Our dealerships take privacy
seriously and we are committed to safeguarding your privacy online and
in our dealerships. We have active programs in place to ensure our
compliance with federal and state laws, regulations, and polices. In
particular, we have programs directed by corporate level senior officers
for:
- Gramm, Leach, Bliley (GLB)
Act
- Privacy Rule July 1, 2001
- Deals with how financial institutions (which in this instance includes dealerships) share information about consumers who obtain, or apply for, credit or lease products.
- FTC
Safeguarding Customer Information
Regulations
- Safeguards Rule May 23, 2003
- Deals with how financial institutions (including dealerships) protect finance and lease customer information.
- FTC Red
Flags and Address Discrepancy Rules
- Regulations November 1, 2008 Enforcement implementation January 1, 2011
- Deals with how institutions dealing with credit (including dealerships) help reduce Identity Theft.
- Fair
Credit Reporting Act 1970 and Accurate Credit Transactions Act 2003 and
Regulatory Relief Act 2006 Privacy Notices
- New regulations effective January 1, 2011
- Deals with financial institutions? (including dealerships) privacy notices and policies, which in some cases allow consumers some say in how this financial information is used for marketing. These so-called opt out provisions deal with the sharing or selling of financial information to third parties and do not apply to the dealership?s direct use.
- Joint FTC and Federal Reserve
Board Risk Based Lending Rule
- Rule effective January 1, 2011
- Deals with informing consumers about the effect their credit score has on loan terms and pricing. Provides for an Exception Notice in specific lending transactions or a general distribution of Credit Score Disclosure Notices.
- FTC and
FCC Do Not Call Rule
- Effective October 1,2003
- Deals with telemarketing restrictions for companies that do not have a continuing or recent relationship with a consumer.
Third Party Marketing:
For the most part these Rules and
Regulations deal with information collected specifically for use in
providing financing and they do not apply to information collected as
part of the sale of a vehicle or service. As a result, information
collected as part of the sale which does not concern if, how, or under
what conditions the financing was arranged is not restricted and will be
shared with the vehicle?s manufacturer. In addition, information given
to the Maine motor vehicle department about the sale may also be sold or
made available by the state to third party organizations. We have no
control over this type of distribution of information. Consumers should
be diligent in reviewing offers they receive for things like Service
Contracts to be sure you know exactly who is making the offer and what
the terms of those offers are. This is one of the biggest areas of
complaints that we receive. Consumers often misconstrue offers that are
designed to look like they came from us or the vehicle?s
manufacturer.
Non-Personally Identifiable Data:
Anytime you visit our Web site, we may gather certain
non-personally identifiable information regarding the means you use to
access our site. This information may include the type and version of
your browser, your service provider, your IP address and any search
engine you may have used to locate the site. We use this information to
help diagnose problems with our server, administer the Web site, and
compile broad statistical data. In addition, we gather certain
navigational information about where you go on our Web sites. This
information enables us to determine which areas of the Web sites are
most frequently visited and helps us to tailor the sites to the needs
and interests of our online visitors. Such information is gathered by us
in the aggregate and will not be associated with a specific
individual.
Use of Cookies:
Our dealership may use a browser feature
known as a "cookie." Cookies are small files placed on your hard drive
that assist us in providing you with a customized browsing experience.
Cookies can also be utilized to help us provide you with information
targeted to your interests, based upon your prior browsing on our Web
sites. The "help" section of the toolbar on most browsers will inform
you on how to prevent your browser from accepting new cookies, how to
have the browser notify you upon the receipt of a new cookie, or how to
disable the use of cookies completely. Since our Web sites have been
designed to take advantage of the use of cookies, when you configure
your browser to decline their use, certain features of our Web sites may
not function as expected.
Accessing Our Web Sites from Outside of the United States:
If you are visiting our Web site from a location outside of
the U.S., your connection will be through and to servers located in the
U.S. Any information you provide during your visit will be processed
and maintained on our Web server and other internal systems located
within the U.S.
External Links:
Our
Web sites contain links to other sites. Our dealership is not
responsible for the privacy practices or the content of such Web sites.
To help ensure the protection of your privacy, we recommend that you
review the privacy policy of any site you visit via a link from one of
our Web sites.
Public Forums:
Our Web sites may make social networking tools such as
forums, message boards, and/or news groups available to its users at
various times. Please remember that, unless otherwise stated, any
information that is disclosed in these areas becomes public information
and you should exercise caution when deciding to disclose your personal
information in these areas.
Privacy Notice and Sample Credit Score Disclosure:
Our initial Privacy Notice is provided to all customers while finalizing their purchase.
We provide the
Credit Score Disclosure to all customers that want availability of
financing included in the research and discussion of a vehicle purchase.
Once a credit check has been run, this form will be delivered to the
customer at the time of delivery, or mailed to the customer the next day
if delivery has not already occurred.Privacy Notice and Sample Credit Score Disclosure:
Our initial Privacy Notice is provided to all customers while finalizing their purchase.
Questions?
If you have additional questions, please contact our corporate office at 207-992-1740.