Frequently Asked Questions

What to shred?

You can shred anything that has been printed on a piece of paper. That includes information that doesn’t have to necessarily be properly disposed of, but instead recycled.

Should I have my documents shredded, or should I NAIDem?

YOU should absolutely always NAID your secure records at the end of their useful life.

What do you mean NAID your documents?

When you “NAID” your organization, business or personal confidential records, you are illustrating that you are taking reasonable steps for proper information disposal. The definition of NAID has three meanings and is as follows:

• Utilizing a qualified third-party service provider to destroy media containing sensitive information.
• Destroying sensitive information in a manner that meets the compliance requirements of data protection regulations.
• Exhibiting due diligence in the selection of a third-party service provider to destroy sensitive information.

The three facts/definitions of NAID above are when NAID is used as a verb. NAID as a noun is the acronym for the National Association for Information Destruction.

Who is NAID and what does it mean to be NAID AAA Certified?

To learn more about the National Association for Information Destruction (NAID), please click here.

What confidential information should I NAID upon disposal?

Virtually anything with a name, address or phone number on a paper record that links a person, customer or client to a business, company or merchant is considered confidential information. If you have records that you don’t want your competitors to see (AKA proprietary information) or anyone else to see for that matter, secure destruction should be the ultimate fate of that information.

Should I shred/NAID my personal mail?

If you haven’t already checked the news headlines, mail thieves are stealing your postal mail for your basic information to further uncover account #s, social security #s, Protected Health

Information, etc. to ultimately steal your identity. Yes you should “NAID” your mail!

How do I know if I am currently meeting my regulatory and compliance requirements, or not?

If you currently outsource, or have used a NAID AAA Certified company, chances are your basic regulatory requirements are being met.

If you have never used a NAID AAA Certified company, chances are you are out of compliance! Call today.

Why would any business need employee training for secure information destruction?

The simple answer is, unless it is documented, approved and exercised by upper management, you’re at risk for hefty fines or penalties for noncompliance. Learn more about our FREE Customer Employee Training.

What if I don’t think I have the budget for services?

Our standard minimum container holds 100lbs of material for monthly service. If it would take an employee with a desk-side shredder to shred 100lbs of your secure material in 4 hours, and that person is being paid a wage of $15/hour, this means you have a budget of at least $60 dollars per month plus what that person’s time was worth in lost productivity within those four hours.

Good news is our minimum service rates are a lot lower than $60/month!

Bottom line: Leave it up to the professionals.

Do we have to buy or rent your equipment with your service?

No. All of our security receptacles are provided with a lock-and-key, free of charge.

Are there fuel surcharges, hidden fees, or taxes with your secure destruction services?

No. Unless otherwise noted, our fees are flat rate based and are upfront from your original quote. As we recycle the properly destroyed material, there is no tax to be assessed or passed on to the customer.

Why should I use Pacific Northwest Shredding, Inc. to outsource for my secure destruction requirements?

Aside from the 25+ years of services provided within the recycling and information destruction industry, we are an independently owned and operated small family business that cares about your success. After all, your success = our success.

How can trust that Pacific Northwest Shredding will get the job done?

Pacific Northwest Shredding has been a local provider of Certified-Secure, Compliant Information Destruction Services since 2003. We have been a critical supplier to many large local state, federal and city contracts in need of our services and we have never failed our obligations to meet the needs of these customers.

Most larger, more nationally known competitors do not have the access to these contracts because as a small business in the local Seattle area economy, we are granted the opportunity to complete work for these bodies and municipalities. If our local chambers, offices, city departments and county offices trust us to provide secure information destruction, so can you.

Do you provide secure destruction services to residential customers?

Yes we do. We provide services to King, Snohomish, and Pierce counties currently. Having one of our trucks and a driver swing by your home to shred on-site can be utmost convenient for you. For an even more cost effective and efficient solution, residential customers have the option to meet our drivers on our routes, at a mutual location, to get the best shred rate possible.

What is the #1 benefit to outsourcing to Pacific Northwest Shredding?

Your TIME and MONEY well spent! (And Saved)

What are the frequencies of pickup you provide?

Depending on your specific needs and requirements, Pns, Inc. can come by as often as weekly, bi-weekly or monthly. For more time necessary to generate a minimum volume of secure material prior to secure destruction and final disposition; bi-monthly and quarterly service are options as well.

Can I rent Pns, Inc.’s equipment and call on demand?

Yes, absolutely. We recommend a more frequent solution to all of our customers, but sometimes what you generate just isn’t enough for scheduled services. So, you are always welcome to rent our equipment and call us when the receptacle(s) get full. You will also get our lowest price possible for bin services. These customers usually request to purge every 4-6 months.

Can I buy security receptacles from Pns, Inc. and call on demand, when necessary?

There is always an opportunity to sell security receptacles to our customer’s with limited needs for their secure destruction requirements. Smaller, one person office settings can benefit from buying a receptacle to use for final placement of their secure trash until they are ready to call us for secure, on-site destruction services. These customers usually request to purge every 6 to 12 months.