Privacy Policy

Introduction

This is the Privacy Policy for Declutter with Lou. It explains what types of personal data I collect from you when you interact with me, how I’ll store and process that data, and how I’ll keep it safe.

I am Louise Muratori, the founder and owner of Declutter with Lou. I am a sole trader. My mailing address is Declutter with Lou, Unit 151651, PO Box 7169, Poole, BH15 9EL. My email address is [email protected]

I am, what is called, the Controller for Declutter with Lou. This means that I am responsible for keeping your information safe and secure, giving you access to it if you need it, and disposing of your information if you ask me to or when a reasonable time period has elapsed.

If you have any questions about my GDPR and Privacy Policy you can contact me at [email protected]

What do I collect and why

I collect personal data for Clients with whom I work on a one-to-one basis (for decluttering and organising sessions) or in groups (for talks or workshops), whether this is in their homes, in a designated group meeting space, over the phone, or via Zoom or other online meeting systems.

When you contact me via email, via my website, or over the phone, I will collect your full name, telephone numbers, address and email address. I may also collect any online meeting ‘handle’ or other online identity that you share with me.

This personal data will be collected from prospective clients and those who have made appointments with me. You will be asked to provide some data if you book an appointment via the online Calendly service on my website.

I collect this personal data from you so that we can arrange to meet either virtually or in person so that we can have a decluttering and organising session, or so that I can meet with you in a group setting to present a workshop or talk.

I only collect the minimum amount of information required in order to be able to make appointments with you, visit your home for a scheduled appointment, to make an appointment to meet with your group for a talk or workshop, or meet with you online for a virtual appointment via your meeting system of choice. When you do book with me, I may ask you about any other people who may be present in your home when I visit, such as children or other relatives. I will ask about any pets that you may have. This helps me be prepared for the visit.

What allows me to collect this? (otherwise called the lawful basis)

When you contact me and provide personal data to me, this is with your consent. That means that the lawful basis under the data protection legislation is consent. When you book appointments with me, I will ask you to sign my Terms and Conditions and this forms a contract between us. The lawful basis for this is then Contract. I do have a legitimate interest to collect certain data as I cannot operate my business without this. One example is holding information to be able to issues invoices.

I will have a legal obligation to collect and keep some data such as payment or financial data to comply with the law.

Storing and Keeping your Personal Data

Keeping your personal data safe and secure is important to me. I take all reasonable steps to do this. All devices used by Declutter with Lou are password protected and I do not use any removeable media. I hold your personal data in software and an electronic accountancy system that is licenced and subject to contracts.

I only hold your personal data for a reasonable length of time. If we have worked together one-to-one or in a group session, I will hold your personal data for 18 months after our last communication, after which I will consider you a ‘past client’, and then I will dispose of all of your personal data. If you wish to work with me again after this, you may contact me and we will resume our working relationship, and I will re-collect the relevant personal data from you at this time.

I am required to hold financial data for 6 years to comply with HMRC obligations.

Your Rights

GDPR means that you have a number of rights regarding your personal data.

You have the following rights as an individual regarding your data: the right to request access, correction, erasure, restriction, transfer, to object to processing, to portability of data and (where the lawful ground of processing is consent) to withdraw consent.

If for any reason you require access to the personal data that I hold about you, you are able to request this from me via email at [email protected] I will respond to your request and give you access to the personal data free of charge within one month of the date of your request.

If you would like to make a request to change or update any or all of the personal data that I hold about you, you are able to request this from me via email as above. I will respond to your request and make the requested changes and updates free of charge within one month of the data of your request.

If for any reason you wish for me to delete any or all personal data that I hold about you, you are able to request this from me via email as above. This will be subject to legal obligations to hold certain personal data, but I will respond to your request and notify you of the data that I can delete. This will be free of charge and will take place within one month from the date you contact me.

Complaints

If you have a complaint about the way I have handled your personal data, I would like the opportunity to resolve this with you. You can contact me at [email protected]. If you are not happy with my response or feel that your personal data has not been handled correctly, you may contact the ICO (Information Commissioner’s Office), which is the Regulator for the UK. You can find out more here

Get In Touch

If you would like to get in touch about any aspect of my Privacy Policy or if you have any questions that have not been answered in this document, please email [email protected]

Data Complaints Policy

1. I am committed to providing a high-quality service, in accordance with data protection law. At all times, I seek to comply with data protection principles by ensuring I:

• process personal data lawfully, fairly and in a transparent way;

• collect personal data for specific and legitimate purposes and do not process personal data in a way that is incompatible with those purposes;

• collect and use adequate, relevant and minimal personal data;

• take reasonable steps to make sure personal data is accurate and kept up to date;

• do not keep personal data longer than necessary; and

• implement appropriate security measures.

2. I acknowledge that I may not always get things right, so if something has gone wrong, I need you to tell me. This will help me to improve our standards of service and data protection controls.

3. How to make a complaint

3.1. You can contact me in writing (by email to the following email address [email protected] using the words ‘Data Complaint ‘ in the subject heading. Alternatively you can send a letter to the postal address set out in our Privacy Policy).

4. Acknowledging and verifying your complaint

4.1. I will contact you within 30 days acknowledging your complaint.

4.2. I will take reasonable steps to verify the identity of the person making the complaint. This may involve requesting further information or documentation from you. If the complaint is made on behalf of someone else, I will also need to check that the person making the complaint is properly authorised to do so.

4.3. If, having requested additional information, I am not in a position to identify the person making the complaint or I am not satisfied that they have proper authority to make the complaint, I may refuse to deal with it - see section 7.2.1 below.

5. Investigating your complaint

5.1. I will investigate your complaint. This will usually involve:

5.1.1. reviewing your complaint;

5.1.2. locating and reviewing the records I hold about you;

5.1.3. establishing the relevant facts; and

5.1.4. liaising with individuals who you may have dealt with.

5.2. I may also need to ask you for further information or documents. If so, I will ask you to provide the information within a specific period of time.

5.3. I will update you on the progress of your complaint at appropriate times.

6. Notifying you of the outcome of our investigation

6.1. I will contact you at the end of our investigation to tell you what I have done and what I propose to do to resolve your complaint.

6.2. I usually aim to do this within 30 days of the date of receiving your complaint. However, this time period may be extended where:

6.2.1. I ask you to provide further information to verify your identity or your authority to make the complaint, or in relation to the complaint itself;

6.2.2. your complaint is complex or involves locating and/or reviewing a large volume of information; or

6.2.3. you have made several complaints, which I need to investigate at the same time.

6.3. I will tell you if I need more time to properly investigate your complaint and explain why.

7. Refusing to deal with your complaint or charging a fee

7.1. I prefer to deal with complaints and, preferably, to resolve them. I will not usually charge a fee for handling a complaint.

7.2. I may, however, refuse to deal with a complaint where:

7.2.1. after requesting additional information in accordance with section 4.2, I am not in a position to identify you and/or to verify that you are authorised to make the complaint; or

7.2.2. I have asked for more information in relation to the complaint itself (section 5.2), but you have not provided this within a reasonable time.

7.3. Where I consider the complaint to be manifestly unfounded or excessive, eg because you have made the same complaint repeatedly, I may:

7.3.1. refuse to act on the complaint; or

7.3.2. charge a reasonable fee for dealing with the complaint, based on our reasonable administrative costs - I will notify you of the proposed fee in advance of incurring it.

8. What to do if I cannot resolve your complaint

8.1. If you are unhappy with the outcome of your complaint, you can complain to the data protection authority of the country where you are based. In the UK this is the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO), or you can seek to take action in the courts.

8.2. The ICO’s contact details are:

Address: Information Commissioner’s Office, Wycliffe House, Water Lane, Wilmslow, Cheshire, SK9 5AF

Helpline number: 0303 123 1113

More details on how to complain to the ICO are available on the Complaints page of the ICO’s website. You should usually submit your complaint to the ICO or other data protection authority within three months of your last contact with me.