Privacy notice

Who we are

5 Star Secretarial Services provides typing and secretarial services, mainly survey reports for building surveyors. We are responsible for the personal information described here. If you have any questions, email us at office@5starsecretarial.com.

If you are just visiting this website

We don't use advertising or tracking cookies, and we don't run analytics that follow you around the web. Our hosting provider keeps short technical logs (such as your IP address and the pages requested) to keep the site secure and working.

If you email us, we use your message and contact details only to reply and, if you go ahead, to set up your account.

If you are a client

To provide our service we keep:

• your name, email address, and the firm you work for
• the dictation recordings and photos you upload
• the reports we type, which include property details and sometimes details about other people, such as a property's owner
• your standard phrases and Word templates
• billing details and invoices
• a record of when you sign in, to keep your account secure

When we type your reports, we do so on your instructions. You (or your firm) remain responsible for the contents of your reports and for any personal information you include in your dictation.

Why we use it

• To provide the service you asked for (our contract with you): typing your reports, sending them to you, and letting you sign in.
• To meet our legal duties: keeping invoices and accounts as the law requires.
• For our legitimate interests: keeping our systems secure and improving our service.

We never sell your information or use it for marketing by other companies.

Who helps us

We use a small number of trusted providers to run our service. They act on our instructions and only receive what they need:

• website hosting and secure file storage, run from London
• a secure database for accounts and jobs
• a speech-to-text service that makes a first transcript of your dictation
• an AI service that helps prepare a first draft of your report, which an experienced typist then checks and corrects
• Microsoft 365, to send you emails
• Xero, for invoices and accounts

We choose UK or EU locations wherever a provider offers them. If a provider handles information outside the UK, we make sure UK-approved safeguards are in place.

How long we keep it

• Dictation recordings and photos are deleted automatically 30 days after your report is released.
• Finished reports are kept so you can download them again from your account.
• Invoices and accounting records are kept for as long as the law requires.
• Your account details are kept while your account is open. Ask us and we'll close it.

Keeping it safe

Files are stored privately and are never shared by public link. You can only see your own work (or your firm's, if you manage your firm's account), and our team only sees what they need to do the job.

Your rights

You can ask us for a copy of the information we hold about you, and ask us to correct it, delete it, or stop or limit how we use it. Email office@5starsecretarial.com and we'll reply within one month.

If you're unhappy with how we've handled your information, please tell us first so we can put it right. You can also complain to the Information Commissioner's Office at ico.org.uk or on 0303 123 1113.

Changes

If we change how we use your information, we'll update this page and the date at the top.