Privacy Policy

Scope and Legal Basis

This Privacy Policy applies to all personal information collected by AutoHive Direct through our website (www.autohivedirect.com), telephone communications, email, text messages, in-person interactions, and any other means through which you provide information to us.

Because AutoHive Direct facilitates consumer financial transactions, we are classified as a "financial institution" under the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act (GLBA), 15 U.S.C. §§ 6801–6827, and the implementing regulations issued by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), including the Privacy of Consumer Financial Information Rule (16 C.F.R. Part 313) and the Standards for Safeguarding Customer Information (FTC Safeguards Rule, 16 C.F.R. Part 314). This Policy also addresses obligations under the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) as amended by the California Privacy Rights Act (CPRA), and applicable state consumer protection laws.

This Policy covers all consumers who interact with AutoHive Direct, including prospective applicants, current customers, and former customers. If you reside in California, please also review Section 12 of this Policy for additional rights that apply to you.

Information We Collect

We collect several categories of personal information, including nonpublic personal information (NPI) as defined under the GLBA. The categories of information we may collect include, but are not limited to:

(a) Identification Information

Full legal name, date of birth, Social Security Number (SSN), driver's license number or state ID number, current and prior addresses, phone number(s), and email address.

(b) Financial and Credit Information

Employment status, employer name and contact information, gross monthly income, sources of income (including wages, self-employment, Social Security, disability, retirement, or other benefits), bank account information (where applicable), credit score range, credit history, bankruptcy status, repossession history, and existing debt obligations.

(c) Vehicle-Related Information

Year, make, model, mileage, and VIN of any vehicle you wish to trade in or sell; preferences regarding vehicle type, price range, and features.

(d) Transaction Information

Details about financing applications submitted through us, loan offers received, and any transactions completed with our partner lenders or dealerships.

(e) Technical and Usage Information

IP address, browser type and version, device type, operating system, pages visited on our website, referring URLs, time and duration of visits, and cookie identifiers. This information is collected automatically through cookies and similar tracking technologies when you use our website.

(f) Communications

Records of telephone calls, emails, text messages, chat logs, or other communications between you and AutoHive Direct, which may be recorded or retained for quality assurance, training, compliance, and legal purposes.

(g) Referral Information

If you participate in our referral program, we collect the name and contact information of individuals you refer, and we may collect your name and contact information as the referring party.

We collect this information directly from you when you submit an application, contact us, schedule an appointment, or use our website; from credit bureaus and consumer reporting agencies; from our partner lenders and dealerships; and from publicly available sources.

How We Use Your Information

We use your personal information for the following purposes:

To process and evaluate your auto financing application.
To match you with appropriate lenders and dealerships within our partner network based on your credit profile and financing needs.
To communicate with you regarding your application status, financing options, and related services.
To verify your identity and the accuracy of information you provide.
To conduct credit inquiries and obtain consumer reports from credit bureaus as permitted by law.
To comply with legal obligations, including GLBA, FTC regulations, Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) requirements, and applicable state laws.
To administer our referral program and process any rewards owed to participants.
To maintain and improve our website, services, and internal operations.
To detect, prevent, and investigate fraud, security incidents, or other prohibited activity.
To defend against legal claims and protect our rights and the rights of our customers.
To send you transactional and service-related communications, including appointment confirmations, application updates, and follow-up communications.
With your separate consent, to send you marketing communications about our services. You may opt out of marketing communications at any time.

How We Share Your Information

AutoHive Direct shares your personal information only as necessary to provide our services and as permitted or required by law. We may share your information with the following categories of third parties:

(a) Partner Lenders

We share your financing application, financial information, credit information, and identification information with lenders in our network for the purpose of evaluating and processing your financing request. This sharing is necessary to provide the service you have requested and falls within the GLBA exception for processing transactions at the consumer's request (16 C.F.R. § 313.14).

(b) Partner Dealerships

Once financing is approved, we may share your information with partner dealerships to facilitate vehicle selection, test drives, and transaction completion.

(c) Service Providers

We share information with third-party service providers who perform services on our behalf, including website hosting (Wix), customer relationship management (CRM) systems, email communication platforms, analytics providers (Google Analytics), and advertising platforms (Meta, Google Ads). These providers are contractually obligated to protect your information and use it only for the purposes we specify.

(d) Legal and Regulatory Disclosure

We may disclose your information when required to do so by law, regulation, court order, or government authority, including in response to lawful subpoenas, regulatory examinations, or law enforcement requests. We may also disclose information to protect the rights, property, or safety of AutoHive Direct, our customers, or others.

(e) Business Transfers

In the event of a merger, acquisition, reorganization, sale of assets, or bankruptcy, your personal information may be transferred to a successor entity. We will notify you by posting a prominent notice on our website if such a transfer occurs and your information will be subject to a materially different privacy policy.

(f) With Your Consent

We may share your information with third parties not described above with your prior written or electronic consent.

We do not share your personal information for joint marketing with non-affiliated financial companies. We do not share your information with retailers, magazine publishers, direct marketers, or other non-financial third parties for their own marketing purposes.

Your Opt-Out Rights Under the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act

Under the GLBA, you have the right to limit certain sharing of your nonpublic personal information with nonaffiliated third parties. However, because AutoHive Direct shares your information with partner lenders and dealerships only for the purpose of processing your financing application — which falls within the exceptions permitted under 16 C.F.R. § 313.14 (processing transactions you have requested) and § 313.15 (to protect against fraud and comply with legal requirements) — the general opt-out right under the GLBA does not apply to these disclosures.

To the extent any of our information-sharing practices are not covered by these exceptions, you have the right to direct us not to share your information with nonaffiliated third parties by contacting us at the information provided in Section 1 of this Policy. We will process your opt-out request within a reasonable time not to exceed 30 days.

Cookies and Tracking Technologies

Our website uses cookies and similar tracking technologies to enhance your experience, analyze website traffic, and support our marketing efforts. Cookies are small data files placed on your device when you visit our website.

Types of cookies we may use:

Essential Cookies: Required for the website to function properly, including form submission and appointment scheduling.
Analytics Cookies: Used to understand how visitors interact with our website (e.g., Google Analytics). Data collected is aggregated and does not identify individual users.
Marketing/Advertising Cookies: Used to deliver relevant advertisements and track the effectiveness of our marketing campaigns (e.g., Meta Pixel, Google Ads conversion tracking).

You may control cookie settings through your browser settings. Note that disabling certain cookies may affect the functionality of our website. We do not currently respond to browser "Do Not Track" signals, but we will update this policy if our practices change.

Data Security — FTC Safeguards Rule Compliance

AutoHive Direct maintains a written Information Security Program as required by the FTC Safeguards Rule (16 C.F.R. Part 314). Our security program includes administrative, technical, and physical safeguards designed to protect the security, confidentiality, and integrity of customer information against reasonably anticipated threats or hazards.

Our security measures include, but are not limited to:

Encryption of customer data in transit using industry-standard TLS/SSL protocols.
Access controls limiting employee access to customer information to those with a business need to know.
Employee training on data privacy and security practices.
Vendor oversight and contractual requirements for third-party service providers with access to customer data.
Ongoing monitoring and testing of our security systems.
A written incident response plan for data security events.

We have designated a qualified individual responsible for overseeing, implementing, and enforcing our Information Security Program. Despite our security measures, no system is completely secure. In the event of a security breach affecting your personal information, we will notify you as required by applicable law.

Data Retention

We retain your personal information for as long as necessary to fulfill the purposes described in this Privacy Policy, to maintain our business records, and to comply with applicable legal, regulatory, tax, and accounting requirements. Financing application records are generally retained for a minimum of five (5) years from the date of application or last transaction, consistent with applicable regulatory requirements. Consumer report information obtained from credit bureaus is retained as required under the FCRA. Website usage data and analytics data are retained for up to twenty-four (24) months. When personal information is no longer needed, we securely dispose of it in accordance with our data retention schedule.

Children's Privacy

Our services are intended solely for adults who are 18 years of age or older. We do not knowingly collect, use, or disclose personal information from children under the age of 13. If we learn that we have inadvertently collected personal information from a child under 13, we will promptly delete such information. If you believe we have collected information from a child under 13, please contact us immediately at info@autohivedirect.com.

Electronic Communications, CAN-SPAM, and TCPA

By providing your email address and/or phone number in connection with a financing application, appointment request, or referral form, you consent to receive transactional and service-related communications from AutoHive Direct via email, telephone, and/or text message (SMS). These communications may include application status updates, appointment confirmations, document requests, and other communications necessary to process your request.

Marketing Communications: If you separately consent to receive marketing communications, you may opt out at any time by: (a) clicking the "unsubscribe" link in any marketing email; (b) replying STOP to any marketing text message; or (c) contacting us at info@autohivedirect.com or (440) 547-5973. We comply with the CAN-SPAM Act and the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA). Standard message and data rates may apply for text messages. Message frequency varies.

California Consumer Privacy Rights (CCPA / CPRA)

If you are a California resident, the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) as amended by the California Privacy Rights Act (CPRA) provides you with specific rights regarding your personal information. Note that information collected in connection with a financing application may be subject to a GLBA-specific exemption from certain CCPA provisions; however, we extend the following rights to all California residents to the extent applicable.

Right to Know

You have the right to request that we disclose the categories and specific pieces of personal information we have collected about you, the categories of sources from which it was collected, the business or commercial purpose for collecting or sharing it, and the categories of third parties with whom we have shared it.

Right to Delete

You have the right to request deletion of your personal information, subject to certain exceptions (including our legal obligation to retain certain records under applicable law).

Right to Correct

You have the right to request correction of inaccurate personal information we maintain about you.

Right to Opt-Out of Sale or Sharing

AutoHive Direct does not sell your personal information as defined under the CCPA. We do not share your personal information for cross-context behavioral advertising. Therefore, there is no need to submit an opt-out request for the sale or sharing of personal information.

Right to Non-Discrimination

We will not discriminate against you for exercising any of your CCPA rights. We will not deny you services, charge you different prices, or provide a different level of service based on your exercise of privacy rights.

How to Submit a Request

California residents may submit a verifiable consumer request by emailing info@autohivedirect.com or calling (440) 547-5973. We will verify your identity before processing any request and will respond within 45 days as required by law.

Ohio Consumer Rights

Ohio residents are protected by the Ohio Consumer Sales Practices Act (Ohio Rev. Code § 1345.01 et seq.) and other applicable state laws. AutoHive Direct does not engage in unfair, deceptive, or unconscionable consumer sales practices. If you believe we have violated any Ohio consumer protection law, you may contact us directly or file a complaint with the Ohio Attorney General's Consumer Protection Section at www.ohioattorneygeneral.gov or by calling 1-800-282-0515.

In the event of a data breach affecting your personal information, AutoHive Direct will comply with Ohio's data breach notification law (Ohio Rev. Code § 1349.19), which requires notification to affected individuals within a reasonable time following discovery of the breach.

Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) Notice

In connection with your financing application, AutoHive Direct and/or our partner lenders may obtain one or more consumer reports from national consumer reporting agencies (such as Equifax, Experian, or TransUnion). These reports may include information about your credit history, payment history, public records, and other financial information.

If you are denied financing or receive financing on less favorable terms than others, you may have the right to receive a notice of adverse action and a free copy of your credit report from the consumer reporting agency that provided the report, as required under the FCRA. Please review any adverse action notice you receive for specific instructions on how to obtain your free report and how to dispute any inaccurate information.

Equal Credit Opportunity Notice

AutoHive Direct facilitates access to credit for all applicants without regard to race, color, religion, national origin, sex, marital status, age (provided the applicant has the capacity to enter into a binding contract), the fact that all or part of the applicant's income derives from any public assistance program, or the fact that the applicant has in good faith exercised any right under the Consumer Credit Protection Act. This notice is provided pursuant to the Equal Credit Opportunity Act (ECOA), 15 U.S.C. § 1691 et seq., and its implementing regulation, Regulation B (12 C.F.R. Part 202).

Changes to This Privacy Policy

AutoHive Direct reserves the right to update or modify this Privacy Policy at any time. Material changes will be communicated to existing customers by email or by posting a prominent notice on our website with an updated effective date. Your continued use of our website or services after the effective date of any changes constitutes your acceptance of the updated Privacy Policy. We encourage you to review this Policy periodically.

How to Contact Us

For questions, concerns, or to exercise any of your privacy rights described in this Policy, please contact us by any of the following methods:

Email: info@autohivedirect.com
Phone: (440) 547-5973
Website: www.autohivedirect.com/contact-us

We will respond to all privacy-related inquiries within 30 days of receipt.

If you have an unresolved privacy concern that we have not addressed satisfactorily, you may have the right to file a complaint with a supervisory authority, including the Federal Trade Commission at www.ftc.gov/complaint or, for California residents, the California Privacy Protection Agency.