Retaining & protecting your data

As a property factor established over 130 years ago — incorporating William Cherry & Sandford, with 132 years of factoring service — we hold records that span decades. This page explains how we keep, securely archive and delete personal data under the UK GDPR. It sits alongside our Privacy Policy.

Active data and secure archiving

We keep current, day-to-day information about your account and property in our live management systems. Older records that we no longer need for day-to-day management — but which we have a legitimate or legal reason to keep — are moved to a secure, encrypted archive rather than left in live systems.

For a property factor this long-term history genuinely matters: a building's works, repairs, inspections, insurance and ownership history stays relevant for many years, and much of it we are legally required to retain. Our archive preserves that history while keeping the data protected.

How we keep it secure

• Archived data is encrypted and access is restricted to authorised staff
• Multi-factor authentication protects access to systems holding personal and financial data
• Data is backed up frequently, with a secure off-site copy
• These measures are set out in our internal information security and access control policies

How long we keep things

We keep data only where there is an ongoing need or a legal, accounting or regulatory reason. In outline:

• Client and property account records — for the duration of our management and a period afterwards, then archived where a legitimate or legal reason remains.
• Financial and accounting records — at least six years plus the current year, in line with Companies Act and HMRC requirements, and archived thereafter.
• Property inspection, maintenance and insurance records — kept as part of the building's long-term history.
• Correspondence — kept for a reasonable period, then reviewed, archived or deleted.
• Payment and banking information — kept with the accounting records; any digital access we hold to reconcile payments is removed when no longer needed.

Deleting your data and your rights

Where we have no ongoing reason or legal basis to keep data, we securely delete or anonymise it so it cannot be reconstructed. You can ask us to erase your data, and we will do so unless the law requires us to keep it (for example accounting records within their retention period, or an ongoing dispute) — in which case we will tell you.

To make a request, or to ask anything about how we handle your data, contact us at info@walkersandford.co.uk or on 0141 221 2263. You can also contact the Information Commissioner's Office at ico.org.uk. We are registered with the ICO (Z9827921).