1. Who We Are

This website represents Rola BYD Somerset West, a dealership within the Rola Motor Group.

Rola Motor Group is a division of Rola Holdings (Pty) Ltd. Depending on the nature of your interaction with us, Rola Holdings (Pty) Ltd and/or the applicable Rola operating company responsible for Rola BYD Somerset West may act as the “responsible party” for purposes of POPIA.

Our dealership contact details are:

Privacy-related requests may be sent to rola@rolagrp.co.za for the attention of the Information Officer.

2. Application of This Policy

This Policy applies to personal information processed by us through:

• this website;
• website enquiry, contact and test-drive forms;
• telephone, email, WhatsApp and social-media communications;
• in-person visits to our dealership;
• vehicle sales, test drives, trade-ins and customer-service interactions;
• vehicle finance and insurance enquiries;
• competitions, promotions, surveys and marketing campaigns; and
• other lawful dealership activities.

In this Policy, “process” or “processing” includes collecting, receiving, recording, organising, storing, updating, retrieving, using, sharing, combining, restricting, deleting or destroying personal information.

BYD Auto South Africa (Pty) Ltd, financial institutions, insurers and other third parties may process your information independently for their own purposes. Their own privacy policies will apply where they determine how and why your information is processed.

3. Personal Information We Collect

The type of personal information we collect depends on how you interact with us. It may include the following:

3.1 Identification and contact information

• your full name and title;
• identity or passport number, where lawfully required;
• date of birth, where relevant;
• telephone and mobile numbers;
• email address;
• residential, postal or business address; and
• your preferred communication method.

3.2 Vehicle and enquiry information

• the vehicle or BYD model in which you are interested;
• test-drive requests and appointment details;
• vehicle configuration or specification preferences;
• trade-in vehicle details;
• vehicle ownership, registration, servicing or warranty information;
• purchase history and dealership interactions; and
• questions, comments, requests and correspondence submitted to us.

3.3 Finance and transaction information

Where you ask us to assist with a finance or insurance application, we or an authorised finance and insurance provider may collect information such as:

• employment and income information;
• banking and financial information;
• credit-related information;
• supporting documents required by a credit provider;
• payment and transaction records; and
• information required to comply with financial-services legislation.

Finance applications are subject to the requirements, approval criteria and privacy practices of the relevant financial institution or credit provider.

3.4 Website and technical information

• your Internet Protocol address;
• browser, operating system and device information;
• approximate location derived from your IP address;
• pages viewed, links selected and time spent on the website;
• website referral information;
• cookie identifiers and consent preferences; and
• website security, access and diagnostic logs.

3.5 Marketing and communication information

• your marketing preferences;
• records of consent;
• records of opt-out or unsubscribe requests;
• responses to promotions, events or surveys; and
• communications between you and our dealership.

4. How We Collect Personal Information

We may collect personal information:

• directly from you when you complete a form or contact us;
• when you visit or interact with our dealership;
• automatically when you use this website;
• from BYD Auto South Africa and other authorised BYD platforms;
• from other Rola Motor Group dealerships or companies;
• from finance providers, insurers and credit providers;
• from service providers acting on our behalf;
• from social-media platforms where you interact with our pages;
• from public records or publicly available sources; and
• from another person where you have authorised that person to provide it.

Where we collect information from a third party, we will do so only where permitted by law.

5. How We Use Personal Information

We may process your personal information to:

• respond to your questions, requests and vehicle enquiries;
• contact you about a vehicle in which you have expressed interest;
• arrange and manage test drives and dealership appointments;
• prepare quotations and vehicle offers;
• assist with vehicle purchases, trade-ins and deliveries;
• facilitate finance and insurance applications at your request;
• verify your identity and the accuracy of information provided;
• perform contracts or take steps before entering into a contract;
• provide after-sales support and customer service;
• administer warranties, recalls, maintenance and service-related matters;
• maintain customer and transaction records;
• manage complaints and resolve disputes;
• send marketing communications where permitted;
• conduct customer-satisfaction surveys;
• operate, secure, analyse and improve this website;
• detect and prevent fraud, misuse and security threats;
• comply with legal, regulatory, tax and reporting obligations;
• establish, exercise or defend legal claims; and
• protect our rights, property, employees, customers and systems.

We will not process your personal information for a purpose that is incompatible with the purpose for which it was collected unless the further processing is permitted by POPIA or another applicable law.

6. Grounds for Processing

We process personal information only where one or more of the following applies:

• you have given us valid consent;
• processing is necessary to enter into or perform a contract with you;
• processing complies with an obligation imposed by law;
• processing protects your legitimate interests;
• processing is necessary for the proper performance of a public-law duty; or
• processing is necessary to pursue our legitimate interests or those of a third party, provided that your rights and interests are appropriately protected.

Where we rely on consent, you may withdraw that consent at any time. Withdrawal will not affect processing that took place lawfully before your consent was withdrawn.

7. Mandatory and Voluntary Information

Unless stated otherwise, providing personal information to us is voluntary. However, certain information may be required for us to:

• respond to an enquiry;
• arrange a test drive;
• prepare a quotation;
• process a vehicle transaction;
• submit a finance or insurance application;
• verify your identity; or
• comply with a legal obligation.

If you do not provide required information, we may be unable to provide the relevant product, service or assistance.

Consent to receive direct marketing is optional and is not a condition of submitting a general dealership enquiry.

8. Direct Marketing

Where permitted by POPIA, we may contact you regarding BYD vehicles, dealership news, events, promotions, services and related offers.

We may communicate with you by email, SMS, telephone, WhatsApp or another communication channel that you have selected.

Where prior consent is required for electronic direct marketing, we will ask for that consent before sending marketing communications.

You may object to direct marketing or withdraw your consent at any time by:

• using the unsubscribe facility included in a message;
• replying “STOP” where that facility is provided;
• contacting the dealership on 021 203 7500; or
• emailing rola@rolagrp.co.za .

Opting out of marketing will not prevent us from sending necessary transactional, safety, service, warranty or administrative communications.

We may retain limited contact information on a suppression list to ensure that your marketing preference continues to be respected.

9. Cookies and Website Technologies

This website may use cookies and similar technologies to operate correctly, remember preferences, measure website performance, improve functionality and, where consent has been provided, support advertising or remarketing.

Cookies used on the website may include:

• Strictly necessary cookies: required for security, consent management and essential website functions.
• Preference cookies: used to remember choices and improve your website experience.
• Analytics cookies: used to understand how visitors use the website and to improve its performance.
• Marketing cookies: used, with appropriate consent, to measure campaigns and provide more relevant advertising.

Where required, non-essential cookies will be activated only after you have provided consent through the website’s cookie-management tool.

You may update your preferences through the cookie settings available on the website. You can also configure your browser to block or delete cookies, although doing so may affect certain website features.

Third-party features such as embedded maps, videos, analytics tools, social media links and advertising technologies may process information according to the privacy policies of their respective providers.

10. Sharing of Personal Information

We may share personal information only where necessary and lawful, including with:

• Rola Holdings and companies or dealerships within Rola Motor Group;
• BYD Auto South Africa and authorised BYD service providers;
• banks, credit providers, insurers and finance-and-insurance service providers where you request such services;
• vehicle licensing, registration and roadworthy service providers;
• website hosting, email, CRM, cloud-storage and IT service providers;
• marketing, analytics and communications service providers;
• professional advisers, auditors, attorneys and accountants;
• regulators, law-enforcement bodies and government authorities;
• a purchaser, successor or adviser in connection with a lawful merger, restructuring or sale of a business; and
• other parties where you have instructed or authorised us to share it.

Service providers that process personal information on our behalf are required to process it only for authorised purposes, maintain confidentiality and implement appropriate security safeguards.

We do not sell or rent your personal information to third parties for their independent marketing purposes.

11. International Transfers

Some members of the BYD group, cloud-service providers, technology providers or other recipients may be located 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 ensuring that:

• the recipient is subject to an adequate data-protection law;
• the recipient is bound by an agreement or corporate rules that provide appropriate protection;
• the transfer is necessary for a contract involving you;
• you have consented to the transfer; or
• another lawful basis under POPIA applies.

12. Retention of Personal Information

We retain personal information only for as long as it is reasonably necessary for the purpose for which it was collected, unless a longer period is required or permitted by law.

Retention periods may be determined by:

• the duration of our relationship with you;
• contractual, warranty or service requirements;
• vehicle, finance, tax and accounting record obligations;
• applicable prescription periods;
• fraud-prevention and security requirements;
• the need to resolve complaints or legal disputes; and
• your consent, where consent is the applicable basis.

When personal information is no longer required, we will securely delete, destroy or de-identify it, subject to applicable legal and operational requirements.

De-identified information that cannot reasonably be linked back to you may be retained for statistical, analytical or reporting purposes.

13. Security Safeguards

We implement reasonable and appropriate technical and organisational measures to protect personal information against:

• loss, damage or accidental destruction;
• unauthorised access or acquisition;
• unlawful processing;
• alteration or disclosure; and
• misuse of personal information.

These safeguards may include access controls, authentication measures, encryption, secure website connections, backups, staff confidentiality requirements, security monitoring and contractual controls over service providers.

Although we take reasonable precautions, no internet transmission or electronic storage system can be guaranteed to be completely secure.

If we have reasonable grounds to believe that your personal information has been accessed or acquired by an unauthorised person, we will investigate the incident and notify the Information Regulator and affected data subjects as soon as reasonably possible where required by POPIA.

14. Children and Special Personal Information

This website and our vehicle sales services are not directed at children under the age of 18. We do not knowingly collect personal information from a child without the consent of a competent person or another lawful justification.

If you believe that a child has provided personal information to us without appropriate authorisation, please contact us so that we can investigate and, where appropriate, delete the information.

We do not intentionally collect special personal information unless it is necessary for a specific lawful purpose, required by law or processed with appropriate consent and safeguards.

15. Your Rights

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

• ask whether we hold personal information about you;
• request access to your personal information;
• request information about the identity or categories of third parties that have had access to your information;
• request the correction or updating of inaccurate, incomplete, misleading or outdated information;
• request the deletion or destruction of information that we are no longer authorised to retain;
• object to certain processing on reasonable grounds;
• object to direct marketing at any time;
• withdraw consent where processing is based on consent;
• not be subject to certain decisions based solely on automated processing where the decision has legal or substantial effects;
• lodge a complaint with us; and
• lodge a complaint with the Information Regulator.

To exercise any of these rights, contact our Information Officer at rola@rolagrp.co.za .

Please provide sufficient details to identify yourself, the information concerned and the right you wish to exercise. We may request reasonable proof of identity before processing your request.

We will respond within a reasonable period and in accordance with POPIA and the Promotion of Access to Information Act 2 of 2000 (“PAIA”).

Some rights may be limited where we are required or permitted by law to retain or continue processing the information, or where granting the request would adversely affect the rights of another person.

Access to certain records may be subject to the procedures and fees prescribed under PAIA.

16. Questions and Complaints

If you have a question, concern or complaint about how we process your personal information, please contact us first so that we can investigate and attempt to resolve the matter.

Information Regulator of South Africa

You may also lodge a complaint with the Information Regulator if you believe that your personal information has been processed in violation of POPIA.

17. Updates to This Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in our services, website, business practices, technology or legal obligations.

The latest version will be published on this website together with its effective date. Where a change materially affects how we process personal information, we will provide appropriate notice where reasonably possible.