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Frequently Asked Questions

Get answers to common shredding service questions

Use the quick links below to jump to Service, Data Security, Fees & Payment, or General questions.

Service
Data Security
Fees & Payment
General

Service

Get answers about what we offer and how our service works, including walk-in, off-site and on-site services.

Anything that contains confidential data. While the majority of data destroyed exists on paper, we can also destroy other forms such as film, disks, hard drives, ID cards/badges, uniforms, blueprints and casino chips/tickets. If you have something different, we will let you know if it can be destroyed.

Our on-site shred vehicles come to your office, manufacturing facility, warehouse/storage location or your home. For homeowners with a couple boxes to be shredded, we offer a walk-in service.

Yes, we have personnel with hand dollies who can grab the boxes from your vehicle.

Paper clips, staples, file binders do not have to be removed. We prefer paper be removed from three ring binders.

Boxed records are the most typical method of storage, but as long as we can access the records in close proximity with the tote we use for collection, the answer is no. The material can be in file cabinets, bags or neat stacks on the floor.

You can keep your boxes. Our service personnel will dump the documents into a rolling tote to feed into the shred vehicle. Our vehicles do have some room in front of the cargo area for us to take some boxes (we can take more if you help flatten the boxes). The boxes are baled and sent back to paper mills to make new boxes. We only shred boxes if they have confidential information written on them.

When requested for appropriate situations, Data Guard will pick up your material and then shred at our facility. We strongly urge clients to shred on-site but that is not always possible.

Data Security

Compliance, documentation, and peace of mind—here's how we keep your data safe.

There are numerous differences in security, compliance and cost. We provide locked containers to secure material prior to its destruction, thus, you can be assured documents are destroyed by simply depositing them. Our service is documented via a scanner that records the date and time of destruction and populates the certificate of destruction so you can prove your compliance during an audit.

Relying on employees with your own basic shredder, you never know if the documents get destroyed, simply thrown in the trash or “walk out” of the office. You can’t document your process and fulfill your compliance requirements. And when you add the cost of employees’ time, storage of documents, space for the shredder and disposal cost, you will have spent more for an inferior process. (As a point of reference, we can shred 8,000 pounds in a couple hours; how long would it take your paper shredder to do that?)

Yes, we can also provide additional confirmation of service when required.

Absolutely. The destruction occurs at your location. You can watch as the destruction specialist “tips” the container with your material into the shred vehicle, then you watch on the monitor as the material is pulverized, and you can switch the camera to the cargo area that shows the end result of the shredded material. This whole process occurs in a couple minutes for each 200 to 300-pound tote of documents collected.

First, you can witness the process. Second, our shred vehicles are built with the latest technology that meets or exceeds all industry certification standards for particle size. With any equipment, you will be able to read some words or phrases. But once shredded in our vehicles, your documents are mixed up with another 8,000 pounds of documents shredded that day, making reconstruction essentially impossible.

At the end of the day, our vehicles are emptied in our processing facility where the material is mixed with up to another 60,000 pounds of shred material. Every other day, this material is baled into blocks the size of 43” x 43” x 66,” weighing over 2,200 pounds. The material is then shipped to paper mills where it is further degraded into pulp fibers and made into new products, most often paper towels and toilet paper.

Fees & Payment

Transparent pricing is part of the promise. Here's how we quote and invoice.

For routine scheduled service, the price is determined by the type/size of container used, the quantity of containers in place and the frequency of service. For one console serviced every week, our on-site destruction service fee is $59 (this size container holds approximately three standard bankers’ boxes of material).

For on-demand service to purge stored records, the price is determined by the overall weight of the material shred, the location of the stored records and the required timeline for the project. You will be charged a per-pound rate, and a volume discount is applied if the volume exceeds our weight ranges. For smaller projects up to 600 pounds, we will shred on-site starting at $199.

No. Unlike some companies, we believe in total transparency. The price we quote is the price you pay. We do not add any hidden costs such as stop fee, fuel surcharge, paper recycling fee or any other add-ons. Our straightforward approach also means you will understand the invoice you pay.

For most shredding projects of stored records, we ask for the size of boxes in which you have placed your material and the quantity of boxes (or it could be the size of the file cabinet and how many drawers). After 22 years, we know the maximum and average weight of the different size boxes. It is simple math with this information. However, our estimate depends on an accurate count and correct description of the size box used. For larger projects, we often schedule a visit to get a first-hand look at the boxes, quantity and setup at the facility.

No, we will incorporate that information into the price per pound fee we provide. You must share this information when we are gathering information about the scope of your on-demand shred project.

ACH drafts, credit cards, checks and cash. It is cash or check for walk-in customers at our facility.

For walk-in customers, yes. For one-time projects, typically yes. For scheduled routine service, no.

General

The story behind Data Guard and the industries we serve across Delmarva.

In June 2001, we began servicing our first four customers: Beebe Medical Center, Edward Jones Lewes office, Progar Accounting, and Orthopaedic Associates. They all continue as clients today.

Yes, we can provide references. We service every type of firm or client because they all have confidential information that must be disposed of properly. Our client list includes hospitals, doctor offices, labs, lawyers, accountants, schools, banks, investment advisors, lumber yards, manufacturers, car dealers, distribution centers, military, local town offices, police departments, fire departments, universities, real estate offices, swimming pool dealers, libraries, state departments, lotteries, the local EZPass facility, social agencies, housing complexes and marijuana dispensaries, among many other types of local and national businesses.

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