This notice explains what we collect, why, who sees it and what you can do about it. It is written under the Protection of Personal Information Act, 4 of 2013.
Who is responsible
B4U INSPECTIONS (Pty) Ltd is the responsible party. Our Information Officer is Dick Thompson and he can be reached at contact@b4uinspections.co.za.
What we collect, and why
When you book an inspection we collect your name, telephone number, email address, the town and street address where the vehicle is, the vehicle you want inspected, and the answers you give to the questions on the booking form about finance, engine replacement, instrument cluster replacement and who will present the vehicle.
We need all of it to carry out the inspection. Without a name and a number we cannot contact you, and without an address our inspector cannot find the vehicle. If you decline to give it, we cannot do the inspection.
Where somebody other than you will present the vehicle, we collect that person's name, identity number and telephone number. We ask for it so that our inspector can confirm at the vehicle that the person in front of him is the person you told us to expect, which is one of the checks that stands between a buyer and a stolen car. You are giving us somebody else's information, so please tell them we hold it and why.
When you upload documents we hold the registration certificate, the identity document of the registered owner, and where they apply the settlement letter, the SAPS engine clearance certificate and a written authority. These contain identity numbers and addresses.
During the inspection we record what our inspector found and photograph what matters. Some of those photographs show the vehicle's registration number, its identification number and its interior.
When you pay our payment provider processes the card. We never see or store your card number. We keep a reference to the transaction so that a payment can be matched to an inspection and refunded if it must be.
Who sees it, and who does not
Our inspectors cannot open your documents at all. The identity documents and certificates are held in a separate restricted store that the inspection app cannot reach. That is enforced by the database rather than by a rule somebody might forget.
Our office staff see what they need for the desk checks and for arranging the inspection.
A buyer sees the full report only if you accept their offer, and only then does it carry your contact details and the vehicle's location. Before that, a report shared with a prospective buyer or shown behind the sticker's QR code is redacted: no name, no contact details, no address, no identity number, and only the last six characters of the vehicle identification number.
A vehicle data provider receives the vehicle's identification or registration number so that we can obtain its history. We do not send them your name or your contact details.
The South African Police Service receives a report where an inspection finds evidence that a vehicle may have been stolen or tampered with. We are obliged to report that and we will.
Our attorneys, our accountant and our payment provider receive what they need to do their work for us.
We do not sell your information to anybody, ever, and we do not give it to advertisers.
Where it is kept, including outside South Africa
Our database and the documents you upload are hosted on servers in Frankfurt, Germany. Our email is sent through a provider in Ireland. Both countries are subject to data protection law that the Information Regulator recognises as comparable to POPIA, and both providers are contractually bound to protect your information.
How long we keep it
Inspection records and reports are kept permanently. A report is evidence about a vehicle on a date, and a buyer may need it years later.
Identity documents, settlement letters and clearance certificates are kept only as long as there is a reason to hold them. The retention period is being settled with our attorneys and this notice will be updated with it.
Where a booking is made and the payment does not go through, we delete the seller's details and documents.
Every time one of your documents is opened by our staff, that access is logged.
What you can ask us to do
You may ask what we hold about you, and we will tell you.
You may ask us to correct anything that is wrong, and we will.
You may object to what we are doing with your information, and ask us to delete it. We will do so unless we are required to keep it, which applies to inspection records and to anything connected to a report made to the police.
You may complain to us first at contact@b4uinspections.co.za. If we do not resolve it, you may complain to the Information Regulator of South Africa at enquiries@inforegulator.org.za.
Cookies and the website
Our website does not set tracking cookies and does not use advertising trackers. It does not ask you for anything until you book.
Changes to this notice
This notice is dated. When it changes, the date changes with it.