GDPR for dog groomers: a plain-English guide

What counts as personal data

Anything that identifies a person: names, phone numbers, emails, addresses, and notes about them. Details about a dog on their own aren't personal data, but they usually sit alongside the owner's, so treat the whole record carefully.

Only keep what you need

Contact details, the dog's details and anything you need to groom safely (behaviour, health, vet details) are all reasonable. Don't collect what you don't use.

Tell customers what you do with it

A short privacy notice on your booking page or website is enough: who you are, what you keep, why, how long, and how to contact you. If you use an online booking system, it should handle part of this for you.

Keep it safe

• Use strong passwords and keep your phone locked
• Don't leave paper record cards where customers can see them
• Use systems that store data securely in the UK or EU
• Have a data processing agreement with any software that holds your customers' details

Marketing messages

You can usually send offers to your existing customers by email or text if they bought from you, you're promoting similar services, and you gave them a chance to opt out when you collected their details and in every message. For anyone else, you need their consent first.

The ICO fee

Most businesses that handle personal data electronically have to pay a yearly data protection fee to the Information Commissioner's Office, unless they're exempt. Small businesses pay the lowest tier. The ICO has a short online self-assessment that tells you whether you need to pay.

If a customer asks

People can ask for a copy of their data or for it to be deleted. Reply within a month. Good booking software lets you do this in a couple of clicks.