GDPR Requests and Paper Records: Why Meath Businesses Are Reviewing Old Files

Digital tools may have reduced paperwork, but older files can still slow things down when personal information has to be pulled together at short notice.

Many Meath businesses have modernised how they run their offices, moving more admin and record-keeping online. Cloud accounts, customer databases, HR systems and shared drives are now part of everyday work for a lot of teams. Paper, however, has not gone away. It still appears in contracts, employment files, service reports, delivery dockets and printed correspondence.

Often, the gap only shows up when someone needs information fast. Data protection rules are often what bring the issue to the surface.

A GDPR access request can arrive at any time, and organisations generally have one month to respond, with limited scope for extensions. The information asked for can be spread across emails, notes, forms and printed records. Where records are organised and kept together, the work is fairly straightforward. Where part of the trail sits in older folders, boxes or cabinets that have not been checked in years, the job becomes slower and easier to get wrong.

Paper Can Be the Missing Piece in GDPR Responses

Many organisations feel organised because their digital systems are in good shape. Then a request comes in and someone remembers the paper file that never made it into the system. A single folder in storage can contain relevant material, and it is easy to miss if nobody is responsible for it or there is no clear tracking.

GDPR also brings retention into the conversation. Keeping personal information “just in case” is harder to justify than it used to be, particularly if access controls are not clear or storage practices have become informal.

Storage Habits Can Become a Risk

Paper builds up quietly. Drafts get printed and left behind. Notes are kept “just in case”. Old staff files remain on-site long after they stop being useful. Over time, boxes appear in places that were never meant to become storage areas.

This creates several issues at once. Space is lost. Retrieval becomes slower. And it becomes less clear who can access sensitive material and how it is being protected.

What Businesses Are Doing Differently

Many companies have started tightening routines around what gets kept, what gets archived, and what gets destroyed. The aim is not to remove paper entirely. It is to remove unnecessary material that no longer has a purpose and sits around without a clear owner.

For some organisations, the practical answer is to use scheduled shredding services so confidential waste does not rebuild after a clear-out. A recurring service is often easier to maintain than relying on occasional tidy-ups.

Why Onsite Shredding Helps With Accountability

Most businesses prefer onsite shredding because it keeps the process close to the premises and makes it easier to show how confidential waste is handled. Professional providers offer this type of support and Pulp’s confidential onsite shredding service uses secure consoles between visits and scheduled collections, with Garda-vetted staff involved. Shredding is carried out using mobile trucks, and certificates of destruction can be kept as part of company records. Pulp works to recognised standards, including AAA NAID and ISO9001, and the shredded paper is taken away for recycling afterwards.

Keeping The Workload Manageable

A scheduled routine can also help internally. In many workplaces, confidential disposal becomes a side task for someone already stretched, so it is easy for it to be deferred. When there is a set process in place, staff are not left storing bags of paper, trying to decide what goes where, or dealing with backlogs at the worst possible time.

Paper Is Not the Only Concern

Paper files are visible. Old devices are less so. Many workplaces have retired laptops, hard drives or USB sticks stored away after upgrades. They remain there because no one wants to guess what information might still be on them, or who is responsible for the next step.

From a GDPR perspective, that uncertainty is unhelpful. If equipment contains personal data, it needs proper handling. Professional IT destruction services can remove that risk and avoid ongoing uncertainty.

A Practical Approach For 2026

For Meath businesses, this is less about dramatic clear-outs and more about control. The organisations that tend to cope best with GDPR requests are not necessarily the most “paperless”. They are the ones that know what they hold, where it is stored, and what happens when it is no longer needed.

A clear routine helps. So does a disposal process that staff will actually use. It lowers the chance of paperwork drifting into the wrong place and reduces delays when information has to be produced at short notice.

GDPR has been in place for years, but its day-to-day demands still catch organisations out. Often, the issue is not the database. It is the box in the storeroom that nobody has opened in years.