Privacy Policy - Hornchurch Storage

This Privacy Policy explains how Hornchurch Storage collects, uses, shares, and protects personal data relating to its customers in the Hornchurch area. It applies to all Hornchurch Storage customers in area, including individuals and business customers who use our storage services, make enquiries, or otherwise interact with us. We are committed to handling personal data lawfully, fairly, and transparently in accordance with the UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR) and the Data Protection Act 2018.

This policy is intended to help you understand what information we collect, why we collect it, how long we keep it, who we may share it with, and what rights you have over your personal data. By using our services, you acknowledge that you have read and understood this policy.

1. Data We Collect

We may collect and process different types of personal data depending on how you interact with us. The categories of information we may collect include:

Identity data such as your name, title, date of birth, and identification details where required for account verification.
Contact data such as your address, email address, and telephone number.
Contract and account data such as storage unit details, booking information, payment status, billing records, and service history.
Financial data such as payment card details or bank account information, where necessary for payment processing. We do not store payment card details unless handled by a secure payment processor.
Access and security data such as keyholder records, entry logs, CCTV footage, and incident reports where applicable to site security.
Communication data such as enquiries, complaints, correspondence, and records of discussions with our team.
Technical data if you interact with our digital systems, including device information, browser type, and basic usage logs.

We generally collect this data directly from you when you request a quote, enter into a contract, make a payment, visit our premises, or communicate with us. We may also receive data from third parties such as payment providers, identity verification services, insurers, debt recovery providers, or legal advisers where this is necessary and lawful.

2. How We Use Your Personal Data

We process personal data for specific and legitimate business purposes. These include:

setting up and managing customer accounts;
providing storage services and maintaining access arrangements;
processing payments, refunds, and account adjustments;
verifying identity and preventing fraud;
protecting our premises, staff, customers, and property;
handling customer service requests, complaints, and disputes;
meeting legal, regulatory, and tax obligations;
recovering debts and enforcing agreements where necessary; and
improving our operations, systems, and service quality.

We only use personal data where we have a valid reason to do so and where that use is not incompatible with the purposes for which the data was collected. Where feasible, we use data minimisation principles to limit the amount of personal data processed to what is necessary.

3. Lawful Basis for Processing

Under data protection law, we must have a lawful basis to process personal data. Depending on the situation, we rely on one or more of the following lawful bases:

Contract

We process personal data when it is necessary to enter into or perform a contract with you. This includes managing your storage agreement, processing payments, allocating a unit, and carrying out related administrative tasks.

Legal Obligation

We may process data to comply with laws and regulations, including tax law, accounting requirements, fraud prevention obligations, and lawful requests from authorities.

Legitimate Interests

We may process data where it is in our legitimate interests, provided those interests are not overridden by your rights and freedoms. Examples include site security, service improvement, debt recovery, and protecting against misuse or unauthorised access. We always assess whether our interests are proportionate and appropriate.

Consent

In limited situations, we may rely on your consent, for example where you have clearly agreed to receive certain types of optional marketing communications. When consent is used, you may withdraw it at any time.

4. Sharing and Processors

We may share personal data with trusted third parties where necessary for the purposes described in this policy. These third parties may act as processors or, in some cases, independent controllers. We only share data when there is a lawful basis to do so and when appropriate safeguards are in place.

Examples of processors and service providers may include:

IT and hosting providers that support our systems, email, record storage, or security infrastructure;
payment processors that handle card or bank transactions;
accounting and bookkeeping providers that assist with financial administration;
identity verification and fraud prevention services used to confirm identity or detect suspicious activity;
security providers including CCTV, alarm monitoring, and access control support;
professional advisers such as lawyers, insurers, auditors, and consultants;
debt recovery or credit control providers where unpaid balances must be pursued lawfully.

Where a third party processes personal data on our behalf, we require them to act only on our instructions, to keep data secure, and to comply with data protection law. We do not sell your personal data.

5. International Transfers

If any of our service providers store or access personal data outside the UK, we will ensure appropriate safeguards are in place, such as adequacy regulations, standard contractual clauses, or equivalent protections. We will take reasonable steps to ensure your data remains protected to a standard consistent with UK data protection requirements.

6. Retention of Personal Data

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

Typical retention practices may include the following:

Customer account and contract records are kept for the duration of the service relationship and for a reasonable period afterwards.
Financial and tax records are retained for the period required by law, often up to six years or longer where necessary.
Security records such as CCTV footage are generally retained for a limited period unless needed for investigation, insurance, or legal proceedings.
Complaints and correspondence may be retained for as long as needed to resolve the issue and manage any follow-up obligations.

When personal data is no longer needed, we will securely delete, anonymise, or otherwise dispose of it in a safe and lawful manner.

7. Data Security

We use appropriate technical and organisational measures to protect personal data against accidental loss, unlawful access, misuse, alteration, or disclosure. These measures may include access restrictions, staff confidentiality obligations, secure storage, encryption where appropriate, and regular review of our processes. While no system can be guaranteed to be completely secure, we work to reduce risks and to respond appropriately if an incident occurs.

8. Your Rights

Under data protection law, you have important rights in relation to your personal data. Subject to certain conditions and exemptions, these may include:

Right of access – to request a copy of the personal data we hold about you.
Right to rectification – to ask us to correct inaccurate or incomplete data.
Right to erasure – to request deletion of your data in certain circumstances.
Right to restriction – to ask us to limit how we use your data in certain situations.
Right to object – to object to processing based on legitimate interests or direct marketing.
Right to data portability – to receive certain data in a structured, commonly used format where applicable.
Right to withdraw consent – where processing is based on consent, you may withdraw it at any time.

You also have the right to raise concerns about how we use your data. If you believe your rights have been infringed, you may contact the relevant supervisory authority. We encourage you to raise any concerns with us first so that we can try to resolve the matter promptly and fairly.

9. Automated Decision-Making

We do not normally use personal data for automated decision-making that produces legal or similarly significant effects. If this changes, we will ensure appropriate information is provided and that any required safeguards are implemented.

10. Changes to This Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in the law, our services, or our internal practices. The latest version will apply to all use of our services from the date it is published. We recommend reviewing this policy periodically so that you remain informed about how we protect personal data.

Hornchurch Storage is committed to respecting privacy and maintaining trust. We aim to process personal data in a lawful, fair, and transparent way, and to ensure that all Hornchurch Storage customers in area are treated with the same high standard of care. If you continue to use our services, you do so on the understanding that your data will be handled in accordance with this policy and applicable law.