Privacy Policy.
How we handle your information.

01Personal information we collect

The type of personal information we collect depends on which BenCal service you use. We only collect what we need to provide that service and meet our legal obligations.

Cargo export bookings

• Sender details — full name, residential or business address, phone number, email address
• Consignee details — receiver's full name, delivery address, phone number, email address, and tax identification (PIN, TIN, or equivalent) where the destination country requires it
• Cargo details — description of contents, declared value, weight, number of boxes, packaging method, destination, and freight method (sea or air)
• Identification documents where customs or carriers require them (for example, vehicle titles for car exports)

Car rental bookings

• Full name, address, phone number, email address, date of birth
• Driver's licence details (Australian or international) and a second form of identification
• Payment card information processed by our payment provider (we do not store full card numbers)

Used-car sales and vehicle sourcing enquiries

• Name and contact details
• Vehicle brief — make, model, year range, budget, intended use, export destination if applicable

Website use

• Technical data such as IP address, browser type, device information, and pages visited
• Information collected via cookies and similar technologies — see section 06 below

02How we collect personal information

We collect personal information directly from you in the following ways:

• When you fill in the cargo enquiry, rental booking, or sourcing brief forms on bencal.com.au
• When you contact us by email, phone, WhatsApp, or in person
• When you provide consignee or driver information on behalf of another person — in which case you confirm you have that person's consent to share their details with us

We may also collect personal information from third parties where you have authorised it — for example, transport providers we use for pickup, payment processors, or destination clearance agents handling your cargo.

03How we use your personal information

We use personal information to provide the service you have asked for and to meet our legal and contractual obligations. Specifically, we use information to:

• Quote, book, ship, clear customs for, and deliver your cargo
• Quote, manage, and service your car rental or used-car purchase
• Identify and source vehicles to brief on your behalf
• Communicate with you about an active enquiry or booking — by email, phone, WhatsApp, or post
• Comply with Australian export and customs law and destination-country import requirements
• Improve the BenCal website, services, and customer support
• Protect against fraud, misuse, and unauthorised access

We do not use your personal information for marketing purposes unless you have specifically opted in to receive marketing communications.

04Who we share your information with

We share personal information only with parties that need it to perform the service you have engaged us for, or where we are required to do so by law. We do not sell your personal information.

The categories of recipients are:

• Transport and logistics providers — Australia Post and partner transport operators who collect cargo from your state and move it to our Perth depot
• Shipping lines and airlines — for sea freight via Fremantle Port and air freight via Perth Airport
• Destination clearance agents — partner customs brokers at Mombasa (Kenya), Dar es Salaam (Tanzania), and Entebbe (Uganda) who clear your cargo at arrival
• Government authorities — the Australian Border Force for export declarations, and destination customs and tax authorities, where required by law
• Payment processors — for secure handling of card and bank transfers
• Professional advisers — legal, accounting, and insurance providers, on a need-to-know basis
• Technology providers — our website host, email and communication tools, customer relationship platform, and analytics providers

05Overseas transfers of your information

To deliver cargo internationally, we transfer personal information — particularly consignee details and cargo descriptions — to destination clearance agents and government authorities in Kenya, Tanzania, and Uganda. These transfers are necessary to clear and release your cargo at the destination port or airport.

Some of our technology providers (including our analytics and advertising platforms named in section 06) are based outside Australia, primarily in the United States and the European Union. When personal information is transferred outside Australia, we take reasonable steps to ensure recipients handle it in line with the Australian Privacy Principles.

06Cookies and tracking technologies

bencal.com.au uses cookies and similar technologies to make the site work, measure how it is used, and serve relevant advertising. The categories we use are:

Essential cookies

Required for core site functionality such as form submissions and navigation. These cannot be switched off.

Analytics — Google Analytics 4

We use Google Analytics 4 (GA4), provided by Google LLC, to understand how visitors find and use our site. GA4 collects de-identified information such as your IP address (truncated), pages visited, time on page, and traffic source. You can opt out of GA4 by installing the Google Analytics Opt-out Browser Add-on.

Advertising — Meta Pixel

We use the Meta Pixel, provided by Meta Platforms Inc., to measure the effectiveness of our advertising on Facebook and Instagram and to show relevant ads to people who have visited our site. The Meta Pixel collects information about pages visited and actions taken. You can adjust your Meta ad preferences in your Facebook account settings, or opt out of behavioural advertising through the Your Online Choices Australia tool.

Most browsers let you block or delete cookies through their settings. Note that blocking cookies may affect how the site functions.

07How we protect your information

We take reasonable steps to protect personal information from misuse, interference, loss, and unauthorised access, modification, or disclosure. These steps include:

• Secure hosting with encrypted data transmission (HTTPS) across the BenCal website
• Access controls and authentication for staff who handle customer data
• Limiting the personal information shared with third parties to what each party needs to perform their role
• Promptly destroying or de-identifying personal information that we no longer need

No method of transmission over the internet or storage is completely secure. While we work to protect your information, we cannot guarantee absolute security.

08How long we keep your information

We keep personal information only for as long as we need it to deliver the service, meet our legal and tax obligations, and resolve any disputes. Specifically:

• Cargo export records — retained for the period required by Australian export and tax law (currently seven years after the financial year of the shipment)
• Car rental and vehicle sales records — retained for the period required by Australian taxation and consumer law (currently seven years)
• Enquiry information that did not result in a booking — retained for up to 24 months, then deleted or de-identified
• Marketing-consent records — kept until you opt out, plus a short period to confirm the opt-out has taken effect

09Your rights and choices

Under the Australian Privacy Principles, you have the right to:

• Access the personal information we hold about you
• Correct information that is inaccurate, out of date, incomplete, irrelevant, or misleading
• Request deletion of your personal information where we no longer need it for the purpose we collected it, subject to our legal record-keeping obligations
• Withdraw consent to marketing communications at any time by clicking the unsubscribe link or emailing us
• Complain if you believe we have breached the APPs — see section 11 below

To make any of these requests, contact us using the details in section 12. We may need to verify your identity before acting on a request. There is no charge for accessing your information in most cases.

10Children's information

BenCal's services are intended for adults. We do not knowingly collect personal information from children under 16. If you believe a child has provided us with personal information, please contact us and we will take steps to remove it.

11Complaints

If you believe we have breached the Australian Privacy Principles or mishandled your personal information, please contact us first using the details in section 12. We will acknowledge your complaint within seven business days and aim to resolve it within 30 days.

If you are not satisfied with our response, you can refer your complaint to the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner (OAIC):

• Website: oaic.gov.au
• Phone: 1300 363 992
• Post: GPO Box 5288, Sydney NSW 2001

12Changes to this Privacy Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in our services, technology, or legal obligations. The current version is always available at bencal.com.au/privacy-policy with the "Last Updated" date shown at the top of this page. Material changes will be communicated through a notice on the site.