Who we are
This policy explains how the operator of ilovemycars.com (“we”, “us”) handles personal data. For data protection purposes, we are the controller of the personal data described below.
How to reach us about privacy: every privacy question and every request below comes through the contact page. Choose Privacy or data request and we will reply to the address you give us there.
What we collect
| Category | What it includes | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Information you give us | Name, email address, message content and any page URL you include when you use the contact form or email us; email address if you subscribe to the newsletter; name, email and comment text if commenting is enabled | To reply to you, to send the newsletter you asked for, and to publish comments |
| Technical and usage data | IP address, approximate location derived from it, device and browser type, operating system, referring URL, pages viewed, time on page, and interactions such as clicks on outbound links | To operate the site securely, measure what is useful, and fix what is broken |
| Cookies and similar technologies | Identifiers set by us and by third parties for analytics, preferences and affiliate attribution | See the cookie policy |
| Affiliate and commission data | Aggregated reports from affiliate networks showing that a sale occurred via our link, and the commission earned | To get paid and to understand which content helps readers |
Our calculators do not collect your inputs. The fifteen tools on this site run entirely in your browser. The battery sizes, salaries, loan amounts, tariffs and mileage figures you type are processed on your own device and are not transmitted to, logged by, or stored on our servers. Clear the page and they are gone.
We do not knowingly collect special-category data (such as health, biometric, religious or political information), and we ask that you do not send it to us.
Why we are allowed to use it (legal bases)
For readers in the United Kingdom, European Economic Area and Switzerland, we rely on these legal bases under the UK GDPR and EU GDPR:
- Consent — for non-essential cookies, analytics and marketing, and for the newsletter. You may withdraw it at any time.
- Legitimate interests — for operating and securing the website, preventing abuse and spam, measuring aggregate performance and defending legal claims, where those interests are not overridden by your rights.
- Performance of a contract or steps before it — where you ask us for something and we need your details to provide it.
- Legal obligation — for tax, accounting and compliance records.
Who we share data with
We do not sell personal data, and we do not share it for cross-context behavioural advertising in the sense used by California’s CPRA. We do use service providers who process data on our behalf:
- Hosting and security: [Hosting provider], [CDN/WAF provider] — server logs, IP addresses, abuse prevention.
- Analytics: [Google Analytics 4 / privacy-friendly alternative] — aggregate usage measurement.
- Email: [Newsletter provider] — newsletter delivery, subscription management, open and click metrics.
- Affiliate networks and retailers: Amazon Associates and the networks listed in our affiliate disclosure — these parties set their own cookies and act as independent controllers under their own privacy policies.
- Professional advisers and authorities where we are legally required to disclose, or need to establish or defend legal claims.
International transfers
Our hosting, analytics and email providers may process data in the United States and elsewhere. Where data is transferred out of the UK, EEA or Switzerland, we rely on an adequacy decision where one applies, or on the European Commission’s Standard Contractual Clauses (with the UK Addendum where relevant), together with appropriate supplementary measures. You can request details of the safeguards used through the contact page.
How long we keep it
- Contact enquiries: [24 months] after the matter is closed.
- Newsletter subscriptions: until you unsubscribe, plus a suppression record so we do not email you again.
- Comments: for as long as the comment remains published.
- Server and security logs: [up to 12 months].
- Analytics data: [14 months] in identifiable form, then aggregate only.
- Financial and tax records: as required by law, typically [6–8 years].
Your rights
If you are in the UK, EEA or Switzerland, you have the right to access your data, to have inaccurate data corrected, to have data erased, to restrict or object to processing (including profiling and direct marketing), to data portability, and to withdraw consent at any time without affecting prior processing. You may also complain to your supervisory authority — for example, the Information Commissioner’s Office in the UK, the Data Protection Commission in Ireland, or the Autoriteit Persoonsgegevens in the Netherlands.
If you are in California or another US state with a comprehensive privacy law, you have the right to know what personal information we collect and how it is used, to request deletion or correction, to opt out of any sale or sharing for cross-context behavioural advertising (we do not engage in either), and not to be discriminated against for exercising those rights. Authorised agents may submit requests on your behalf with proof of authorisation.
Everyone else: we will apply the same rights wherever we reasonably can.
To exercise any right, use the contact page and choose Privacy or data request. We may need to verify your identity, and we respond within one month (UK/EU) or 45 days (US states), extendable where the law permits.
Children’s privacy
Parts of this site discuss toys and ride-on cars, but the site is written for adults making purchases, not for children. It is not directed to children under 13 (or under 16 where local law sets that age), and we do not knowingly collect their personal data. If you believe a child has provided us with personal data, tell us through the contact page and we will delete it promptly.
Security
We use HTTPS across the site, restrict administrative access, keep software patched, and use reputable providers for hosting and email. No internet service can be guaranteed completely secure, so we also minimise what we collect in the first place — which is why the calculators never send your figures anywhere.
Changes to this policy
We update this policy when our practices or the law change. The revision date at the top of the page always reflects the current version, and material changes will be flagged on the site. Continuing to use ilovemycars.com after an update means you accept the revised policy.