Privacy Policy

Our Privacy Policy

This privacy policy describes how Uncle Ed’s Oil Shoppes (“Uncle Ed’s,” “we” or “us”) collects, uses, shares and protects the personal information that you share with us.  We value your privacy and do not sell or share your personal information with any organization outside of Uncle Ed’s and its affiliates, except under the conditions noted below.
 

What this Privacy Policy Covers

This privacy policy applies to our collection, use and sharing of your personal information when you: (a) visit our website, www.UncleEdsOil.com website (“site”), (b) visit one of our locations and receive our services, and (c) receive our communications.  It also applies to your personal information that we obtain from third parties such as content publishers and suppliers. This Privacy Policy does not apply to any other information, websites or services not owned or operated by us.
 

How We Collect Information

Information provided by your web browser

Our website provides information about our stores and the products and services we provide.  You do not need to provide us with any personal information if you simply want to browse through our website and learn more about our stores, our products and our services.  Like many other websites, we may record information that your web browser routinely shares, such as your browser type, browser language, software and hardware attributes, the date and time of your visit, the website from which you came, the geographical location of the Internet Protocol address and the pages on this site that you visit.  This will generally be anonymous data that we collect on an aggregate basis.  We will not try to associate anonymous data with your personally identifiable data.

Personal information that you provide

We may collect personal information that you choose to provide to us on a voluntary basis.  When we ask for your personal information, it is so that we can provide a product or service to you and communicate with you about those products and services.  For example, you can purchase products or services on our website, register to participate in the Uncle Ed’s Rewards Program, apply for a job, or participate in surveys or contests that we may run from time to time.  You can also send us messages through the “contact us” feature of this website.   It will always be your choice whether to provide your personal information in order to take advantage of these features.  The information that we collect may include your name, address, telephone number, e-mail address, vehicle information and payment information.

If you are visiting our website, we may also offer certain social networking features, such as the opportunity to post comments or opinions about our products and services.  If you choose to submit your comments or opinions, keep in mind that these will be available to the general public and are not subject to any privacy.

Information that we collect when you visit our locations

When you visit one of our locations for services, we will collect your contact information and payment information.  We will also collect information about your vehicle, such as VIN, mileage, year, make and model, and the services we perform on your vehicle.  
 

Use of Cookies and Similar Technology

As is commonly done on websites, we may use cookies and similar technology to keep track of our users and the services they have elected.  A “cookie” is a small text file containing alphanumeric characters that is stored on your computer and uniquely identifies your browser.  If you are simply browsing on our website, the cookies that we use last only about as long as your session on our website; but if you have created a user name and account, we will also use cookies that remain on your computer between visits so that when you return to our site we can remember who you are and your preferences.  For example, we may use cookies to keep track of items that you might wish to store in your on-line shopping cart between visits.  We may allow business partners who provide services to our site to place cookies on your computer that assist us in analyzing usage data.  We do not allow these business partners to collect your personal information from our website except as may be necessary for the services that they provide.  We do not partner with or have any special relationships with any ad server companies and do not allow third-party advertisements on our website.
 

You can manage cookies.  For example, you can configure your browser to accept all cookies, reject all cookies, or notify you when a cookie is set.  If you disable cookies, however, it may interfere with the functionality of our site and you may not be able to use all of the site’s features.
 

What We Do With the information We Collect

We will generally use the information that we collect to provide requested services, to monitor and analyze visitor activity on our website, and to communicate with our customers.  The following provides a more specific discussion of our uses and disclosures of the information that we collect.
 

Your contact and other personal information
 

When you provide us with your contact information, we will use that information to provide services.  For example, if you make a purchase on our site, we will use your e-mail address to confirm the purchase or report on the status of your order, and your address to ship you our merchandise.  If you apply for a job, we will submit your application to our Human Resources department, which may contact your references, perform a background check and  arrange for an interview.  If you submit a question, someone in our customer relations department will respond.
 

We maintain a database about our customers and website users that allows us to (i) analyze and monitor consumer and customer activity, (ii) promote and support our products and services, and (iii) develop a knowledge base regarding our website users and customers.  For example, we may use your e-mail address to send you service reminders and the promotions that we run from time to time.  We may combine the personal information that we collect from our website, Rewards Program, and visits to our locations. 
 

Payments
 

If you purchase any products or services from us, we will use third party payment processors to securely collect and process your credit card information. We do not process or retain any of your credit card information ourselves.  For payments made through our website, this service provider is PayPal.  For payments at our locations, this service provider is eGenuity. 
 

Information shared with service providers and business partners.
 

We may share your personal information with third party companies and individuals as needed for them to provide us with services that help us with our business activities and to promote our services to you. For example, we use Mailchimp and Mandrill to send you our email communications.  A list of our other current service providers is available upon request. 
 

We may also share your personal information with our business partners who may use your information separately or to offer a service to you jointly with us.  For example, we may share your vehicle information with CARFAX. A list of our current business partners that have access to certain personal information we collect is available upon request.
 

Statistical analyses of data
 

We use Google Analytics to help us gather statistical information about the visitors to our site and how they use the site on an anonymous, aggregate basis but will not associate this data with personally identifiable data.  We use this information to gain a better understanding of the visitors to our site and to improve our website and product offerings.  We reserve the right to license or sell aggregate information about the visitors to our website, but this information will not be individually identifiable.  If you would like to learn more about Google Analytics, please click here.
 

Business operations, law enforcement and legal actions
 

We may release your information without prior notice when we believe it is appropriate to prevent fraud; to comply with law or to cooperate with law enforcement activity or other governmental request; to respond to subpoenas, court orders or administrative agency requests for information; to enforce our policies; to protect the rights, property and safety of our business and of others; or when required or otherwise permitted by law.  For example, we may share information with law enforcement if we suspect that someone is using or attempting to use site for illegal reasons.  If there is a sale or merger of the company, division or business unit that operates this site, we may also transfer the information we have collected in connection with such sale or merger.

We will use the information we collect to continuously improve our business and our website development.  Your comments and suggestions about our website development are always appreciated.  Please send us a message at CustomerServ@Uncle-Eds.com if you have any comments or questions.
 

Third Party Websites

This site may contain links to other websites operated by companies that are not affiliated with us.  Also, you may have come to this website from a website that is not operated by us.  We are not responsible for the operation of these other sites or the information that they collect from their visitors.  If you would like to know how another site collects and uses your information, please review its privacy policy.
 

Accessing or Correcting Your Information

Upon request, we provide you access to the information that we maintain about you.  You can request access to your information by sending a request to CustomerServ@Uncle-Eds.com.  You can also use this e-mail address to report to us any changes to your information.  You may also contact us by telephone or U.S. Mail using the contact information at the end of this policy.
 

Opting Out of Future Communications

When we send you a marketing or promotional email about our services, the message will always include a link that you can click on to unsubscribe from future messages.  You can also let us know that you do not wish to receive marketing and promotional messages by sending your request to CustomerServ@Uncle-Eds.com, or by calling or mailing your request using the contact information at the end of this policy.  If you unsubscribe from our marketing and promotional messages, you will still receive messages relating to any transactions that you enter into on our site or in response to any inquiries that you send to our Customer Service department.
 

If you have provided us with your telephone number, we may contact you by telephone regarding the services you received at our location.  If you do not wish to receive such calls, then please contact us at CustomerServ@Uncle-Eds.com, or call or mail us your request using the contact information at the end of this policy.  Please include your name and telephone number in your request.
 

How We Protect Your Data

We use commercially reasonable means to protect the integrity of our website and limit access to your personally identifiable information.  For example, if you purchase any products or services on our site, our payment  processor will use a secure connection to obtain your payment information and will follow Payment Card Industry (PCI) standards in the handling of your credit card information.  We limit access to your personal information to those who have a legitimate need to use the information.   You must also do your part.  If you have set up a user name and profile, you should be sure to protect your user ID and password to prevent others from being able to access the site in your name.
 

Data Integrity and Retention

We use the information that we collect about you only for the purposes for which it is collected and consistent with this policy.  We keep information provided to us for as long as we believe necessary for our business purposes and as permitted by applicable law.

Changes to This Policy

Our business and the laws that regulate us change from time to time, and we reserve the right to change this policy.  If we do change this policy, we will post the revised version on this site.  If we propose to change our policy in a way that would permit us to make additional uses of information that we had previously collected about you, we will provide you with a meaningful way to opt out of those additional uses.

Children

This site is not directed to individuals under the age of 13 and we do not knowingly collect information about children under the age of 13.  If you are under the age of thirteen, please do not register and do not submit your personal information.  If you are a parent who believes that we have collected information about a child under age 13, please contact us at CustomerServ@Uncle-Eds.com with your child's name and address, and we will be happy to delete the information we have about your child from our records and provide information in accordance with the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act.
 

This Policy is an Agreement

When you visit this site, you are accepting the practices described in this Privacy Policy.  The laws of Michigan and the United States will govern any disputes arising out of your visit to our website, including any issues relating to our privacy practices. 
 

Contacting Us

Please let us know if you have any questions or comments about our policies or practices.  You may reach us by e-mail at CustomerServ@Uncle-Eds.com, by telephone at (269) 968-9307, or by U.S. postal service at 2515 Capital Avenue S.W., Battle Creek, MI 49015.