Privacy Policy

1. Scope and Information We Collect

The information we collect depends on how you interact with us and which products or services you request. We may collect the following categories of personal information:

• Identifiers and contact information: name, postal address, email address, telephone number, date of birth, driver license or identification information, signature, customer or account identifiers, and similar information.
• Vehicle and transaction information: vehicles you own or are interested in, VIN, mileage, trade-in information, purchase or lease history, product preferences, warranty or service-contract information, registration and title information, and transaction details.
• Financial and credit information: employment information, income, housing information, Social Security number, credit-related information, financial account information, payment information, debt information, and other information reasonably required to evaluate or arrange financing or leasing.
• Commercial information: records of products or services purchased, obtained, considered, or other purchasing or consuming histories or tendencies.
• Internet and device information: IP address, device and browser type, operating system, referring pages, pages viewed, clicks, timestamps, cookie identifiers, and similar technical or usage information.
• Communications: emails, text messages, telephone inquiries, form submissions, appointment requests, financing inquiries, reviews, and other communications with us.
• Inferences and preferences: vehicle preferences, shopping interests, likely interests, and other inferences reasonably derived from interactions with our website or dealership.
• Sensitive personal information: where needed for financing or other lawful purposes, Social Security number, driver license or identification information, financial account information, credentials, and other information treated as sensitive under applicable law.

2. Sources of Personal Information

We may collect personal information from:

• You directly, including information you provide in person, by telephone, by email, through website forms, through a credit application, or during a transaction.
• Our website, cookies, pixels, analytics tools, and similar technologies.
• Lenders, banks, credit unions, finance companies, credit reporting agencies, and other parties involved in financing or leasing, where permitted by law.
• Dealership management, customer relationship management, inventory, communications, title/registration, warranty, service-contract, fraud-prevention, and similar service providers.
• Vehicle history, valuation, marketplace, advertising, lead-generation, and automotive data providers.
• Affiliates or businesses under common ownership or control, if applicable and permitted by law.
• Publicly available sources and government records, where permitted by law.

3. How We Use Personal Information

We may use personal information for legitimate dealership and legal purposes, including to:

• Respond to vehicle inquiries and provide requested information.
• Display, maintain, and manage vehicle inventory and vehicle listings.
• Schedule appointments, test drives, trade-in appraisals, and dealership visits.
• Process vehicle purchases, leases, trade-ins, deposits, payments, title, registration, warranties, service contracts, and related transactions.
• Evaluate, arrange, process, service, or assist with financing or leasing requests and submit applications to potential lenders at your request.
• Verify identity, prevent fraud, detect security incidents, and protect customers, employees, systems, and property.
• Communicate about vehicles, financing, appointments, transactions, service, recalls, documents, and customer support.
• Market our own products and services where permitted by law and consistent with applicable consent and opt-out requirements.
• Operate, secure, measure, troubleshoot, personalize, and improve our website and business operations.
• Measure advertising and website performance and understand how visitors interact with our services.
• Maintain records, comply with tax, title, licensing, financing, consumer-protection, recordkeeping, and other legal or regulatory obligations.
• Establish, exercise, or defend legal claims and respond to lawful requests from courts, regulators, or law enforcement.

4. How We Disclose Personal Information

We may disclose personal information to the following categories of recipients when reasonably necessary and permitted by law:

• Lenders and financing partners when you request financing or authorize us to obtain or arrange financing or leasing.
• Service providers and contractors that provide website hosting, dealership management systems, customer relationship management, communications, payment processing, document processing, analytics, cybersecurity, fraud prevention, advertising support, and related services.
• Automotive service providers, including vehicle-history, valuation, inventory-listing, warranty, service-contract, registration, title, auction, and similar providers.
• Affiliates or businesses under common ownership or control, when applicable and permitted by law.
• Government agencies, courts, law enforcement, regulators, and other parties when disclosure is required or permitted by law or reasonably necessary to protect rights, safety, property, or security.
• Business successors or transaction counterparties in connection with a merger, acquisition, restructuring, financing, sale of assets, or similar business transaction.

We do not intend to sell customer personal information for monetary consideration. If and to the extent our use of advertising or analytics technologies constitutes a "sale" or "sharing" under California law, we will provide and honor applicable opt-out rights, including recognized opt-out preference signals such as Global Privacy Control when required.

5. Credit Applications, Financing and Financial Information

If you submit a credit application, request financing or leasing, or ask us to arrange financing, we may collect nonpublic personal information and sensitive information necessary to evaluate and process the request. This may include your Social Security number, employment and income information, housing information, financial account information, credit history, credit score, debt information, and identifying information.

We may obtain or disclose this information to lenders, banks, credit unions, finance companies, credit reporting agencies, identity-verification providers, fraud-prevention providers, and other parties involved in evaluating or processing the requested transaction, as permitted by law. Submission of a credit application does not guarantee approval, financing, or any particular terms.

Information collected in connection with consumer financing or leasing may be subject to the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act (GLBA), Regulation P, the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA), the FTC Safeguards Rule, and other federal or state laws. Where those laws require a particular notice, consent, opt-out right, or delivery method, we will provide it as applicable.

6. Federal Financial Privacy Notice (GLBA / Regulation P)

FACTS

Reasons we may share financial personal information

To limit sharing where a legal right applies

If federal or state law gives you a right to limit a particular type of sharing, you may contact us at (818) 249-0006 or sales@histarauto.com. We will honor applicable opt-out rights and any required waiting period before covered sharing begins. When you are no longer our customer, we may continue to use or disclose information as described in this notice and as permitted or required by law. Where a choice applies to a jointly held account or transaction, the choice will apply as required by applicable law.

Questions about this financial privacy notice? Call (818) 249-0006 or email sales@histarauto.com.

Who we are

Who is providing this notice? Hi Star Auto Sales Inc. provides this notice for information collected in connection with financial products or services that it offers, arranges, or services, as applicable.

What we do

How do we protect financial personal information? We use administrative, technical, and physical safeguards designed to protect customer information from unauthorized access or use, consistent with applicable law. We do not disclose specific security controls in this public notice.

How do we collect financial personal information? We collect information, for example, when you apply for financing or leasing, provide information for a transaction, make payments, communicate with us, or use our website. We may also obtain information from credit bureaus, lenders, service providers, affiliates, and other companies where permitted by law.

Why can't I limit all sharing? Federal law gives consumers the right to limit only certain sharing, such as some sharing for affiliates' everyday business purposes involving creditworthiness, affiliates using information to market to you, and sharing with nonaffiliates for their marketing. State law and individual company practices may provide additional rights.

Definitions

• Affiliates: Companies related by common ownership or control. They can be financial or nonfinancial companies.
• Nonaffiliates: Companies not related by common ownership or control. They can be financial or nonfinancial companies.
• Joint marketing: A formal agreement between nonaffiliated financial companies that together market financial products or services to consumers.
• Nonpublic personal information: Personally identifiable financial information and related information that is not publicly available, as defined by applicable financial privacy law.

7. California Notice at Collection

This section provides a consolidated notice of the categories of personal information we may collect, the purposes for collection and use, whether the category may be sold or shared as those terms are defined under California law, and our retention criteria. This notice should be made available at or before the point of collection where required, including near online forms that collect personal information.

8. California Privacy Rights

To the extent the California Consumer Privacy Act, as amended (CCPA), applies to Hi Star Auto and the information at issue, California residents may have the following rights, subject to exceptions and verification requirements:

• Right to Know / Access - request information about the categories and specific pieces of personal information we have collected, the sources, purposes, and categories of third parties to whom information was disclosed, sold, or shared.
• Right to Delete - request deletion of personal information we collected from you, subject to legal exceptions and retention obligations.
• Right to Correct - request correction of inaccurate personal information.
• Right to Opt Out of Sale or Sharing - direct a covered business not to sell or share personal information, including through a recognized Global Privacy Control signal where required.
• Right to Limit Certain Uses or Disclosures of Sensitive Personal Information - where applicable under the CCPA.
• Right to Non-Discrimination - exercise applicable privacy rights without unlawful discrimination.
• Right to use an Authorized Agent - where permitted and subject to verification and authority requirements.

To submit a privacy request, email sales@histarauto.com, call (818) 249-0006, or write to Hi Star Auto Sales Inc., 3411 Foothill Blvd, La Crescenta, CA 91214. We may verify your identity before processing a request. Certain information may be exempt from CCPA rights because it is governed by other laws, including GLBA or FCRA, or because another statutory exception applies.

If the CCPA requires two or more request methods for a particular request, Hi Star Auto will provide the additional method(s) required by law. If our website sells or shares personal information as defined by the CCPA, we will provide an appropriate "Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information" mechanism and honor recognized opt-out preference signals as required.

9. Cookies, Analytics and Advertising Technologies

Our website may use cookies, pixels, local storage, analytics tools, and similar technologies to operate the site, remember settings, understand traffic, measure performance, detect fraud or security issues, and evaluate advertising. Some technologies may be provided by third parties. Depending on the technology and applicable law, certain disclosures of identifiers or internet activity may be considered "sharing" for cross-context behavioral advertising.

You may be able to control cookies through your browser or device settings. Blocking cookies may cause some website functions to operate differently. Where required, we will provide additional cookie or opt-out controls and honor applicable browser-based opt-out preference signals.

10. Communications, Calls and Text Messages

When you provide an email address or telephone number and ask us to contact you, we may use that information for transactional and customer-service communications related to your inquiry, appointment, financing request, vehicle, transaction, or dealership services. Marketing communications will be sent only where permitted by law and subject to applicable consent and opt-out requirements.

For text messages, message and data rates may apply. Where supported, you may reply STOP to opt out of marketing text messages. Consent to receive marketing texts is not a condition of purchasing a vehicle or obtaining financing. If a telephone call is monitored or recorded, we will provide notice or obtain consent where required by applicable law.

11. Data Retention

We retain personal information only for as long as reasonably necessary and proportionate for the purposes described in this Policy, including to complete or service transactions, comply with dealership, title, tax, financing, consumer-protection, recordkeeping, warranty, fraud-prevention, security, and legal obligations, resolve disputes, and enforce agreements. Retention periods vary by category of information and the nature of the relationship or transaction. We do not intend to retain personal information longer than reasonably necessary for the disclosed purpose unless a longer period is required or permitted by law.

12. Information Security

We use administrative, technical, and physical safeguards designed to protect personal information against unauthorized access, use, disclosure, alteration, destruction, or loss. For customer information covered by the FTC Safeguards Rule, we maintain an information security program and safeguards as required by applicable law. No website, electronic transmission, or storage system can be guaranteed to be completely secure, and we cannot guarantee absolute security. If we discover a security incident, we will investigate, mitigate, and provide notifications or reports as required by applicable law.

13. Third-Party Websites and Services

Our website may contain links to or integrations with lenders, vehicle-history providers, inventory marketplaces, mapping services, social-media platforms, payment or communications providers, and other third-party services. These third parties operate under their own privacy notices and terms. Hi Star Auto is not responsible for the privacy, security, or content of independently operated third-party websites or services. We encourage you to review their privacy practices before submitting information directly to them.

14. Children and Minors

Our website and dealership services are intended for persons seeking automotive products and services and are not directed to children under 13. We do not knowingly collect personal information online from children under 13. If we learn that we have collected such information without appropriate authorization, we will take reasonable steps to delete it as required by law. We do not knowingly sell or share the personal information of consumers under 16 without the affirmative authorization required by applicable California law.

15. Changes to This Privacy Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in our business practices, technology, services, legal requirements, or regulatory guidance. When we make material changes, we will update the "Last Updated" or effective date and provide any additional notice required by law.

16. Contact Us

For questions about this Privacy Policy, our privacy practices, or to submit a privacy request, contact: