🔒 Privacy Policy

About This Policy

Australian Travel Calculator ("we", "us", "our") is committed to protecting your privacy in accordance with the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth) and the 13 Australian Privacy Principles (APPs) contained in Schedule 1 of that Act.

This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, hold, disclose and protect your personal information when you use our website at austravelcalc.com.au (the "Site"). Please read this policy carefully. By using our Site you agree to the practices described here.

1. What Personal Information We Collect

1.1 Information you provide directly

When you use the Australian Travel Calculator, you may provide:

• Name and email address — when you sign up for the free premium features (detailed expense breakdown), the Trip Diary notification list, or the Influencer Referral programme.
• Traveller type — your selected category (e.g. Caravanner, Van Lifer, Backpacker, Motorbike) which helps us personalise your experience and allows advertisers to show more relevant ads.
• Expense data you enter — amounts for food, fuel, dining, excursions, repairs and loan repayments. This data is stored locally on your device only and is not transmitted to our servers unless you choose to save or submit a form.
• Referral code — if you arrived via an influencer referral link, we record the referral code so the referring creator can be credited.
• Influencer application details — name, email, social media handle and estimated audience size if you apply to our referral programme.

1.2 Information collected automatically

When you visit our Site, the following information may be collected automatically:

• IP address and approximate geographic location (state/territory level)
• Browser type and version, operating system, device type
• Pages visited, time on page, clicks and interactions (via Google Analytics)
• Referring URL (how you arrived at our Site)
• URL parameters, including referral codes (e.g. ?ref=influencername)

1.3 Cookies and local storage

We use browser technologies including cookies and localStorage to:

• Remember your traveller type between visits (key: atc_type)
• Store your name and email locally so you don't need to re-enter them (keys: atc_name, atc_email)
• Remember your referral code (key: atc_ref)
• Remember your cookie consent preference
• Enable Google AdSense and Google Analytics functionality

You can clear this data at any time by clearing your browser's site data for our domain, or by using your browser's incognito/private mode.

2. How We Use Your Information

We use the personal information we collect for the following purposes:

3. Third-Party Services We Use

We use the following third-party services to operate our Site. Each has its own privacy policy:

We have no control over and assume no responsibility for the content, privacy policies or practices of these third-party services. We encourage you to review their privacy policies.

4. Cookies, Advertising & Your Choices

4.1 How Google AdSense uses your data

Our Site uses Google AdSense to display advertisements. Google AdSense may:

• Use cookies to serve ads based on your prior visits to our Site and other sites on the internet
• Use the DoubleClick cookie to serve interest-based ads
• Collect data about your device and browsing behaviour across websites to build advertising profiles

4.2 Opting out of interest-based advertising

You can opt out of personalised advertising from Google by visiting Google Ad Settings. You can also opt out via the NAI opt-out page.

4.3 Types of cookies we use

4.4 Cookie banner

When you first visit our Site you will see a cookie consent banner. Selecting "Essential only" disables analytics and advertising cookies. Selecting "Accept & Continue" enables all cookies. You can change your preference at any time by clearing your browser cookies and revisiting the Site.

5. Disclosure of Your Information

We may disclose your personal information to:

• Third-party service providers listed in Section 3, only to the extent necessary to provide our services.
• Influencer partners — if you were referred by an influencer, we may confirm (to that influencer) that you signed up via their link. We will not share your name or email with influencers — only anonymous referral counts.
• Law enforcement or regulatory bodies — if required by law, court order, or to protect the safety of users or the public.
• Successors — if we sell or transfer our business, your data may be transferred as part of that transaction. We will notify you if this occurs.

We will not sell, rent or trade your personal information to any third party for their own marketing purposes.

6. Cross-Border Data Transfers (APP 8)

Some of the third-party services we use — including Google and Formspree — may store or process your data outside of Australia (for example, in the United States). Where this occurs, we take reasonable steps to ensure that these overseas recipients handle your data in a manner consistent with the Australian Privacy Principles, or we only engage with services that are subject to comparable privacy protections.

By using our Site, you consent to the transfer of your information to overseas service providers as described in this policy.

7. Data Security (APP 11)

We take reasonable steps to protect the personal information we hold from misuse, interference, loss, and unauthorised access, modification or disclosure. These steps include:

• HTTPS encryption for all data transmitted to and from our Site
• Storing minimal personal data on our own servers (most user data remains on your device)
• Using reputable, security-audited third-party services (Google, Formspree, Hostinger)
• Not storing payment or financial account information

However, no data transmission over the internet or electronic storage is completely secure. While we strive to protect your personal information, we cannot guarantee absolute security. If you have reason to believe your interaction with us is no longer secure, please contact us immediately.

8. Data Retention (APP 11.2)

We retain your personal information only for as long as necessary to fulfil the purpose for which it was collected, or as required by law:

• Email sign-up data — retained until you unsubscribe or request deletion
• Influencer application data — retained for the duration of any active referral arrangement, then deleted within 90 days of termination
• Analytics data — anonymised; retained by Google Analytics for 26 months (default) before automatic deletion
• Form submission data (Formspree) — retained in accordance with Formspree's data retention policy
• LocalStorage data (on your device) — persists until you clear your browser data
• Server/hosting logs — typically retained by Hostinger for up to 90 days

When we no longer need your personal information, we will take reasonable steps to destroy or de-identify it.

9. Your Privacy Rights (APPs 12 & 13)

Under the Australian Privacy Act 1988, you have the following rights regarding your personal information:

9.1 Right of access (APP 12)

You have the right to request access to the personal information we hold about you. We will respond to your request within a reasonable time (generally within 30 days). We may charge a small fee to cover the cost of providing access if appropriate, but we will not charge for lodging the request.

9.2 Right to correction (APP 13)

If you believe that personal information we hold about you is inaccurate, out-of-date, incomplete, irrelevant or misleading, you may request that we correct it. We will take reasonable steps to correct the information.

9.3 Right to deletion

You may request that we delete your personal information. We will do so unless we are required by law to retain it, or it is necessary for a purpose for which we are permitted to retain it under the Privacy Act.

9.4 Right to opt out

You may opt out of receiving marketing communications from us at any time by clicking the "unsubscribe" link in any email we send, or by contacting us directly.

10. Children's Privacy

Our Site is not directed at children under the age of 13. We do not knowingly collect personal information from children under 13. If you are a parent or guardian and believe we have collected information from your child, please contact us and we will promptly delete it.

11. Complaints (APP 1.4)

If you believe we have breached the Australian Privacy Principles or this Privacy Policy, you may make a complaint by contacting us at:

We will acknowledge your complaint within 5 business days and endeavour to resolve it within 30 days. If you are not satisfied with our response, you may lodge a complaint with the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner (OAIC):

• 🌐 www.oaic.gov.au/privacy/privacy-complaints
• 📞 1300 363 992
• 📬 GPO Box 5218, Sydney NSW 2001

12. Links to Other Websites

Our Site may contain links to other websites — including state government fuel price sites, app stores, and partner sites. We are not responsible for the privacy practices of those sites. We encourage you to review the privacy policies of any third-party site you visit.

13. Changes to This Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in our practices or applicable law. When we make significant changes, we will update the "Last updated" date at the top of this page. We encourage you to review this page periodically.

Your continued use of the Site after any changes indicates your acceptance of the updated policy.

14. Contact Us

For any privacy-related questions, requests or complaints, please contact our Privacy Officer:

This Privacy Policy was prepared in accordance with the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth) and the 13 Australian Privacy Principles (APPs) as administered by the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner (OAIC).