Privacy Policy

BuyCarsLocally is an online marketplace platform based in Texas that connects car buyers with independent local dealerships. We are a technology platform — we do not sell vehicles, process payments, or act as a party to any vehicle transaction.

Information You Provide Directly

We collect information you give us when you:

• Submit a vehicle inquiry or lead form — name, email address, phone number (optional), and your message.
• Sign up for email updates — email address and city/state.
• Submit a dealer application — business name, contact name, email, phone, address, and inventory details.
• Contact our support team — name, email, and message content.

Information Collected Automatically

When you visit our platform we automatically collect:

• IP address and approximate location (city, state, country) derived from your IP address.
• Browser type, operating system, and device type.
• Pages viewed, search queries entered, and links clicked.
• Referring URL (the page that brought you to our site).
• Date and time of your visit.

We use city and state information derived from your IP address to show you relevant local inventory. We do not store your precise GPS location.

Cookies and Similar Technologies

We use cookies and similar technologies to remember your preferences, keep the platform functioning, and analyze aggregate usage. We use:

• Strictly necessary cookies — required for the platform to function (e.g., session management).
• Analytics cookies — aggregate, anonymized data about how visitors use the site.
• No advertising or cross-site tracking cookies.

You can disable cookies in your browser settings. Disabling strictly necessary cookies may affect platform functionality.

We use the information we collect to:

• Forward your inquiry to the Dealer you contacted so they can respond to you directly.
• Show you vehicle listings and dealers near your location.
• Send you email updates you subscribed to (you can unsubscribe at any time).
• Improve the platform, fix bugs, and develop new features.
• Detect and prevent fraud, spam, and abuse.
• Comply with legal obligations.
• Analyze aggregate search trends to understand local demand (no individual profiling).

We do not use your information for automated profiling, credit scoring, or any decision-making with legal or similarly significant effects.

With Dealers — When You Submit a Lead

When you submit a vehicle inquiry, we transmit your name, email, phone number (if provided), and message directly to the Dealer who listed that vehicle. This is the core function of the platform. By submitting an inquiry you expressly consent to this sharing. The Dealer's use of your information is governed by their own privacy practices — we encourage you to ask any Dealer about their data practices before providing your information.

With Service Providers

We share data with trusted third-party vendors who perform services on our behalf under strict confidentiality agreements. These categories of service providers include:

• Cloud Infrastructure and Hosting Providers — for secure database management, infrastructure hosting, and website content delivery (data is processed within the United States).
• Email and Communication Delivery Vendors — to transmit transactional notifications, lead delivery updates, and platform communications.
• Analytics and Performance Monitoring Services — to analyze aggregate, anonymized usage data so we can optimize platform speed and performance.

These vendors are strictly permitted to use your data only to provide services to us and are legally prohibited from using or sharing your personal information for their own marketing or independent purposes.

Legal Requirements

We may disclose your information if required to do so by law, court order, or government authority, or when we believe disclosure is necessary to protect our rights, prevent fraud, or protect the safety of any person.

Business Transfers

If BuyCarsLocally is acquired, merged, or its assets are transferred, your information may be transferred as part of that transaction. We will notify you via email or a prominent notice on the platform before your information is transferred and becomes subject to a different privacy policy.

What We Never Do

• We do not sell your personal information to third parties.
• We do not share your information with advertising networks or data brokers.
• We do not send your contact information to multiple dealers without your individual consent for each.

When you submit an inquiry for a specific vehicle, you consent to be contacted by that Dealer by email, phone, and/or text message regarding that vehicle. Standard messaging and data rates may apply. This consent is not a condition of purchase. You may withdraw consent by contacting the Dealer directly and requesting they remove you from their contact list.

BuyCarsLocally does not itself call, text, or market to you on behalf of Dealers. Any marketing communications from Dealers are their sole responsibility.

If you subscribe to email updates, we may send you new listing alerts, market insights, and platform announcements. Every email includes an unsubscribe link. You may also opt out by emailing support@buycarslocally.com. We honor all opt-out requests within 10 business days.

We retain your information only as long as necessary for the purposes described in this policy:

• Lead form submissions — retained for 24 months to support dealer response tracking, then deleted.
• Email subscription records — retained until you unsubscribe, plus 30 days.
• Analytics and search logs — retained in aggregate, anonymized form indefinitely.
• Dealer account data — retained for the duration of the dealer relationship plus 3 years.

All Users

Regardless of where you live, you have the right to:

• Request a copy of the personal information we hold about you.
• Request correction of inaccurate information.
• Request deletion of your information (subject to legal retention requirements).
• Opt out of marketing emails at any time.

To exercise these rights, email us at support@buycarslocally.com. We will respond within 30 days.

California Residents (CCPA / CPRA)

If you are a California resident, you have additional rights under the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) and California Privacy Rights Act (CPRA):

• Right to Know — what personal information we collect, use, share, or sell (we do not sell personal information).
• Right to Delete — request deletion of your personal information, subject to certain exceptions.
• Right to Correct — request correction of inaccurate personal information.
• Right to Opt Out of Sale or Sharing — we do not sell or share personal information for cross-context behavioral advertising.
• Right to Non-Discrimination — we will not discriminate against you for exercising your privacy rights.

To submit a California privacy request, email support@buycarslocally.com with "California Privacy Request" in the subject line. We will verify your identity before processing the request.

Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information: We do not sell personal information and do not share it with third parties for cross-context behavioral advertising. No opt-out is required, but you may contact us to confirm.

BuyCarsLocally is not directed to children under the age of 13. We do not knowingly collect personal information from anyone under 13. If we become aware that we have collected information from a child under 13 without parental consent, we will delete it promptly. If you believe we may have such information, contact us at support@buycarslocally.com.

We implement commercially reasonable technical and organizational measures to protect your information from unauthorized access, disclosure, alteration, and destruction. These include encrypted data transmission (HTTPS/TLS), access controls, and secure third-party infrastructure.

No method of transmission over the internet or electronic storage is 100% secure. While we strive to protect your information, we cannot guarantee absolute security. If you believe your information has been compromised, contact us immediately.

Data Breach Notification:If we discover an unauthorized breach of your personal information, we will notify affected users within 30 days as required by applicable law, including Texas Business & Commerce Code § 521.053 and the California Consumer Privacy Act. Our notice will describe what information was affected, how the breach occurred, and the steps we are taking to secure your data.

Our platform contains links to Dealer websites and other third-party sites. This Privacy Policy applies only to BuyCarsLocally. We are not responsible for the privacy practices of any third-party site and encourage you to review their privacy policies before providing any information.

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. When we make material changes, we will update the Effective Date at the top of this page and, where appropriate, notify you by email or a prominent notice on the platform. Your continued use of the platform after changes are posted constitutes your acceptance of the updated policy.

If you have questions, concerns, or requests regarding this Privacy Policy or your personal information, please contact us: