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British Columbia Ferry Services Inc.

Customer Personal Information Protection Policy

This Personal Information Protection Policy applies to BC Ferries and its affiliated or related entities and to any service providers collecting, using or disclosing personal information on behalf of BC Ferries.

BC Ferries respects the privacy of its customers and is committed to protecting customer privacy through responsible personal information management practices to ensure compliance with British Columbia’s Personal Information Protection Act (PIPA). 

Personal information is defined as information about an identifiable individual, such as a name, personal email address or a personal telephone number. Business contact information, which includes name, position or title, business address, business email and business telephone and fax number, is not considered to be personal information.

This Personal Information Protection Policy outlines the principles and practices BC Ferries follows in protecting customers’ personal information.  Our privacy commitment includes ensuring the accuracy, confidentiality, and security of our customers’ personal information and allows our customers access to and correction of their personal information.

Consent, Collection, Use & Disclosure

BC Ferries collects personal information from its customers and other individuals with whom it carries on business in order to maintain an effective business relationship. We will only collect the personal information necessary to complete the stated purpose. For instance, BC Ferries may collect a customer’s name, address, and telephone number to contact the customer about travel arrangements, to send travel information, or to complete an optional BC Ferries Coast Card registration process. Credit card numbers, however, would only be collected from a customer when required for payment purposes.

Generally, personal information is collected directly from the customer, however, we may also receive your personal information from a third party, such as a travel agent acting on your behalf, or when you have provided  consent to a third party, such as a credit card service provider. BC Ferries does not sell personal information to third parties.

Unless you voluntarily provide your personal information for an obvious purpose, BC Ferries will tell you why your personal information is being collected. It will only be used for this or a consistent purpose by BC Ferries or an organization working on our behalf, unless you consent to another purpose or as required by law.

Consent can be given orally, in writing, or electronically. It may be implicit, as in a credit card transaction, or explicit, as when given to a BC Ferries agent. Customers can withhold or withdraw their consent for BC Ferries to use their personal information in certain ways and we will tell you if this restricts our ability to provide a particular service or product.  Consent cannot be withdrawn if withdrawal would frustrate a legal obligation.

Your personal information may be collected, used or disclosed without your consent only as determined by the Personal Information Protection Act or by law. For instance, BC Ferries may collect personal information from a source other than the individual, or collect, use or disclose personal information without consent of the individual, if it is clearly in the interests of the individual and consent cannot be obtained in a timely way; when necessary for the medical treatment of an individual who is unable to give consent; or for an investigation or a proceeding when advance knowledge would compromise the availability or the accuracy of the personal information. Your personal information may be used to respond to an emergency that may threaten your life, health or security.

BC Ferries may periodically review and analyze customer use of BC Ferries services and products to better understand customer needs and preferences to develop, enhance, and market products and services.

Access, Correction & Retention

Customers may access their personal information, subject to the exceptions listed in the Personal Information Protection Act, or request a factual correction of their personal information. Registered BC Ferries Coast Card customers may update their personal information on the internet in a self-serve environment or visit BC Ferries. Otherwise, the request must be in writing and contain sufficient detail to enable BC Ferries to identify you with certainty and identify your personal information to make the correction. A minimal fee may be charged for providing access to personal information and we will inform you of any applicable fee when your request is received. Generally, a response will be provided within 30 business days, however, if a longer time is needed, we will provide you with a written notice stating the reasons for the extension.

In order to provide a personalized service, BC Ferries retains the personal information you provide. The next time you call, you will be asked to provide sufficient personal information to confirm your on-line identity so your request can be handled quickly and efficiently. The information you provide to us will be kept at least one year and will be destroyed when it is no longer necessary to retain the information for legal or business purposes.

Security

BC Ferries has physical and technological security safeguards and procedures in place to protect your personal information from unauthorized access. Security measures include locked filing cabinets, restricted access, use of user ID’s and passwords, and firewalls. Paper documents containing personal information are shredded.

Contact

Please contact us if you have questions about the personal information in our custody, how it is being used or to whom it may have been disclosed; if you have any concerns about the accuracy or completeness of your personal information; if you have any complaints about the management of your personal information; or if you would like to withdraw your consent to receive information or participate in a program. Write to the:

Privacy Compliance Coordinator
BC Ferries

Suite 500, 1321 Blanshard Street, Victoria, V8W 0B7
(250) 978-1364

About Privacy on the Web

When you browse through www.bcferries.com, you do so anonymously. BC Ferries does not collect personally identifiable information unless you provide it to us.

Our Web server automatically collects a limited amount of non-personal information essential for the operation and security of www.bcferries.com. This includes Internet Protocol (IP) address, domain name, type of computer, operating system, browser type, pages viewed and content downloaded. This information is not linked to you as an individual user. Rather, it is recorded as general statistical information, which may be used by BC Ferries to monitor use of the Web Site, improve the Web Site, and generally enable us to provide you with the best possible Web experience.

If you have a reservation query, please use one of the following contact lines:  

1-888-BC Ferry (1-888-223-3779) -- toll free in North America
(250) 386-3431 -- from outside North America
(250) 388-7754 -- Our fax number