Data Retention Policy
How long we normally keep business and personal records, and what happens afterwards.
1. Retention principles
- Keep information only while there is a genuine operational, contractual, security or legal need.
- Use proportionate retention periods based on the type and sensitivity of information.
- Restrict access while information is retained.
- Delete, anonymise or securely dispose of information when no longer required.
2. Typical retention periods
| Record | Typical period | Reason |
|---|---|---|
| General enquiries | Up to 24 months after closure | Follow-up, service history and dispute handling |
| Customer account and service records | During the relationship and normally up to 6 years afterwards | Contract, support, accounting and legal claims |
| Invoices and accounting records | Normally at least 6 years after the relevant financial year | Tax and company record-keeping |
| Support tickets | Normally up to 3 years after closure | Troubleshooting, quality, security and disputes |
| Security and access logs | Usually 30 to 180 days | Security monitoring and investigation |
| Marketing records | Until withdrawal or no longer needed; suppression records may be retained | Preferences and compliance |
These are operational guidelines, not promises that every record is deleted on the exact anniversary. A longer or shorter period may apply where justified.
3. Backups, deletion and anonymisation
Deleted information may remain temporarily in protected backups until those backups rotate or are securely overwritten. Backup data is not normally restored except for disaster recovery or service continuity. Where appropriate, we may anonymise information so it can no longer identify a person.
4. Legal holds and exceptions
We may retain information for longer where needed to comply with law, respond to a lawful request, investigate fraud or security incidents, establish or defend legal claims, or resolve an active complaint or dispute.
5. Review and disposal
Retention settings and stored records are reviewed periodically. Disposal methods are selected according to the format and sensitivity of the information.
6. Your rights
A deletion request does not always require immediate erasure; legal duties and valid exemptions may require certain records to remain. See our Privacy Policy for further information.
7. Changes to this policy
We may revise retention periods as services, risks or legal requirements change.
Contact
Questions about this policy can be sent to