Paper waste isn’t something you think about – until it becomes a problem. There is a range of reasons why paper shredding services are the solution you need.
Our paper shredding services include both mobile shredding and offsite shredding. Each of these services has its own reasons for choosing them. However, why should you choose paper shredding full stop? Here are our top 10 reasons:
- Keeping on the right side of the law
A data breach will put you on the wrong side of the GDPR. However, mostly when we think about the GDPR we confine ourselves to thinking about digital data loss or a computer breach. Of course, you need to be digitally data-savvy, but that cannot come at the expense of old school data breaches.
Indeed, confidential waste, ranging from medical records to employee files containing salary details and personal contact data, must be disposed of securely. You can also only store and retain such paper records according to the stipulations of the GDPR. You must have steps in place to dispose them securely.
You can find out more about the GDPR and the importance of paper shredding here.
- Ensuring identity theft doesn’t happen on your watch
Again, when we think of identity theft, we tend to think of something other than paper records. We may think of phishing scams or fraud tech at the cash machine. However, the easiest way for the criminally minded to steal someone’s identity is to get their hands on paper waste. After all, rooting through a bin is easier, and more difficult to trace. To open a credit card in someone else’s name, you only need minimal personal data such as their address.
If your workplace handles personal data then you need to ensure that at the point of disposal you aren’t risking identity theft.
- It’s a step towards being a greener business
All of the paper waste shredded using our paper shredding services is sent for recycling. You’ll receive a certificate to confirm this. Modern businesses need to highlight their green credentials as part of their corporate social responsibility (CSR).
Shredded paper is much easier to recycle. Our machines remove all other items such as metal staples leaving only the paper part to be sent on to the recycling plant.
- It’s efficient
Ripping up a document or two by hand takes time. Even with a standard shredder you’re taking up the valuable time of staff. Now if you include the quantities of paper waste generated by the whole business, then you are quickly into a very inefficient process.
Paper shredding services bring efficiency to your document disposal. No wasted staff time, yet still a high level of security.
- It matters to be confidential
For many companies, they only think of the law when it comes to confidential waste. However, whilst this is important, there’s also another aspect of confidentiality.
Every day within the business you are likely generating sensitive or confidential information. This may be something as simple as the minutes of the last board meeting which you don’t want it falling into the hands of anyone else. Or, it could be trade secrets, sales figures or future business development ideas. You don’t want these getting into the wrong hands.
- Storage space is at a premium
It’s good business practice, and also helps your storage concerns, to have systems in place for disposing of paper documents after a certain amount of time. How long this is will, to some degree, depend on the nature of your business.
At least annually, you should have a document clear out which removes all such items. At this point you will likely produce a large amount of paper waste in a short space of time.
Paper shredding services are ideal for this. All of the documents can be disposed of at once.
- You build customer or client trust
The modern customer or client expects integrity. They can and will go somewhere else if they deem your competitors to be more trustworthy. You cannot afford to make a mistake with customer and client data.
Being able to demonstrate to customers and clients that you serious about the security of their data builds trust. When you use our paper shredding services you will be given a certificate of destruction enabling you to demonstrate how you are worthy of a customer or client’s trust.
- Competitive guarding
No business operates in a vacuum. There are certain forms of information about your business which a competitor can easily and lawfully access. However, you don’t want to make this easy for them by being careless with information which could be harder to obtain.
A competitor could – with the right information – cause you financial loss in the future by knowing details, such as soon to be released product lines. This information, if paper-based, could be relatively easy to acquire. Paper shredding minimises this risk.
- Show your employees you care
Many of the paper documents you hold will pertain to employees. There will be payroll data and HR records. Whilst it is your responsibility to store these securely, you also need to be able to get rid of them securely too.
It’s important that you don’t only show customers and clients that you handle their data carefully, but that you demonstrate it to employees too. Paper shredding ensures documents such as those containing salary details or medical records aren’t left lying around with the potential of breaking trust or causing low morale.
- Reducing fire risks
Paper is immensely combustible. Leaving stacks of papers lying around the office is effectively leaving fuel everywhere in the event of a fire. By staying on top of paper disposal you can reduce the hazards that paper in such quantities poses. For this reason, organising regular paper shredding services can ensure that you never build up to unacceptable levels of paper waste.
Find out more about our paper shredding services or arrange a shredding service by calling us on 0330 333 1234.
