Storage Forest Hill Privacy Policy
This Privacy Policy explains how Storage Forest Hill collects, uses, stores and protects personal data relating to our customers and prospective customers in our service area. It applies to all Storage Forest Hill self-storage and related services, whether you interact with us online, by phone, in writing or in person at our facilities.
We are committed to complying with the UK General Data Protection Regulation, the Data Protection Act 2018 and all applicable data protection laws. This Privacy Policy is intended to give you clear and transparent information about our data practices and about your rights.
Who this Privacy Policy applies to
This Privacy Policy applies to all Storage Forest Hill customers and prospective customers in our operating area, including individuals who make enquiries about our services, sign storage agreements, use our facilities, or act as an authorised contact or guarantor for a customer.
It also applies to suppliers, contractors and professional contacts to the extent that we process personal data relating to those relationships.
Types of personal data we collect
The types of personal data we collect will depend on how you interact with us and the services you use. We may collect and process the following categories of data:
Identification and contact details: name, postal address, billing address, contact address, nationality, date of birth, and identification documents where required for security or legal reasons.
Contact information: email address, preferred contact method, and basic correspondence information.
Account and contract information: customer reference numbers, details of your storage unit or space, access permissions, contract dates, payment terms and communication preferences.
Payment and transaction information: limited payment details, such as payment method and transaction history. Card details may be processed by our payment processors and are not retained by us in full where not necessary.
Usage information: records relating to your use of our storage facilities, such as access logs, dates and times of entry, and details of any additional services you use.
Security and CCTV information: video recordings and related metadata from CCTV systems at our premises, and incident reports where security or safety concerns arise.
Communication records: copies of communications with you, including emails, letters, and notes of conversations, to manage your account and address queries or complaints.
How we collect personal data
We may collect personal data directly from you when you make an enquiry, request a quotation, visit our site, sign up for a service, enter into a contract, make a payment, or contact us with a question or complaint.
We may also collect data from third parties where lawful and appropriate, for example from referees or guarantors you nominate, identity verification services, credit reference agencies where relevant to assessing credit risk, or professional advisers assisting in a dispute or claim.
In addition, we may generate personal data about you in the course of providing our services, such as records of your transactions, access logs to the facility and CCTV images captured on our premises.
Lawful bases for processing your data
We process your personal data only when we have a lawful basis to do so under data protection law. Depending on the context, we may rely on:
Performance of a contract: where processing is necessary to enter into or perform a contract with you, for example to set up and manage your storage agreement, process payments and provide customer support.
Legal obligations: where we must process data to comply with laws and regulations, such as tax and accounting rules, fraud prevention, security and safety obligations, or requests from law enforcement where legally required.
Legitimate interests: where we have a legitimate business interest that is not overridden by your rights and interests. This may include managing and improving our services and facilities, maintaining site security, preventing and detecting crime, managing disputes and claims, and conducting basic business analysis.
Consent: where we rely on your consent for specific activities, such as certain types of marketing communications where required by law. Where we rely on consent, you may withdraw it at any time, and we will stop that processing going forward.
How we use your personal data
We may use your personal data for the following purposes:
To provide and manage storage services and any related services you request, including setting up your account, granting access to our facilities and administering your contract.
To process payments, manage billing and account balances, and send you information about charges, renewals and changes to your agreement.
To communicate with you about enquiries, quotations, bookings, site access, service updates and customer support issues.
To maintain the security and safety of our customers, staff and premises, including managing access rights, monitoring the site using CCTV, and investigating incidents.
To meet our legal and regulatory obligations, including record-keeping, responding to lawful requests by public authorities and managing financial reporting.
To protect our legitimate interests, such as managing disputes, recovering debts, handling insurance matters, and improving the quality and efficiency of our services.
Where permitted, to send you information about our services and offers that may be of interest to you, and to manage your communication preferences.
Data retention
We retain personal data only for as long as necessary for the purposes for which it was collected, and to meet legal, accounting or reporting requirements. Retention periods may vary depending on the type of data and our legal obligations.
In general, we keep customer account and contract records for a period after the end of the contractual relationship, to address any queries, disputes or claims and to comply with applicable record-keeping obligations.
CCTV footage and access logs are retained for a limited period, which is usually short, unless they are required longer in connection with a specific investigation, incident or legal claim.
When personal data is no longer required, we will securely delete or anonymise it in line with our data retention and disposal procedures.
Data processors and sharing of personal data
We may share your personal data with trusted third parties who act as data processors on our behalf. These processors provide services that are necessary to operate our business, such as payment processing, IT support, cloud storage, security systems and maintenance, customer relationship management tools and professional advisory services.
All processors are required to process your data only in accordance with our instructions, to implement appropriate security measures, and to comply with applicable data protection law.
We may also share your personal data with:
Professional advisers, such as insurers, lawyers, accountants or auditors, where necessary to manage our business, handle claims or comply with our legal obligations.
Law enforcement agencies, regulatory authorities or courts where we are legally required to do so, or where it is necessary to protect our rights, your rights or the rights of others.
Third parties involved in a business transaction, such as a merger, acquisition or transfer of business assets, in which case personal data may be transferred as part of that transaction, subject to appropriate safeguards.
We do not sell your personal data to third parties.
International transfers
Where we use service providers or systems located outside the United Kingdom, your personal data may be transferred to countries that have different data protection laws. In such cases, we ensure that appropriate safeguards are in place, such as relying on adequacy regulations or using standard contractual clauses approved under data protection law, to protect your information.
Security of your personal data
We take reasonable and appropriate technical and organisational measures to protect personal data against unauthorised access, loss, misuse, alteration or disclosure. These measures include access controls, staff training, secure storage, and policies designed to protect the confidentiality and integrity of your information.
While we strive to protect your personal data, no system can be completely secure, and we cannot guarantee absolute security of information transmitted to or stored by us.
Your data protection rights
Under data protection law, you have certain rights in relation to your personal data. Subject to legal conditions and exemptions, these may include:
Right of access: the right to request a copy of the personal data we hold about you and information about how we process it.
Right to rectification: the right to request the correction of inaccurate or incomplete personal data.
Right to erasure: the right to request that we delete your personal data in certain circumstances, for example where it is no longer needed for the purposes for which it was collected and we have no legal reason to continue to hold it.
Right to restriction: the right to request that we restrict the processing of your personal data in certain situations, for example while we verify its accuracy or consider an objection.
Right to data portability: the right to receive certain personal data in a structured, commonly used and machine-readable format and to transmit that data to another controller, where the processing is based on consent or contract and is carried out by automated means.
Right to object: the right to object to processing based on our legitimate interests, including profiling, and the right to object at any time to the use of your personal data for direct marketing.
Rights in relation to automated decision-making: the right not to be subject to a decision based solely on automated processing, including profiling, that produces legal effects or similarly significant effects, except where permitted by law.
If you wish to exercise any of these rights, or if you have questions about how we handle your personal data, you may contact us using the contact details provided in your contract documents or our usual communication channels.
Complaints
If you are concerned about the way we handle your personal data, you are encouraged to contact us first so that we can try to resolve your concerns. You also have the right to lodge a complaint with the relevant data protection supervisory authority in the United Kingdom.
Changes to this Privacy Policy
We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in our services, our data processing practices or applicable law. Any updates will take effect when published. We encourage you to review this Privacy Policy periodically to stay informed about how we handle your personal data.
