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PRIVACY POLICY

 

TM Auto Tradings
Effective date: 6 August 2026
Last updated: 6 August 2026

1. Introduction

TM Auto Tradings respects your privacy and is committed to protecting your personal information.

This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, store, share and protect personal information when you visit our website, request a vehicle evaluation, contact us or sell a vehicle to us.

We process personal information in accordance with the Protection of Personal Information Act 4 of 2013 (“POPIA”), the Electronic Communications and Transactions Act 25 of 2002 (“ECTA”) and other applicable South African laws.

For purposes of POPIA, TM Auto Tradings is the responsible party in respect of personal information processed through this website and our vehicle-buying services.

 

2. Our Details

Business: TM Auto Tradings
Location: Southern Peninsula, Cape Town
Privacy contact: Anthony
Telephone: +27 79 351 2887
Email: anthony@tmautotradings.co.za

Questions, objections and requests concerning personal information may be sent to the contact details above.

3. Personal Information We May Collect

 

Depending on how you interact with us, we may collect:

  • Your full name and surname

  • Telephone and WhatsApp number

  • Email address

  • Physical area, address or vehicle location

  • Your preferred method of contact

  • Vehicle make, model, year and mileage

  • Vehicle registration number, VIN or engine number

  • Information about the vehicle’s condition, service history and mechanical or accident damage

  • Photographs or videos of the vehicle

  • Proof of ownership and vehicle registration documents

  • Identity documentation where necessary to verify ownership and conclude a transaction

  • Banking details required to make payment

  • Information contained in emails, contact forms, telephone calls or WhatsApp messages

  • Records relating to vehicle evaluations, offers and completed transactions

  • Marketing preferences and consent records

  • Website usage information, IP addresses, browser information and cookie data

  • Any other information you voluntarily provide to us

Please do not send copies of identity documents, banking details or original vehicle documents through an unsecured website form unless specifically requested. Sensitive transaction documents should be supplied through the secure method communicated to you by TM Auto Tradings.

4. How We Collect Personal Information

 

We may collect personal information:

  • Directly from you when you contact us

  • Through our website enquiry or vehicle-evaluation forms

  • Through telephone calls, email or WhatsApp

  • When you send photographs and vehicle information

  • During an in-person vehicle inspection or evaluation

  • When an offer is accepted and a vehicle sale is concluded

  • From publicly available and lawful sources

  • From vehicle registration, ownership, verification or fraud-prevention services where legally permitted

  • Automatically through cookies and similar website technologies

  • From service providers acting on our behalf

Where information is not collected directly from you, it will only be collected and processed where permitted by law.

5. Why We Process Your Information

 

We may process personal information to:

  • Respond to questions and vehicle-selling enquiries

  • Provide free vehicle evaluations

  • Assess a vehicle’s condition and estimated market value

  • Prepare and communicate vehicle purchase offers

  • Arrange vehicle inspections, collections or transportation

  • Verify the identity of a seller

  • Confirm lawful ownership of a vehicle

  • Prevent fraud, theft and unlawful vehicle transactions

  • Conclude and administer vehicle purchase agreements

  • Process payment for purchased vehicles

  • Maintain financial, accounting and transaction records

  • Provide customer service and respond to complaints

  • Operate, secure and improve our website

  • Measure website performance and visitor activity

  • Comply with legal, regulatory, tax and law-enforcement requirements

  • Establish, exercise or defend legal claims

  • Send marketing communications where you have consented or where otherwise lawfully permitted

We will not use your personal information for a purpose that is incompatible with the purpose for which it was collected unless permitted by law or you have provided further consent.

6. Lawful Grounds for Processing

 

We process personal information where:

  • You have provided informed and voluntary consent

  • Processing is necessary to perform or enter into a contract with you

  • Processing is necessary to comply with a legal obligation

  • Processing protects your legitimate interests

  • Processing is necessary to pursue our legitimate business interests or those of a third party, provided your rights are not unjustifiably affected

  • Processing is otherwise permitted under POPIA or another applicable law

You may withdraw consent at any time. Withdrawal will not affect processing that was lawful before consent was withdrawn.

7. Providing Personal Information

 

You may choose not to provide personal information. However, certain information is necessary for us to evaluate a vehicle, confirm ownership, prepare an offer, complete a sale or make payment.

If the required information is not provided, we may be unable to provide an accurate evaluation or conclude the transaction.

8. Vehicle Photographs and Documentation

 

Vehicle photographs may contain personal information, including registration numbers, people, addresses or identifiable surroundings.

Please avoid including people, identity documents, banking information or unrelated personal items in vehicle photographs.

Ownership, registration and identity documents will only be requested where reasonably necessary to verify the seller and vehicle or to complete a lawful transaction.

9. Direct Marketing

 

We will only send electronic marketing communications where:

  • You have provided consent;

  • You are an existing customer and the communication relates to similar services, where permitted by law; or

  • Another lawful basis applies.

Marketing messages will identify TM Auto Tradings and provide a reasonable method to opt out.

You may unsubscribe or object to direct marketing at any time by contacting:

anthony@tmautotradings.co.za

Once you have opted out, we will stop sending marketing communications within a reasonable period. We may retain a minimal suppression record to ensure that your opt-out instruction is respected.

10. Sharing Personal Information

 

We may share relevant personal information with:

  • Website-hosting, email and information-technology providers

  • Vehicle inspection, collection, recovery or transport providers

  • Professional advisers, accountants and legal representatives

  • Banks and payment-service providers

  • Fraud-prevention, identity and ownership-verification providers

  • Vehicle licensing or registration authorities

  • Government, regulatory, law-enforcement or tax authorities where legally required

  • Contractors or operators processing information on our behalf

  • A purchaser, successor or relevant party in connection with a lawful restructuring or sale of the business

Service providers are only authorised to process personal information for agreed purposes and must apply appropriate confidentiality and security safeguards.

We do not sell or rent personal information to third parties.

11. WhatsApp and Third-Party Services

 

If you contact us using WhatsApp or interact with another third-party platform, your information may also be processed according to that provider’s privacy policy.

TM Auto Tradings does not control how independent third-party platforms process information. You should review their privacy information before using their services.

12. International Transfers

 

Some website, hosting, communication, analytics or cloud-service providers may process information outside South Africa.

Where personal information is transferred outside South Africa, we will take reasonable steps to ensure that the transfer complies with section 72 of POPIA. This may include using providers situated in jurisdictions with adequate data-protection laws or putting appropriate contractual safeguards in place.

13. Information Security

 

We use reasonable technical and organisational safeguards to protect personal information against:

  • Loss or damage

  • Unauthorised access

  • Unlawful processing

  • Accidental or unlawful destruction

  • Unauthorised disclosure

  • Alteration or misuse

Measures may include access controls, passwords, security software, secure hosting, backups, restricted access to transaction documents and appropriate service-provider agreements.

No internet transmission or electronic storage system is completely secure. We therefore cannot guarantee absolute security.

If we have reasonable grounds to believe that personal information has been accessed or acquired by an unauthorised person, we will follow the notification requirements contained in POPIA. This may include notifying the Information Regulator and affected individuals as soon as reasonably possible.

14. Retention of Personal Information

 

Personal information will only be kept for as long as reasonably necessary to:

  • Complete the purpose for which it was collected

  • Maintain vehicle-purchase and transaction records

  • Comply with tax, accounting, regulatory and legal obligations

  • Resolve disputes or complaints

  • Prevent fraud

  • Establish, exercise or defend legal claims

  • Maintain a record of consent or an opt-out request

When information is no longer required, it will be securely deleted, destroyed or de-identified, subject to legal retention requirements.

15. Your Rights

 

Subject to POPIA and other applicable laws, you have the right to:

  • Ask whether we hold personal information about you

  • Request access to your personal information

  • Ask us to correct inaccurate or incomplete information

  • Request deletion or destruction where legally permitted

  • Object to certain processing of your information

  • Withdraw consent

  • Object to direct marketing

  • Ask us to restrict processing in appropriate circumstances

  • Lodge a complaint with the Information Regulator

  • Take legal action where your privacy rights have been unlawfully infringed

We may need to verify your identity before processing a request. Certain information may need to be retained where required by law or necessary for an existing legal claim or completed transaction.

Requests may be sent to:

Anthony
Email: anthony@tmautotradings.co.za
Telephone: +27 79 351 2887

 

16. Children’s Information

 

Our vehicle-buying services are not directed at children under 18.

We do not knowingly collect children’s personal information through this website without the consent of a competent person or another lawful basis. If we become aware that children’s information has been collected unlawfully, we will take reasonable steps to delete it.

17. Links to Other Websites

 

Our website may contain links to external websites or services. TM Auto Tradings is not responsible for the privacy, content or security practices of independent third-party websites.

You should review the privacy policy of each website you visit.

18. Cookies

 

Our website uses cookies and similar technologies to support website functionality, remember preferences, improve performance and, where enabled, measure website traffic.

Further information is available in our separate Cookie Policy.

Non-essential cookies should only be activated after you have provided the required consent through the website’s cookie-preference tool.

19. Complaints

 

Please contact us first so that we have an opportunity to address your concern:

Anthony
Email: anthony@tmautotradings.co.za
Telephone: +27 79 351 2887

You may also lodge a complaint with the Information Regulator of South Africa:

Website: www.inforegulator.org.za
General enquiries: enquiries@inforegulator.org.za
POPIA complaints: POPIAComplaints@inforegulator.org.za
Telephone: 010 023 5200

 

20. Changes to This Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy when our business practices, website functions, service providers or legal obligations change.

The latest version will be published on this website with its effective date. Material changes may also be communicated through an appropriate notice on the website.

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