Data Retention Policy
How long we keep personal information and how we dispose of it.
Purpose
We keep personal information only for as long as we need it to handle your case, meet legal duties and protect ourselves if a dispute arises. This policy supports our Privacy Notice.
Retention Periods
| Information | Kept for |
|---|---|
| Enquiries that do not become cases | 6 months |
| Case files and correspondence | 6 years after the case closes |
| Identity and authority documents (such as a Letter of Authority) | Deleted once the case closes, unless needed for the case file |
| Complaints about CPUK | 6 years after resolution |
| Marketing or update preferences | Until you withdraw consent |
| Financial and company records | As required by law (generally 6 years) |
These periods are proposed defaults and should be confirmed by an adviser.
Deletion
Records are reviewed at least once a year. Anything past its retention period is securely deleted or anonymised. Paper copies are shredded. Where we are asked to hold information longer by a court, regulator or legal process, we will do so.
Your Rights
You can ask us to delete your information at any time by emailing info@consumer-protection.org.uk. We will do so unless we have a legal reason to keep it, and we will tell you if so.
Security
Case information is held in access-controlled systems and shared only with people who need it to handle your case.
Last updated: 4 October 2026. Next review due: 4 October 2027, or sooner if our service changes.
Case Page, Uploads and Newsletter
Uploaded evidence is kept with the case file and deleted when the case file is deleted. You can ask us to delete or export your data earlier. Access codes are stored only in scrambled form. Newsletter subscribers are kept until they unsubscribe, after which we keep only what we need to avoid emailing them again. These are proposed defaults for an adviser to confirm.
Complaint Files
Complaint files, their timelines and any evidence files you add to them are kept in your account until you delete them, or until the account is deleted after two years without use. Deleting a complaint removes its files at the same time. If you download an evidence pack and send it to someone else, we cannot delete the copy you sent.
Accounts
Account sign-in codes are deleted after a day. Accounts are deleted if they are not used for two years, or sooner if you delete them. Saved action plans, saved letters and evidence locker files are deleted with the account. Any cases you opened are kept under the case rules above.
Paid Case Handling, Reviews, Texts and Debts
| Information | Kept for |
|---|---|
| Signed agreements, fee and payment records, outcome information | 6 years after the case closes (accounting, tax and time limits for claims) |
| Debt recovery records | Until the debt is settled or written off, then 6 years |
| Published reviews | While published, or until you ask us to remove them |
| Reviews you did not allow us to publish | 12 months |
| Prize draw entries and results | 12 months after the draw |
| Text and email logs | 12 months |
| Answers to the illness or injury question | With the case record, and deleted if you withdraw your agreement |
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