Privacy Notice

Notice Last Updated: July 31, 2017

Welcome to the Privacy Notice of the Avis, Budget and Payless companies within the Avis Budget Group, Inc. and their subsidiaries and affiliates, including, without limitation Avis Rent A Car System, LLC, Budget Rent A Car System, Inc., Budget Truck Rental, LLC and Payless Car Rental, Inc. (we refer to these companies as “ABG,” “we,” “us,” or “our” in this Privacy Notice). 

This Privacy Notice does not apply to those Avis, Budget or Payless locations that are owned and operated by an independent licensee not owned nor controlled by ABG or any ABG affiliate or subsidiary. Click here to learn more about independent locations.

ABG may change portions of this Privacy Notice from time to time, so be sure to check back. If we make a change that significantly affects your rights, we will notify you by way of a prominent posting on our websites, e-mail and/or postal mail prior to the change becoming effective. 

• Getting Started
• Renting Vehicle
• Vehicle Data
• Photos & Videos
• Online Data
• Online Advertising
• Marketing
• Social Media
• Analytics
• Children
• Information Sharing
• Your Choices
• Safeguards
• Storage and Retention
• Your California Privacy Rights
• Access and Correction
• Key Contacts
• Independent Locations

GETTING STARTED

ABG wants you to feel comfortable about giving us access to your personal information. Use this Privacy Notice to find out what happens to your personal information when you interact with ABG and what choices you have.

This Privacy Notice does not apply to our independent licensee locations . Please review the privacy notices of our independent licensees for information on how they use personal information that you provide to them.

This Privacy Notice covers the personal information the ABG companies collect, use and disclose through your use of our products and services either online or offline.

ABG needs to collect personal information from you to rent a vehicle or provide our other services. We collect personal information when you give it to us, such as by telephone, fax, postal mail, email, at the counter, upon completion of an application or enrollment form, or through your use of one of ABG’s website or mobile Apps or the use of our products and services.

Sometimes, we may combine your personal information with other information we received from other sources so we can provide you a more customized and hassle-free experience. We may obtain personal information about you from a third party, such as through a travel agent, an account program connected with your employer or association. Additionally, our affiliates and third parties may provide us with information about you.

We may also automatically collect technical information about your devices when you use our website and App. To learn about our online data collection, go to the Online Data section.

Any disputes regarding how we handle your personal information will be governed by the terms of your vehicle rental or the terms of use of our website or App, unless otherwise required by applicable law.

This may include mandatory arbitration of disputes.

RENTING A VEHICLE 

When you make a reservation, rent a vehicle or join one of our programs, we collect personal information from you, such as:

• Name.

• Email address.

• Home and/or business address.

• Telephone numbers at which we can reach you.

• Date of birth.

• Payment information such as your credit or debit card details (security code is obtained for transaction only – we do not keep it).

• Information from driver’s license and/or other government issued identification.

• Special discount codes, partner member numbers, association memberships (for discounts, special privileges and points programs). and other information that may be required to rent you a vehicle and/or provide you with services.

We may also collect demographic information about you such as your age, gender, habits or preferences, where you rented the vehicle, were any special needs or equipment requested, whether you are part of a corporate or rewards program, where and when you returned the vehicle, customer service inquiries or complaints, payment arrangements, insurance preferences, gas consumption, mileage, accident history and other information related to the vehicle and your use of it. We use this information to administer your rental and also to better understand our customers and provide you with relevant offers.

Some vehicles come equipped with a global positioning system (GPS) or similar type tracking device that may also collect information about the vehicle. To learn about vehicle data we collect, scroll down to read about Vehicle Data.

When you purchase a gift certificate, we may collect the name and mailing address of the gift recipient in order to fulfill your order. We will only use this information for the specific reason for which it is provided. If you believe that one of your contacts has provided us with your personal information and you would like to request that it be removed from our database, please contact our customer service at the details below.

The information we collect is used to provide you with our great services (for example, renting a vehicle and providing discounts and offers) and for our business purposes (research and development of new products and services and enforcing our legal rights).

One more thing: when you call us (from any phone), we may record or monitor the call for qualify control, training or similar purposes.

VEHICLE DATA

Some vehicles you rent from ABG may be equipped with devices which allow us to send commands to and receive certain information from the vehicle, including geolocation data from a global positioning system (GPS). These devices are turned on all the time, even when other services or other media in the vehicle is turned off. ABG and its partners may collect and process vehicle data about the vehicle itself, such as fuel level, odometer, speed, diagnostic and performance data, tire pressure, accident or damage data, and location and direction of travel data. We do not use this information to profile your driving behavior. This information assists us in providing our services (such as responding to unlocking door requests, remote start and stop and our unattended vehicle pick-up and return), software updates, product support, locating and responding to accidents, identifying reported lost, not returned, suspected of being stolen and stolen vehicles and as may be requested by law enforcement agencies. We may also use this information to determine certain fees to be charged in connection with our services.

This data also helps us understand vehicle related behavior such as traffic patterns, fuel efficiency, vehicle usage, environmental impacts and vehicle maintenance improvement. We may share vehicle data with third parties who assist us in providing and improving our services and with law enforcement agencies and others to protect our rights or to enforce the terms and conditions of our services. To learn about how we share the data we collect, scroll down to Information Sharing .

Services such as OnStar or other similar manufacturer provided features, which may be included in your rental, may collect vehicle data as well. We encourage you to go check out their privacy practices.

If during your rental you connect or pair your mobile device with the car (for instance via Bluetooth® or usb port), please unpair your device and delete any personal data stored on the car’s infotainment system. 

PHOTOS & VIDEO

ABG may collect photos and videos in some instances, such as when you link your ABG account with your social media profile. ABG rental locations are also equipped with video security surveillance systems as well as cameras that record as our vehicles depart/enter our lots. 

ONLINE DATA

When you download, visit and use our websites and/or Apps, ABG automatically collects technical information. This section tells you more about what technical information we collect and why we collect it.

IP Addresses & other information collected automatically: We may collect your IP address when you visit our websites to help us diagnose problems with our main computers, for system administration, to report aggregated information to our business partners, and to audit the use of our website. We do not 4 normally link IP addresses to anything personally identifiable. In select circumstances, we may use IP addresses to help us identify you when we feel it is necessary to enforce compliance with our Website Terms of Use or to protect our service, site, users or others. We may also collect your browser type, Internet Service Provider (ISP), referring/exit pages, the files viewed on our site (e.g., HTML pages, graphics, etc.), operating system, date/time stamp, and/ or clickstream data to analyze trends in the aggregate and administer the site.

Cookies & other similar technologies: We use cookies, scripts, pixel tags, etags, web beacons and other similar technologies to help us recognize you, remember your previous rentals, your travel preferences, etc., so you don’t have to tell us over and over again! This helps us make the website more convenient and efficient. We also use these technologies to track website usage trends and patterns, personalize features, and tailor advertisements to you and provide you with a personalized marketing experience. We share website usage information about visitors with selected third parties for the purpose of targeting our Internet advertisements on our websites and other websites that display our advertisements. You can control your cookies and other technology preferences by going to your browser settings and tools. To learn more about our interest-based online marketing programs, read the sections below on Online Advertising and Your Choices.

Mobile Analytics: When you download and use our Avis, Budget or Payless Car Rental Apps, we use mobile analytics software to help us better understand the functionality of our App on your mobile device. Our analytics may record how often you use the App, how you use the App, aggregated usage, performance data and where you downloaded the App from. We do not link the analytic information to any personal information you submit while using the App. Scroll down to read more about how we use information for research under Analytics. 

Mobile GPS and Push Notifications: If you let us, we may collect location markers using the GPS in your device or WIFI routers. Knowing approximately where you are helps the App provide you better service, such as finding the nearest Avis, Budget or Payless rental location near you. This also helps us send you push notifications or other communications based on your location (for example, nearby special offers) and for providing certain services such as arrival and return notifications, providing information about vehicle location, available upgrades, etc. We will only share this information with our mapping provider for the purpose of providing you our services. To ensure you receive proper notifications, we will need to collect certain information about your device such as operating system and user identification information. If you change your mind about sharing your location or receiving push notifications from the App, adjust the settings of your mobile device to turn off transmission of geolocation data or to stop transmission of push notifications at any time. Just remember if you do turn these features off, you will not receive information tailored to your location or special locations-based offers.

ONLINE ADVERTISING

ABG uses third-parties to provide online or electronic ads on our behalf. These third parties use data about your visits to our websites and Apps usage to send you customized ads that may be of interest to you. This information is collected using cookies, scripts, pixel tags, etags, web beacons and other similar technologies by ABG and our third-party advertising partners. To learn more about our interest-based online marketing programs, read the sections above on Online Data.

Want to learn about targeted advertising and what choices you have when it comes to marketing? U.S. visitors click here: http://www.networkadvertising.org/choices or here http://www.aboutads.info/choices. Canadian visitors click here: http://www.networkadvertising.org/choices/ or http://youradchoices.ca/choices/. Please note that if you opt out of targeted advertising you will continue to receive general ads.

MARKETING

ABG sometimes also shares personal information with third-parties to help us with our marketing and promotional projects, such as managing our social media pages, running contests, sweepstakes and other promotions, or sending marketing communications.

Don’t want to receive promotional and marketing emails and text messages from ABG and our partners? No problem! You can withdraw your consent at any time. See Your Choices below to find out how.

Do you live in California? See Your California Privacy Rights to read about your rights to receive certain information about ABG’s use and sharing of personal information for marketing purposes. 

SOCIAL MEDIA

Link Your Profile

You may be able to link your favorite social media profile such as, Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and Google with your Avis, Budget and Payless account. This can help personalize and streamline your ABG experience. It’s optional, and you can link and unlink your account at any time.

If you do decide to link, ABG may collect some of the following personal information from your social media profile:

• Profile picture, gender, marital status, sexual preference, birthday.

• Your list of friends (but we don’t collect information from their social media profile unless they’ve also linked their profile to their ABG account).

• Professional information such as your current and prior work history and personal likes, activities and interest information.

Why are we collecting the above information? To help us:

• Customize offers and deals on our website.

• Send you relevant email offers with special deals and discounts.

• Send you relevant offers by mobile phone text messages.

• update your profile information on our website.

• allow you to publish check-in and check-out information to your linked social media accounts.

• allow you to share your upcoming trips with friends and allow you to view your friends’ that have linked their profiles upcoming trips.

Want to unlink your account from your social media profile?

Log into each ABG account that you have linked, and then click “Unlink” next to the social media profile you want to unlink.

We may discontinue this linking feature at any time.

Social Sharing

ABG lets you share some ABG online content on social media websites through hosted sharing links and icons. You should remember that sharing content and links through your social media profile may be viewed by the public, and that you are subject to that social media website’s privacy policy. We encourage you to read the privacy policies of any website you visit.

ABG does not track or store a record of those social media comments, sharing or other actions.

If you choose to participate in posting or sharing activities, you should remember that it may be viewed by the public via ABG’s website, in RSS feeds, APIs (application program interfaces) and may also be made available to other websites. As a result, your public activities may appear on third-party websites, blogs, or feeds. ABG isn’t responsible for the information that may be shared publicly.

Other Social Media Features

Our websites may include social media features, such as the Facebook Like button. These features may collect your IP address, which page you are visiting on our website, and may set a cookie so that the Like button feature works properly! Social media features are governed by the privacy policies of the website providing the feature, not ABG’s.

ANALYTICS 

We use analytic software, such as Google Analytics and others, to help us to better understand the functionality of our software on our websites and Apps on your device. This software may record information such as how often you use our App, which features you use or don’t use in the App, aggregated usage, performance data, and where the App was downloaded from. This information isn’t connected to you.

Want to learn about all the data and happenings when you visit our websites or use our Apps? Learn more under the Online Data section. 

CHILDREN 

ABG’s websites, Apps and services are not for children under the age of 13. This includes any links to other websites that we provide for your convenience. We don’t knowingly collect personal information from children for any reason. If you think ABG has received personal information of your child or another minor, please contact us as the information at the bottom of this Privacy Notice. 

INFORMATION SHARING

ABG may use and share your personal information and vehicle data to affiliated and non-affiliated organizations (partners, service providers, independent licensees, travel agents, your employer or organization, brokers, booking engines, credit card issuers, etc.), that help us:

• Make and confirm your rental reservation.

• Verify drivers licenses or other government identification.

• Verify safe driver criteria for qualified drivers.

• Provide our rewards program and update partner points and rewards.

• Verify eligibility to use designated account and discount codes.

• Process payments and refunds.

• Fraud check.

• Connect with your corporate and commercial accounts.

• Assist with navigation assistance or itinerary planning.

• Provide customer assistance.

• Handle debt collection.

• Resolve toll, traffic or parking violations.

• Processing any claims relating to accidents and/or injuries.

• Providing roadside assistance services.

• To protect or defend the rights or well-being of us, our employees, customers or others.and as otherwise needed to provide the services you have requested.

If you are renting with a corporate, membership or other similar commercial entity account, we may share personal information with the organization that manages the account for their own purposes. We recommend you review their privacy policy to learn more about their privacy practices.

We share personal information with government, regulatory and law enforcement agencies in the following circumstances:

• To verify your driver’s license and ensure you meet our safe driver criteria.

• As requested by these agencies if the disclosure is required or permitted by law.

• To take action regarding illegal activities or violations of terms of service.

• If we have a good faith belief that there is an emergency that poses a threat to the safety of you or another person and as otherwise required or permitted by law. 

We may also transfer or assign your personal information to third parties as a result of, or in connection with a sale, merger, consolidation, change in control, transfer of assets, bankruptcy, reorganization, or liquidation.

We share your information with business and promotional partners to send you information about products and services you may like. If you decide you no longer want to receive promotional and marketing messages, read the next section – Your Choices – to find out how you can opt-out. 

YOUR CHOICES

Want to opt out of receiving promotional and marketing emails and text messages from ABG or our promotional partners? No problem! You can opt out in a few ways:

• Log into your account and update your profile.

• Click “unsubscribe” at the bottom of an email we sent you.

• Go to our Key Contacts section below to email the customer service representative suited for you.

To stop receiving promotional text messages:

• For our Avis customers text the word “STOP” to 48400.

• For our Budget customers text the word “STOP” to 36300.

If you do opt out of receiving promotional and marketing messages, we can still contact you regarding our business relationship with you, such as account
status and activity updates, survey requests after you rent from us, reservation confirmations or respond to your inquiries or complaints, and similar
communications.

Want to close your account, stop doing business with ABG, or otherwise opt out of ABG collecting, using or disclosing your personal information? We will be sorry to see you go. Please contact our customer service representatives.

SAFEGUARDS 

The security of your personal information is important to us. We take reasonable steps to make sure your information is protected from unauthorized use, access, disclosure, alteration, destruction or loss. For more sensitive personal information, we use firewalls and Transport Layer Security (TLS) encryption.

We do not ask for sensitive information, such as your credit card number, passcode, account number or pin number, in an e-mail, text or on a website not operated by ABG or its affiliates. If you do receive a suspicious request, do not provide your information and report it by contacting one our customer service representatives below.

You are responsible for keeping your account passcode, membership numbers and pin numbers safe and secure. Don’t share those with anyone! If there is an unauthorized use or any other breach of security involving your information, you must notify us at the customer service contact information below as soon as possible! ABG is not responsible or liable for any loss or damage if your account passcode, membership numbers and pin numbers are stolen or used inappropriately. 

STORAGE AND RETENTION

ABG, just like our customers, are all over the world. ABG stores your personal information in the United States. Sometimes, ABG may need to transfer your information to locations outside the United States as part of our normal business operations, and the information may be subject to laws of other countries. If so, ABG takes reasonable steps to ensure your information is treated and protected similarly as if it were in the United States. This Privacy Notice is intended to be governed by the laws of the State of New Jersey and meet the laws and requirements of the United States, which may not necessarily be consistent with the laws and regulations of the country where you live.

ABG keeps your personal information for as long as you have an account with Avis, Budget, Budget Truck Rental, Payless, or as needed to provide you our services. If you close your account or request we provide you our services, we may retain your information because we have legal, auditing or account obligations or it is in our archive system and cannot be separated from other information.

YOUR CALIFORNIA PRIVACY RIGHTS

Do you live in California? California Civil Code Section 1798.83 states that our California users have the right to receive specific information about how ABG discloses personal information to others for their marketing purposes, and what choices they have. To make such a request contact: [email protected].

If you are a California resident under the age of 18 and you have publicly posted any information on our websites or our App, California Business and Professions Code Section 22581 permits you to request and obtain removal of content or information you have publicly posted. If you wish to make such a request, please send an email with a detailed description of the specific content or information to [email protected]. Please be aware there may be circumstances in which the law does not require or allow removal even if requested.

Further, ABG is required to alert you how our websites react to Do Not Track signals. Some browsers support a “Do Not Track” feature, which is intended to be a signal to websites that you do not wish to be tracked across different websites you visit. Websites operated by ABG do not currently change the way they operate based upon detection of a Do Not Track or similar signal.

Want to know what other rights and choices you have for all kinds of privacy things? Check out the Your Choices section above. 

ACCESS AND CORRECTION

Want to know if ABG has your personal information on file? Need to update your contact details or other information? Want ABG to delete your personal information? You play an active role in helping ABG keep your information up to date and accurate.

You can update some of your information by logging into your account and editing your profile, or you can contact our customer service at the details below for assistance in accessing, correcting or deleting your personal information. We will respond to your request within a reasonable timeframe.

We may take steps to verify your identity before granting access to your information or making corrections or deletion. Sometimes, we may not be able to provide you access or make the corrections, and will let you know how you can challenge our decision. Sometimes, we may not be able to delete your information, as explained in the storage and Retention section above.

KEY CONTACTS

Want to talk to us? Check the list below to find out the best way to reach us. When you contact us, we may take steps to verify your identity for security purposes.

IF YOU EVER HAVE A PRIVACY-RELATED ISSUE WITH ABG YOU SHOULD CONTACT US FIRST, AND IF AFTER YOU AREN’T SATISFIED — CONTACT OUR U.S.-BASED THIRD PARTY DISPUTE RESOLUTION PROVIDER (FREE OF CHARGE) AT HTTPS://FEEDBACK-FORM.TRUSTE.COM/WATCHDOG/REQUEST.

INDEPENDENT LOCATIONS

Did you know that many Avis, Budget or Payless locations are independently owned and operated? Each of these locations collects, uses and discloses personal information for its own purposes. ABG does not control the independent licensee’s or franchisee’s use of this personal information. Please ask to review the privacy notice for that location.

When you are dealing with an independent location, the licensee or franchisee is responsible for collecting and processing payment and may engage in its own email campaigns and other forms of marketing to you. ABG is not responsible for the compliance of the independent location with privacy laws. However, if you believe the independent location is violating privacy laws, you may report this to ABG’s Privacy Officer at [email protected].

THIS WEBSITE IS OPERATED AND MAINTAINED BY ENERGIZEE TECHNOLOGIES, LLC & MCR (“ENERGIZEE”), A FLORIDA LIMITED LIABILITY COMPANY AND AN INDEPENDENT CONTRACTOR DULY AUTHORIZED AND APPROVED BY ABG. THIS PRIVACY NOTICE SHALL APPLY TO ENERGIZEE, AS AN AUTHORIZED CONTRACTOR OF ABG, AND TO ITS USE AND DISSEMINATION BY ENERGIZEE. ENERGIZEE, HOWEVER, IS ONLY A TECHNOLOGY SERVICE, PAYMENT PROCESSING, AND REMOTE CUSTOMER SERVICE PROVIDER, AND IS NOT ENGAGED IN RENDERING RENTAL CAR SERVICES OR OTHER PRODUCTS OR SERVICES DIRECTLY OFFERED, SOLD AND/OR RENDERED BY ABG OR ANY OF ITS SUBSIDIARIES, AFFILIATES OR INDEPENDENT LICENSEES OR FRANCHISEES OF AVIS, BUDGET OR PAYLESS LOCATIONS. IN NO WAY SHALL ENERGIZEE BE LIABLE, IN ANY WAY, TO ABG, ANY OF ITS SUBSIDIARIES, AFFILIATES OR INDEPENDENT LICENSEES OR FRANCHISEES OF AVIS, BUDGET OR PAYLESS LOCATIONS, OR ANY THIRD-PARTY, FOR ANY ACTS, CONDUCT OR OMISSIONS OF ABG OR ANY OF ITS SUBSIDIARIES, AFFILIATES OR INDEPENDENT LICENSEES OR FRANCHISEES OF AVIS, BUDGET OR PAYLESS LOCATIONS, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO RENTAL CAR SERVICES, ANY VIOLATION OF PRIVACY LAWS, OR A BREACH