Privacy Policy - Selfstorage Twickenham

This Privacy Policy explains how Selfstorage Twickenham collects, uses, stores, shares, and protects personal data. It applies to all Selfstorage Twickenham customers in the area, including prospective customers, current customers, former customers, and individuals who contact us about storage services. We are committed to handling personal data in a lawful, fair, and transparent manner in accordance with the UK GDPR and the Data Protection Act 2018.

1. Who this policy applies to

This policy applies to anyone who uses, enquires about, or is otherwise involved with our storage services in Twickenham and the surrounding area. This includes:

individual customers;
business customers and their authorised representatives;
people making enquiries for storage space or related services;
visitors to our premises where personal data is collected for security or operational reasons;
third parties whose details are provided to us in connection with a storage agreement.

We only collect and process personal data where we have a proper legal reason to do so and where it is necessary for our business operations, contractual obligations, or legal duties.

2. Data we collect

We may collect a range of personal data depending on how you interact with us. The types of data we collect may include:

Identity data: name, date of birth, and identification details where required;
Contact data: address, telephone number, and email address;
Contract data: account details, storage unit information, rental dates, payment arrangements, and correspondence relating to your agreement;
Payment data: billing information, transaction history, and limited payment records;
Security and access data: entry records, CCTV footage, access logs, and site visit information where applicable;
Communication data: emails, messages, calls, complaints, feedback, and customer service notes;
Technical data: limited device and browsing information if you interact with our digital services, such as IP address and usage data;
Special category data: we do not intentionally collect special category data unless it is required by law or is provided by you in connection with a specific matter.

We generally collect personal data directly from you, but we may also receive data from third parties such as payment providers, insurance providers, identity verification services, fraud prevention services, or legal authorities where appropriate.

3. How we use your data

We use personal data only for legitimate business purposes connected with our storage services. These purposes may include:

setting up and managing storage agreements;
verifying identity and preventing fraud;
processing payments and managing invoices;
providing customer support and handling complaints;
maintaining security at our premises and protecting stored property;
meeting legal, regulatory, accounting, and insurance requirements;
communicating about service updates, account matters, and operational issues;
improving our services, facilities, and customer experience;
defending or establishing legal claims where necessary.

We will not use your personal data for purposes that are incompatible with the reasons for which it was collected unless we have a lawful basis and have informed you where required.

4. Lawful basis for processing

Under the UK GDPR, we must have a lawful basis for processing your personal data. Depending on the activity, we may rely on one or more of the following bases:

Contract

We process personal data where it is necessary to enter into or perform a contract with you, such as providing storage space, managing your account, collecting payment, or fulfilling service obligations.

Legal obligation

We may process data to comply with legal and regulatory requirements, including tax, accounting, consumer protection, fraud prevention, and lawful requests from authorities.

Legitimate interests

We may process personal data where necessary for our legitimate interests, provided those interests are not overridden by your rights and freedoms. These interests may include site security, service improvement, administration, customer communication, and protecting our business from misuse or unlawful activity.

Consent

In limited situations, we may rely on your consent, for example for certain optional communications or where required by law. Where we rely on consent, you may withdraw it at any time.

Vital interests and public task

These bases are unlikely to apply in most storage-related situations, but we may rely on them if necessary in exceptional circumstances.

5. Data sharing and processors

We may share personal data with trusted third parties who assist us in delivering our services. These organisations act as processors or, in some cases, independent controllers. We require processors to handle personal data securely and only in accordance with our instructions and applicable data protection law.

Examples of processors may include:

payment processing providers;
accounting and bookkeeping services;
IT support, cloud hosting, and software providers;
security and CCTV monitoring service providers;
customer management systems;
mailing and communication service providers;
professional advisers such as lawyers, insurers, and auditors where necessary.

We may also disclose personal data where required by law, court order, or regulatory request, or where disclosure is necessary to protect our rights, customers, staff, or property. If another business acquires part or all of our operations, personal data may be transferred as part of that transaction, subject to appropriate safeguards.

6. Data retention

We retain personal data only for as long as necessary for the purposes for which it was collected, including for the fulfilment of contractual obligations, legal compliance, dispute resolution, and business administration.

Retention periods vary depending on the type of information and the reason it is held. In general:

customer account and contract records are retained for the duration of the relationship and for a reasonable period afterwards;
financial and tax records are retained for the period required by law;
security records, including access logs and CCTV footage, are kept only for as long as needed for security, investigation, or legal purposes;
complaints and correspondence are retained for the time needed to manage the issue and any follow-up matters.

When personal data is no longer required, we will delete it securely or anonymise it so that it can no longer identify you.

7. Security of your data

We take appropriate technical and organisational measures to protect personal data against unauthorised access, loss, destruction, or misuse. These measures may include restricted access controls, secure systems, staff training, data minimisation, and regular review of our information handling practices. While we work hard to protect your data, no system can be guaranteed completely secure.

8. Your rights

Under data protection law, you have a number of rights in relation to your personal data. These rights may be subject to certain conditions and exemptions. They include:

Right of access: you may request a copy of the personal data we hold about you;
Right to rectification: you may ask us to correct inaccurate or incomplete data;
Right to erasure: you may ask us to delete your data in certain circumstances;
Right to restrict processing: you may ask us to limit how we use your data in certain cases;
Right to data portability: you may ask for certain data to be transferred to you or another organisation in a structured, commonly used format;
Right to object: you may object to processing based on legitimate interests or direct marketing;
Right to withdraw consent: where processing is based on consent, you may withdraw that consent at any time.

We may need to verify your identity before responding to a rights request. We aim to respond within the timeframe required by law.

9. International transfers

Where personal data is transferred outside the UK, we will ensure that appropriate safeguards are in place to protect it. These may include adequacy regulations, standard contractual clauses, or other lawful transfer mechanisms required under applicable data protection law.

10. Changes to this policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in the law, our services, or the way we process personal data. Any updated version will apply from the date it is published. We encourage you to review it periodically.

11. Further information

If you have questions about this policy or how we handle personal data, you may raise them through our usual customer service channels. You also have the right to lodge a complaint with the UK Information Commissioner’s Office if you are concerned about how your personal data has been handled.

Selfstorage Twickenham is committed to treating personal data with care, respecting privacy, and processing information in a lawful, transparent, and proportionate way. This policy is intended to give customers a clear understanding of how their information is managed while using our storage services in Twickenham and the surrounding area.