When establishing your document destruction plan, there are several options that you have to consider to ensure the service you get fits well within your business model. If you're a mom and pop hardware store, your requirements are going to be different than that of a financial institution. You still have to be concerned with best privacy practices, but you probably aren't dealing with social security numbers, bank account information, and other sensitive data. So what paper shredding services are generally available?
Most paper shredding companies offer some sort of onsite shredding service - that is, they will come to you. What this entails is the company will send a truck that has all of the equipment necessary to do the shredding at your facility. This enables you as the designee responsible for safe destruction of all sensitive documents to witness the shredding operation as well as ensure the integrity of the document handling. Some paper shredding companies even offer a video recording service to further ensure that the integrity of the destruction process was upheld.
Upon completion of the document destruction, the specialist will provide you a certificate of destruction that certifies the date and time the documents were destroyed. This certificate of destruction is important for you to meet your legal obligations. Make sure not to hire a shredding company that does not offer a certificate of destruction as their process may or may not be legitimate. It's important that while dealing with sensitive documents scheduled for destruction, you have the requisite legal proof that they were effectively destroyed.
For customers that have regular shredding needs, you can schedule the paper shredding service to show up on a regulary basis based on your needs. For high volume customers this can be as frequently as every day, while others customers may require a less frequenty schedule... maybe weekly or monthly. This is up to you.
Another option that you have for a paper shredding service is offsite destruction. This is an option often chosen by small businesses who simply do not have the security requirements that would mandate on site destruction. What this entails is a truck still shows up at a scheduled time to pick up locked bins with the sensitive documents that need to be destroyed. They do not perform the shredding process on site, however, they transport the documents back to their primary paper shredding facility. As with the on site option, you should be provided with a certificate of destruction to legally verify that the documents have actually been destroyed.
Finally, for those customers that simply do not have the requisite volume to warrant a regularly scheduled pick up, many companies offer a drop off option directly to their shredding facility. This is the option most frequently chosen by residential customers or small business as it is the most cost effective, yet it still provides the security one would expect from a professional document destruction company. On an ad hoc basis, you can simply drop off your documents for destruction and you will still get a certificate of destruction that states the date and time the documents were destroyed.
Choosing the service option that is best for your business model does not have to reside squarely on your shoulder. Speak with your local paper shredding companies and work with them to establish the best program for your business. Just make sure you clearly understand your options so that it adequately satisfies your requirements and provides you the peace of mind knowing that your sensitive documents have been securely destroyed.