Privacy Policy - Car-Parts.co.za

Car-Parts.co.za (“Car-Parts.co.za”, “we”, “us” or “our”) respects your privacy and is committed to protecting your personal information.

This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, store, disclose and protect personal information when you visit or use shop.car-parts.co.za, create an account, purchase products, request a part, contact us, or otherwise interact with our services.

We process personal information in accordance with the Protection of Personal Information Act 4 of 2013 (“POPIA”), the Electronic Communications and Transactions Act 25 of 2002, and other applicable South African laws.

Responsible Party

For purposes of POPIA, the responsible party for personal information processed through this website is:

Car-Parts.co.za
Legal entity: TBA
Registration number: TBA
Physical address: TBA
Website: shop.car-parts.co.za
Email: support@car-parts.co.za
Telephone: TBA

Our Information Officer may be contacted at:

[OFFICER EMAIL ADDRESS TBA]

Personal Information We Collect

Depending on how you use our website and services, we may collect the following information.

Account and contact information

This may include:

Your name and surname;
Email address;
Telephone or WhatsApp number;
Billing address;
Delivery address;
Account username and password;
Communication preferences; and
Details contained in messages or enquiries you send to us.

Order and transaction information

When you place an order, we may collect:

Products ordered;
Order number;
Purchase amount;
Billing and delivery information;
Payment status;
Transaction references;
Delivery and tracking information;
Returns, refunds and warranty information; and
Communications relating to your order.

Payment card and banking information may be processed directly by our payment service providers. We do not necessarily receive or store your complete payment card details.

Vehicle and part information

To help identify compatible vehicle parts, we may collect information such as:

Vehicle make;
Vehicle model;
Vehicle year;
Vehicle derivative or variant;
Engine type or engine code;
Vehicle Identification Number (“VIN”);
Registration-related information where voluntarily provided;
Part names;
OEM or manufacturer part numbers; and
Other vehicle information you provide.

A VIN or other vehicle identifier may constitute personal information when it can be linked to an identifiable person.

Images and uploaded files

When using our “Request a Part” service or communicating with us, you may upload photographs of:

Vehicle parts;
Packaging;
Labels;
Damaged components; or
Other information relevant to your enquiry.

Please avoid including people, identity documents, vehicle licence discs, addresses or other unnecessary personal information in uploaded photographs.

Website and technical information

When you use our website, certain information may be collected automatically, including:

IP address;
Browser type;
Device type;
Operating system;
Pages visited;
Date and time of access;
Referring website;
Website interactions;
Cookie identifiers; and
Approximate location derived from your IP address.

We may collect this information using cookies, server logs, analytics technologies and similar tools.

How We Collect Personal Information

We may collect personal information:

Directly from you when you create an account;

When you place an order;

When you request a vehicle part;

When you complete a contact form;

When you contact us by telephone, email or WhatsApp;

When you upload an image or document;

Automatically when you use our website;

From payment processors, delivery providers and other service providers involved in fulfilling an order;

From publicly available sources where permitted by law; or

From another person where you have authorised that person to provide information on your behalf.

Why We Process Your Personal Information

We may process your personal information for the following purposes:

Processing and fulfilling orders

We use your information to:

Process purchases;
Confirm orders;
Process or verify payments;
Arrange delivery;
Provide tracking information;
Handle returns, refunds and warranties; and
Communicate with you about your order.

Finding compatible vehicle parts

We use vehicle information to:

Determine vehicle and part compatibility;
Respond to part requests;
Source suitable replacement parts;
Confirm fitment information;
Provide quotations; and
Improve the accuracy of our vehicle and parts catalogue.

Customer service

We process information to respond to:

Product enquiries;
Fitment questions;
Delivery enquiries;
Account queries;
Returns and refund requests;
Complaints; and
Other customer-support requests.

Website operation and improvement

We may process technical and usage information to:

Operate and maintain our website;
Diagnose technical problems;
Improve website performance;
Understand how visitors use the website;
Improve our products and services;
Prevent abuse; and
Protect the security of our systems.

Fraud prevention and security

We may process information where reasonably necessary to:

Detect fraudulent transactions;
Prevent unauthorised account access;
Investigate suspicious activity;
Protect our customers, website and business; and
Establish, exercise or defend legal claims.

Legal and regulatory obligations

We may retain or process information where required for:

Accounting;
Tax;
Consumer protection;
Record-keeping;
Regulatory compliance;
Law-enforcement requests; or
Other obligations imposed by applicable law.

Marketing

Where permitted by law, we may use your contact information to send information about products, promotions or services that may be relevant to you.

Where consent is required, we will obtain it before sending direct marketing.

You may unsubscribe from marketing communications at any time by using the unsubscribe mechanism provided or by contacting us.

Opting out of marketing will not prevent us from sending essential transactional communications relating to an order, account or enquiry.

Lawful Processing

We will only process personal information where permitted by POPIA and other applicable law.

Depending on the circumstances, processing may be necessary:

To perform a contract with you;
To take steps at your request before entering into a contract;
To comply with a legal obligation;
To pursue our legitimate interests or those of a third party where permitted by law;
To protect a legitimate interest of you or another person; or
Where you have provided consent.

Where we rely on consent, you may withdraw your consent, subject to applicable legal or contractual restrictions.

Cookies and Similar Technologies

Our website may use cookies and similar technologies.

Cookies are small files stored on your device that help websites function and remember information.

We may use:

Essential cookies
These are necessary for functions such as shopping carts, checkout, account login, security and website operation.

Preference cookies
These may remember settings such as your selected vehicle or other preferences.

Analytics cookies
These help us understand how visitors use our website and improve its performance.

Advertising or marketing cookies
Where used, these may help us measure advertising campaigns or show more relevant advertising.

Where required by law, non-essential cookies will only be used after obtaining appropriate consent.

You can also manage cookies through your browser settings. Disabling certain cookies may affect the operation of parts of the website.

Who We Share Personal Information With

We do not sell your personal information.

We may disclose information to trusted third parties where reasonably necessary to operate our business or provide our services, including:

Payment gateway and payment-processing providers;
Banks and financial institutions;
Courier, logistics and delivery providers;
Website hosting providers;
Cloud-storage and IT-service providers;
Email, messaging and customer-support providers;
Accounting and professional advisers;
Vehicle-parts suppliers or distributors where information is required to identify or source a requested part;
Analytics, security and fraud-prevention providers;
Regulators and government authorities where required by law; and
Law-enforcement agencies where disclosure is legally required.

We require service providers that process personal information on our behalf to handle it appropriately and to implement reasonable security measures.

We aim to disclose only the information reasonably necessary for the relevant purpose.

Payment Information

Payments may be processed through third-party payment service providers.

Your payment provider may collect information directly from you and process it in accordance with its own privacy policy and legal obligations.

Where possible, Car-Parts.co.za does not store complete credit or debit card numbers or card security codes on its own systems.

Delivery Providers

Where you place an order requiring delivery, we may provide the courier or logistics provider with information necessary to complete the delivery, such as:

Your name;
Delivery address;
Telephone number;
Email address;
Order or parcel reference; and
Information reasonably necessary for delivery.

Courier providers may process this information under their own privacy terms where applicable.

Cross-Border Transfers

Some of our technology, hosting, payment, analytics, communication or other service providers may process or store personal information outside South Africa.

Where personal information is transferred outside the Republic of South Africa, we will take reasonable steps to ensure that the transfer complies with POPIA, including the requirements applicable to transborder information flows.

This may include ensuring that the recipient is subject to an appropriate legal framework, binding agreement, corporate rules or other safeguards providing an adequate level of protection.

Data Security

We take reasonable and appropriate technical and organisational measures to protect personal information against:

Loss;
Damage;
Unauthorised destruction;
Unauthorised access;
Unlawful processing;
Alteration; and
Disclosure.

Measures may include secure website connections, access controls, authentication, system updates, backups, monitoring and restrictions on employee or service-provider access.

However, no internet transmission, website or electronic storage system can be guaranteed to be completely secure.

If we become aware of a security compromise involving personal information, we will take appropriate steps in accordance with applicable law, including notifying the Information Regulator and affected persons where required.

How Long We Keep Personal Information

We retain personal information only for as long as reasonably necessary for the purpose for which it was collected, unless a longer period is required or permitted by law.

Retention periods may vary depending on:

The nature of the information;
Legal and tax requirements;
Warranty or returns periods;
Contractual obligations;
Dispute-resolution requirements;
Fraud-prevention requirements; and
Our legitimate business needs.

When personal information is no longer required, we will delete, destroy or de-identify it where reasonably practicable and appropriate.

Your Rights

Subject to POPIA and applicable law, you may have the right to:

Ask whether we hold personal information about you;
Request access to your personal information;
Request correction of inaccurate or outdated information;
Request deletion or destruction of information where permitted by law;
Object to certain processing;
Withdraw consent where processing is based on consent;
Object to direct marketing;
Request information regarding third parties that have had access to your personal information where applicable; and
Lodge a complaint with the Information Regulator.

We may need to verify your identity before processing a privacy request.

Certain rights may be subject to legal exceptions. For example, we may be required to retain transaction records even after an account has been closed.

To exercise your rights, contact:

support@car-parts.co.za

or our Information Officer at:

[OFFICER EMAIL ADDRESS]

Direct Marketing

We will process personal information for direct electronic marketing in accordance with POPIA and other applicable legislation.

Where required, we will obtain your consent before sending marketing communications.

Each applicable marketing communication will provide a reasonable way to opt out.

You may ask us to stop sending direct marketing at any time.

Third-Party Websites

Our website may contain links to websites or services operated by third parties.

We do not control the privacy practices of those third parties, and this Privacy Policy does not apply to websites or services that we do not operate.

We encourage you to review the privacy policies of any third-party services you use.

Children’s Personal Information

Our products and services are intended primarily for adults capable of entering into lawful transactions.

We do not knowingly seek to collect personal information from children without appropriate consent or another lawful basis.

If you believe that a child has provided us with personal information improperly, please contact us so that we can investigate and take appropriate action.

Automated Decision-Making

We may use automated tools to assist with functions such as vehicle-part matching, fraud detection, website personalisation or product recommendations.

We will not make decisions based solely on automated processing that have legal or similarly significant effects on you except where permitted by applicable law and subject to appropriate safeguards.

Providing Personal Information

In some circumstances, you may choose not to provide personal information.

However, certain information is necessary for us to provide specific services. For example:

We need contact information to respond to a part request;
We need delivery information to deliver an order;
We require transaction information to process a purchase; and
Vehicle information may be necessary to identify compatible parts.

If required information is not provided, we may be unable to complete the requested service.

Complaints

If you have a concern about how we process your personal information, please contact us first so that we can attempt to resolve the matter.

You also have the right to lodge a complaint with the:

Information Regulator (South Africa)
Website: inforegulator.org.za
Email: enquiries@inforegulator.org.za
Telephone: 010 023 5200

The Information Regulator’s current contact information should be confirmed on its official website before submitting a complaint.

Changes to This Privacy Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect:

Changes to our services;
Changes to our technology;
Changes to our business practices; or
Changes to legal or regulatory requirements.

The updated version will be published on this website and the effective date at the top of the policy will be amended.

Where changes are material and applicable law requires additional notice or consent, we will take appropriate steps to notify affected users.

Contact Us

For questions, requests or concerns regarding this Privacy Policy or your personal information, please contact:

Car-Parts.co.za

Customer support: support@car-parts.co.za
Orders and returns: orders@car-parts.co.za
Telephone: TBA
Website: shop.car-parts.co.za

Information Officer:
[NAME OF INFORMATION OFFICER]
[OFFICER EMAIL ADDRESS]

Registered business:
[REGISTERED COMPANY NAME]
[REGISTRATION NUMBER]
[PHYSICAL ADDRESS]