you may submit a request using the channels provided by Earlsfield Storage. We may need to verify your identity before responding. Some rights are subject to legal limits and may not apply in every situation.

11. Automated Decision-Making

We do not normally use fully automated decision-making that produces legal or similarly significant effects. If this changes, we will notify you and ensure appropriate safeguards are in place.

12. Complaints and Supervisory Authority

If you are concerned about how we handle your personal data, you have the right to raise a complaint with the relevant data protection supervisory authority. We would also encourage you to contact us first so we can try to resolve the issue promptly and fairly.

13. Changes to This Privacy Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in law, our services, or our processing practices. Any updated version will apply from the date it is made available.

By using Earlsfield Storage services, you acknowledge that you have read and understood this Privacy Policy.