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BFT’s Privacy Policy

Thank you for visiting the Ben Franklin Transit (BFT) website and reviewing our Privacy Policy. Your privacy is one of our top priorities. We view this Policy as a privacy partnership between BFT and you, our valued customer. The following Policy applies only to the use of BFT’s website. Other websites operated by BFT have different policies. We strongly suggest that you read the privacy policy for each website and any external site you visit through a link on this Site.

We seek to protect your privacy to the maximum extent possible. However, because some of the information we receive through this website is subject to the Washington State Public Records Law, we cannot ensure absolute privacy due to the nature of Internet communications. Information you provide us through this Site may be made available to members of the public under that law. This Privacy Policy is designed to explain the specific privacy protections we provide to you at our website. This Policy informs you of the information we collect from you at this Site, what we do with it, to whom it may be disseminated, and how you can access it. Based on this information, you can make an informed choice about your use of this Site. You can maximize the benefits of your privacy partnership with BFT by making informed choices about whether to share personally identifiable information with us through this Site.

Acceptance of this Privacy Policy

By using this website, you agree to the terms and conditions of this Privacy Policy. Without limitation of the foregoing, you understand and agree that (1) the information collected by BFT may be stored indefinitely; (2) BFT may store, access, and use the information in any jurisdiction, including jurisdictions in which the privacy laws may be different and less protective than those in your home jurisdiction; and (3) BFT will not share any information submitted to this Site with any other organization or individual. Please do not use this website if you do not agree to the terms and conditions of this Privacy Policy.

Changes to this Privacy Policy

BFT reserves the right to change this Privacy Policy at any time but will not do so without posting the modified Policy on our website. We encourage you to review our privacy policy whenever you visit our website to ensure you understand how your information will be used.

What information does BFT automatically collect, and how is it used?

When you visit our website, we automatically collect some basic information about your computer as part of the software operation of our website. The type of information we collect includes:

We may use this information to compile statistics on the number of daily visitors, the type and number of passes sold, the pages most frequently visited, and the length of time visitors spend on each page. These aggregated statistics help us understand our users’ needs and develop and continually improve our products and services to serve those needs better. We may also share this aggregated information with other third parties.

What are “cookies,” and how does BFT use them?

Cookies are small text files sent to your computer from the servers(s) hosting BFT’s Site and saved on your computer’s hard drive. Cookies allow BFT to personalize your experience on our website to make it more useful by enabling you to navigate our website conveniently. We use cookies to track registration and transactional information regarding the use of our website. Most browsers are initially set to accept cookies. If you prefer not to have cookies placed on your computer, most browsers allow you to decline cookies. However, if you do so, some of the conveniences they make possible may not be available, and certain portions of our website may not be accessible.

What information does BFT request you provide, and how is that information used?

When you request a trip or other product or service on our website, BFT asks you to provide certain personal information. The types of personal information BFT collects include the following:  your first and last name, telephone number, postal address, and email address. We will also ask for your credit card information regarding purchases you may make through our website. This information is used to process any orders you place on the website, customize our website, and understand our users’ needs so that we may better serve you. When you indicate that you want to purchase a pass through the BFT website, we will provide your order information to our Customer Service staff for processing. We do not sell or rent your personal information to others. We may provide aggregate statistics about our sales, products, and services purchased through our website to certain third parties. This data will not contain any personally identifiable information about you.

BFT reserves the right to disclose your personal information if required to do so by law or in the good-faith belief that such action is reasonably necessary to (1) comply with legal process, (2) respond to any claims, or (3) protect the rights, property, or personal safety of BFT and our customers.

How you can opt out

If you wish to have your name and other personal information removed from our database at any time, please let us know by writing to BFT, 1000 Columbia Park Trail, Richland, WA, 99352, Attention: Customer Service.

How is your personal information stored and protected?

BFT retains the personal information you provide when you purchase merchandise through our website indefinitely and electronically stores it in secure environments that are as inaccessible to the public as possible. We use a secure server when you place orders or access your account information. You may review, update, or correct your personal information by writing us at BFT, 1000 Columbia Park Trail, Richland, WA, 99352, Attention: Customer Service.

Links to other websites

Links from our website are provided for your convenience only. BFT is not responsible for the content of any third-party website or the privacy practices of such third parties. In addition, any link from our website to another does not indicate that BFT endorses the services or policies of such a third-party website. You should always investigate the information practices of all websites you access and carefully examine the privacy policies if any websites appear on or link to or from our website. Personal information collected from the linked websites will be subject to the information practices of those websites.

Use of this website by minors

BFT does not intend to collect information from individuals who identify themselves as under eighteen (18) years of age. If you are under eighteen (18), you should not provide information on this website and should ask your parent or authorized guardian to do so. BFT will not collect information from those individuals who identify as less than eighteen (18) years of age without verifiable consent from a parent or other authorized guardian. Your cardholder agreement governs credit card transactions initiated by minors.

Questions or concerns

If you have any questions or concerns about this Privacy Policy or how your personal information is used, please write to BFT, 1000 Columbia Park Trail, Richland, WA, 99352, Attention: Customer Service.

Does BFT share the information with anyone?

Unless a user consents to such distribution, BFT will not sell, lease, or give away personally identifiable information to other governments, organizations, or private businesses within the limits of the law.

It’s essential to know the law, as state and federal laws place an extraordinary burden on public entities such as BFT to assure the public’s right to access public records and information. Public information, as opposed to private information, involves information about regulated activity. For example, when purchasing a birth certificate online, a person’s name and birth date are public information (because the state regulates births). Still, the fact that you bought it with a specific credit card number is not (because means of purchasing are not regulated). Furthermore, public information would include correspondence with other agencies, including emails and website comments about shared processes, policies, activities, and types of general correspondence. However, certain subjects fall under the state’s Public Disclosure Act exemptions, including employee benefits questions, welfare information, and other types of client-specific data.

For details, see Revised Code of Washington 42.56.070, Documents and indexes to be made public, and the federal Freedom of Information Act.

Except for legal requirements and extreme emergencies, information on the BFT website will not be released to anyone without the user’s consent.

Disclaimer Notice

Ben Franklin Transit (BFT) makes no claims, promises, or guarantees about the accuracy, currency, completeness, or adequacy of the contents of this website. It expressly disclaims liability for errors and omissions in its contents. In the event of a conflict between this Privacy Policy and the Public Records Act or other law governing the disclosure of records, the Public Records Act or other law governing the disclosure of records, the Public Records Act or other applicable law will control.

No warranty of any kind, implied, express, or statutory, including but not limited to the warranties of non-infringement of third-party rights, title, merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, and freedom from computer virus, is given with respect to this website or its links to other Internet resources. Although we have put in place security systems (as described in this Policy) that are designed to prevent unauthorized disclosure of your personally identifiable information, due to the nature of Internet technologies, we cannot provide firm assurances as to the security of this information, and expressly disclaim any such obligation.

Site privileges

You agree to refrain from activity that imposes an unreasonable burden on the Site. We reserve the right, at our discretion, to limit the quantity of any item and/or refuse service to any customer who violates these provisions.

Choice of law and jurisdiction

This Site is controlled and operated by BFT from its location in Richland, Washington. This Policy shall be construed in accordance with the laws of the State of Washington without regard to any conflict of law provisions. Any dispute arising under this Policy shall be resolved exclusively by the state or federal courts in Benton County, Washington.