Privacy Policy

1. Information We Collect

When you use CarJudgeAI, we collect the following types of information:

• Account information: Email address, display name, and password hash when you create an account.
• Vehicle data: VIN numbers, year, make, model, trim, mileage, and condition details you provide across all analysis modes and the My Cars digital garage.
• Photos: Vehicle exterior, interior, damage close-ups, dealer worksheets, accident scene photos, and car profile photos you upload for AI analysis or your garage.
• Insurance information: Company name, policy number, and expiration date stored in your My Cars garage for tracking and renewal reminders.
• Financial information: Ownership type (own/finance/lease), monthly payment amounts, loan balance, interest rate, loan term, and lease end date stored in My Cars for financial analysis.
• License plate numbers: Optionally stored in your My Cars garage for your convenience.
• Insurance card OCR: Photos of insurance cards you upload are processed by AI to extract company, policy, and expiration data. The photo is processed in real-time and not retained separately from your garage data.
• SmartCar integration: If you connect your vehicle via SmartCar, we access odometer, fuel level, oil life, and VIN data with your explicit OAuth consent. Access tokens are stored securely and can be revoked at any time by disconnecting in your garage.
• AI chat conversations: Questions you ask via the Ask AI feature and AI responses are processed in real-time and not stored on our servers beyond the session.
• OBD2 diagnostic codes: Trouble codes (DTC) you enter in the free DTC Analyzer tool for AI diagnosis.
• Email capture (free tools): Email addresses optionally provided when using free tools (VIN Check, DTC Analyzer) are stored in your browser's localStorage and not transmitted to our servers.
• Location data: GPS coordinates are accessed only when you explicitly use Accident Mode to share your location with your emergency contact. ZIP code is stored locally on your device for the Nearby Deals and See Your Competition features.
• Emergency contact information: Name, phone number, and relationship are stored only in your browser's local storage on your device — not on our servers.
• Payment information: Processed entirely by Stripe. We never see, store, or have access to your credit card numbers.
• Usage data: Reports generated, features used, and timestamps for improving our service.
• Device information: Browser type, operating system, and screen size for compatibility and performance.
• Voice input: When using voice-to-text in Accident Mode, audio is processed by your device's built-in Speech Recognition API. We do NOT store, transmit, or have access to audio recordings. Only the transcribed text is saved as part of your report.
• Third-party documents: In Accident Mode, you may photograph other parties' driver's licenses and insurance cards. These photos are stored securely as part of your accident report and contain personal information of third parties.
• GPS auto-detection: In Accident Mode, we use your device's GPS to automatically detect your location, which is reverse-geocoded via OpenStreetMap/Nominatim to provide a human-readable address. This occurs only when you actively use Accident Mode.
• Email capture (VIN Check): When using our free VIN Check tool, we may ask for your email to unlock full results. This email is stored locally on your device (browser localStorage) and is not transmitted to our servers.
• Rate alert subscriptions: Email, phone number (optional), rate threshold preference, and loan type interests provided when signing up for Rate Drop Alerts. Currently stored locally on your device. When we activate the notification backend, this data will be used only to send you rate drop alerts.
• Loan Calculator: The Loan Calculator is fully client-side. We do not collect, transmit, or store any financial data you enter into the calculator.

2. How We Use Your Information

• Generate AI-powered vehicle analysis reports across all five modes.
• Process payments and manage your subscription via Stripe.
• Improve our AI models, analysis accuracy, and overall service quality.
• Send account-related communications (password resets, billing notices, service updates).
• Provide features like Nearby Deals, See Your Competition, and Instant Offer links.
• Send rate drop notifications to users who opted in via the Rate Drop Alert tool (once the notification backend is activated).

3. AI Processing Disclosure

Vehicle photos, dealer worksheets, accident scene images, insurance cards, and text queries are sent to Anthropic's Claude AI for analysis. This processing occurs in real-time:

• Photos and text are transmitted securely to Anthropic's API for analysis.
• Anthropic does not retain your images or text beyond the duration of the API request.
• AI processing includes: vehicle condition analysis, damage detection, market valuation, insurance card OCR, VIN detection from photos, vehicle auto-detection from photos, DTC code diagnosis, financial advice, buyer reply generation, and Ask AI chat responses.
• AI-generated results (valuations, repair estimates, condition scores, insurance summaries, DTC diagnoses, financial recommendations) are estimates and should not be considered certified professional appraisals, inspections, diagnoses, or legal/financial advice.

4. Third-Party Services

CarJudgeAI relies on the following third-party services, each with their own privacy policies:

We also link to third-party marketplaces and services including CarGurus, Cars.com, AutoTrader, Facebook Marketplace, Carvana, CarMax, Peddle, KBB, Edmunds, Craigslist, The Zebra, and Amazon. Some of these links may be affiliate links — we may earn a commission when you click through and make a purchase. This does not affect the price you pay or the objectivity of our recommendations.

5. Location Data

• GPS location is accessed only when you explicitly use Accident Mode to include your location in the emergency SMS notification to your emergency contact.
• Your ZIP code for Nearby Deals and See Your Competition is stored only in your browser's local storage — not on our servers.
• We do not track your location in the background or for any other purpose.

5b. Third-Party Personal Information

When documenting an accident using Accident Mode, you may upload photos containing personal information of other parties:

• Driver's license photos, insurance cards, and license plate images may contain names, addresses, policy numbers, and other personal data of third parties.
• This information is stored securely as part of your accident report, encrypted at rest and in transit.
• We do not share third-party personal information with anyone except as part of your generated report (e.g., when you share it with your insurance company).
• You are responsible for handling other parties' personal information in accordance with applicable privacy laws and for obtaining appropriate consent when photographing their documents.

6. Data Retention

• Reports, analysis results, and uploaded photos are retained as long as your account is active.
• You may request deletion of your account and all associated data at any time by contacting support.
• Emergency contact information is stored only on your device (browser localStorage) and is never transmitted to our servers.
• We use essential cookies to maintain your login session. We do not use advertising or tracking cookies.
• localStorage is used on your device for: language preference, emergency contacts, ZIP code, email capture state, and SmartCar connection status. This data never leaves your browser.

7. Your Rights

• Access: Request a copy of the personal data we hold about you.
• Correction: Update or correct inaccurate information.
• Deletion: Request deletion of your account and all associated data.
• Opt out: Unsubscribe from non-essential communications at any time.

Texas residents: We comply with the Texas Data Privacy and Security Act (TDPSA). Contact us to exercise your rights under this law.

8. Children's Privacy

CarJudgeAI is not intended for users under the age of 18. We do not knowingly collect personal information from children. If you believe a child has provided us with personal data, please contact us immediately.

9. Changes to This Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. We will notify you of material changes by posting the updated policy on this page, updating the date above, and sending an email notification to your registered email address.

10. Contact Us

If you have questions about this Privacy Policy or wish to exercise your data rights, contact us: