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Petro respects consumer
privacy and does not rent or sell customer
information to third parties. We also give
consumers the option to opt-out from our
marketing contacts such as direct mail. If
you have any questions or concerns about
privacy, call 1-800-OIL-HEAT.
Unregistered Web Visitor
Privacy
No personal information,
such as a visitor's name, address, email
address, or telephone number, is
automatically collected on our web site, nor
do we knowingly probe visitor computers for
such information. We do collect visitor
internet technical statistics, including IP
addresses, referrers, type of browser and
type of workstation used. With this
information, we gain insight into how
visitors find us on the internet, how many
Windows vs. Mac users visit, and help us to
decide how much to invest in compatibility
with different browsers. Almost always, this
information is only used in the aggregate.
The exception to this is when such
information is required by law enforcement
or Petro specialists to detect or deter
improper or fraudulent use of the web site.
Registered Web User and
Customer Privacy Policy
A "registered" user is one
who has elected to establish an ongoing,
personalized experience with the Company
through our web site and related resources.
Most registered users are Petro home heating
fuel or service customers. Petro may use
personal information you submit to this site
for research, advertising and marketing
purposes, including sending you information
about products and services that we think
you will be interested in.
A Petro customer, of course,
may not be a registered web user, but the
Company is committed to privacy safeguards
for information gathered through non-web
methods as well.
Opt-out Policy: You
can instruct Petro not to use your
information for marketing and educational
purposes by contacting us at Customer
Service (please provide your registration
information or Petro account number).
However, Petro is committed to communicating
with you in meaningful ways that we feel
will be to your advantage. For instance, our
marketing materials may include tips for
heating and cooling, or suggestions on how
best to manage a Petro account.
Registered customers may
have access to private information collected
by the Company. Whether or not this
information is delivered through the Petro
web site, customers should be informed that
Petro collects various information about its
customers as part of routine business
operations, including, but not limited to:
-
ordinary business
transactions, such as fuel deliveries,
service history and payments
-
credit information from
third party bureaus
-
billing, service and
delivery addresses and contact
information
-
characteristics of
heating and system used
-
information provided on
print or web forms, such as applications
for service
Information Disclosure to
Others
Other than to our own
service suppliers (vendors), information is
only disclosed to third parties when Petro
is compelled by law to cooperate with
governmental authorities, such as to respond
to subpoenas or other legitimate inquiries.
Cookies and Standard Web
Practices
Petro's web site makes use
of cookies for some features. It's not
required to visit all pages on our site, but
you will need to enable cookies to perform
some functions. A "cookie" is a small text
file that is stored on your computer when
you access a web site. Cookies can perform
useful functions, such as allowing you to
return to the web site and be recognized
without having to restart an authentication
process.
Browsers such as Microsoft
Internet Explorer allow you to block the
storage of cookies. Be advised that some
functions will not work properly without
cookies.
In general, cookies are used
to identify a session as unique. Petro does
not use cookies for systematic tracking of
its customers other than the methods
mentioned below.
Web Usage Tracking:
To understand and improve the web experience
for visitors and customers, Petro employs
various software tracking techniques to
produce web site traffic reports. These
reports compile individual user visits
anonymously.
Secure Transmissions to
Our Servers: A widely used encryption
technology called SSL is used to encode
sensitive information when you transmit it
to us through the web. This is the same
technology used by your banks. Once it is
saved on our servers, we utilize a
combination of operational, procedural and
physical safeguards to secure it from
unauthorized use or compromise. To further
reduce risk of compromise, not all data on
customer accounts is available through
www.petro.com.
Email Security:
Sensitive information about customer
accounts is not transmitted via email.
Visitors and customers are reminded that
email is not a secure transmission method,
and should not be used to exchange private
information with Petro, especially account
numbers and permanent passwords.
Information Accuracy:
Part of the responsibility for storing
private information securely on behalf of
visitors and customers is to provide a means
of correcting information you find to be
inaccurate. Petro provides a means for
online updating and verification of all
information you provide to us through the
website. Other customer information
displayed on the site but collected through
other business transactions we conduct with
you can be updated by phone by contacting
our customer service center at
1-800-OIL-HEAT.
Privacy At Other Sites
When we provide links to
other sites that we believe you may find
useful, be advised that when you visit those
sites, you will be operating under their
individual privacy policies. We encourage
you to carefully review their respective
privacy policies. |
