Privacy Policy

Effective Date: 1 January 2024

SkillRide Driving Academy Pty Ltd (ABN 47 593 128 064) is committed to protecting the privacy of our students, website visitors, and anyone who interacts with our services. This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, store, disclose, and protect your personal information in accordance with the Australian Privacy Act 1988 (Cth) and the Australian Privacy Principles (APPs).

By using our website, booking a lesson, or otherwise providing your personal information to us, you acknowledge that you have read and understood this Privacy Policy.

1. Information We Collect

We may collect the following types of personal information depending on your interaction with SkillRide Driving Academy:

• Identity Information: Full name, date of birth, and gender.
• Contact Information: Email address, phone number, and residential address.
• Identification Documents: Learner permit number, proof of identity documents as required for driving instruction purposes.
• Payment Information: Credit card or debit card details, bank account information, and transaction records processed through our third-party payment provider.
• Lesson and Booking Data: Lesson schedules, instructor preferences, lesson progress notes, driving assessment results, and feedback.
• Technical Information: IP address, browser type and version, operating system, device type, referring website, pages viewed, time spent on pages, and other diagnostic data collected through cookies and similar technologies.
• Communication Records: Emails, phone call logs, SMS messages, and any correspondence between you and SkillRide Driving Academy.
• Emergency Contact Details: Name and phone number of a designated emergency contact, particularly for students under the age of 18.

2. How We Collect Information

We collect personal information through a variety of means, including:

• When you fill out a booking form, enquiry form, or contact form on our website.
• When you communicate with us via phone, email, SMS, or in person.
• When you book, attend, or complete a driving lesson.
• When you make a payment for our services.
• When you visit our website, through the use of cookies and analytics tools.
• From third-party sources such as referral partners, government agencies (where lawfully required), or publicly available records.

3. How We Use Your Information

We use the personal information we collect for the following purposes:

• To provide, manage, and administer driving lessons and related services.
• To process bookings, scheduling, rescheduling, and cancellations.
• To process payments and issue invoices or receipts.
• To communicate with you about your lessons, account, and any service updates.
• To maintain accurate records of your lesson progress and driving competency.
• To comply with legal and regulatory obligations, including requirements set by Roads and Maritime Services (RMS) or Transport for NSW.
• To improve our website, services, and overall customer experience.
• To send you promotional materials or offers, where you have opted in to receive such communications.
• To respond to enquiries, complaints, or feedback.
• To ensure the safety of our students, instructors, and the general public.
• To detect, investigate, and prevent fraudulent or unlawful activity.

4. Cookies and Tracking Technologies

Our website uses cookies and similar tracking technologies to enhance your browsing experience, analyse website traffic, and understand user behaviour. Cookies are small text files stored on your device when you visit our website.

We use the following types of cookies:

• Essential Cookies: Required for the website to function properly, including session management and security features.
• Analytics Cookies: Used to collect anonymised data about how visitors use our website, including pages visited and time spent. We use Google Analytics for this purpose.
• Preference Cookies: Used to remember your settings and preferences, such as language or region.

You can manage your cookie preferences through your browser settings. Please note that disabling certain cookies may affect the functionality of our website. For more details, please refer to our Cookie Policy.

5. Disclosure of Your Information

We may share your personal information with the following third parties where necessary:

• Driving Instructors: Your name, contact details, learner permit information, and lesson history may be shared with your assigned instructor to facilitate lessons.
• Payment Processors: We use third-party payment gateways to process transactions securely. Your payment information is handled directly by these processors and is not stored on our servers.
• Government and Regulatory Bodies: We may disclose information to Transport for NSW, Roads and Maritime Services, or other government agencies as required by law or for licensing and compliance purposes.
• IT and Service Providers: We may engage third-party providers for website hosting, email services, customer relationship management, and data analytics. These providers are contractually required to protect your data.
• Legal and Professional Advisors: We may share information with our lawyers, accountants, or insurers where necessary for legal proceedings, claims, or regulatory compliance.
• Law Enforcement: We may disclose personal information to law enforcement agencies if required by law, court order, or to protect the safety of our students, staff, or the public.

We do not sell, rent, or trade your personal information to any third party for marketing purposes.

6. Data Security

We take the security of your personal information seriously and implement a range of measures to protect it from unauthorised access, modification, disclosure, or destruction. These measures include:

• Secure Socket Layer (SSL) encryption on our website to protect data transmitted between your browser and our servers.
• Restricted access to personal information, limited to authorised personnel who require it to perform their duties.
• Regular security assessments and updates to our systems and software.
• Secure storage of physical records in locked facilities.
• Use of strong passwords and multi-factor authentication for internal systems.

While we strive to protect your personal information, no method of transmission over the internet or electronic storage is completely secure. We cannot guarantee absolute security but will promptly notify you and any applicable regulatory body in the event of a data breach in accordance with the Notifiable Data Breaches (NDB) scheme under the Privacy Act 1988.

7. Data Retention

We retain your personal information only for as long as necessary to fulfil the purposes for which it was collected, or as required by law. Specifically:

• Lesson records and student files are retained for a minimum of seven years after your last lesson, in accordance with Australian tax and regulatory requirements.
• Payment records are retained for a minimum of five years.
• Website analytics data is retained in anonymised form and is not linked to identifiable individuals after 26 months.
• Communication records are retained for two years from the date of the last interaction.

When personal information is no longer required, we will securely destroy or de-identify it.

8. Your Rights

Under the Australian Privacy Principles, you have the following rights regarding your personal information:

• Access: You have the right to request access to the personal information we hold about you. We will respond to your request within 30 days.
• Correction: You have the right to request correction of any inaccurate, incomplete, or outdated personal information. We will take reasonable steps to correct the information promptly.
• Complaints: If you believe we have breached your privacy or handled your information inappropriately, you have the right to lodge a complaint with us. We will investigate and respond within 30 days.
• Opt-Out: You may opt out of receiving marketing communications from us at any time by clicking the unsubscribe link in our emails or by contacting us directly.
• Anonymity: Where practicable, you have the option of interacting with us anonymously or using a pseudonym. However, this may limit the services we can provide to you.

9. Children and Minors

SkillRide Driving Academy provides driving instruction to learner drivers, some of whom may be under the age of 18. We collect personal information from minors only with the consent of a parent or legal guardian. Parents and guardians have the right to access, correct, or request deletion of their child's personal information by contacting us.

10. Cross-Border Data Transfers

Some of our third-party service providers may store data on servers located outside of Australia. Where this occurs, we take reasonable steps to ensure that the overseas recipients handle your personal information in accordance with the Australian Privacy Principles. By providing your personal information to us, you consent to such transfers where necessary for the provision of our services.

11. Changes to This Privacy Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in our practices, legal requirements, or business operations. Any updates will be published on this page with a revised effective date. We encourage you to review this page periodically to stay informed about how we protect your information.

12. Contact Us

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

• Business Name: SkillRide Driving Academy Pty Ltd
• ABN: 47 593 128 064
• Address: 14 Greenfield Parade, Bankstown NSW 2200
• Email: [email protected]

If you are not satisfied with our response to your privacy complaint, you may escalate the matter to the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner (OAIC) at www.oaic.gov.au or by calling 1300 363 992.