Privacy Policy

Effective date: June 11, 2026  ·  Last updated: June 11, 2026

Instamate ("we," "us," or "our") operates instamate.app, an AI-powered collision repair estimating and shop referral platform. This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, disclose, and protect your information when you use our services.

1. Information We Collect

We collect the following categories of personal information:

• Contact information: name, email address, phone number
• Vehicle information: year, make, model, VIN
• Damage information: photos of vehicle damage, written descriptions of how damage occurred
• Location information: ZIP code or address used to locate nearby repair shops
• Technical data: IP address, browser type, device identifiers, pages visited, and timestamps
• Payment information: billing details processed by Stripe (we do not store raw card numbers)
• SMS communication records: records of SMS messages sent to and from your phone number in connection with our shop referral service

2. How We Use Your Information

• Generate AI-powered collision damage estimates for your review
• Match you with licensed collision repair shops in your area
• Send SMS messages to notify you about shop referral status and confirmations
• Send transactional emails (estimate delivery, receipts, confirmations)
• Enable repair shops to manage job status, supplements, and invoicing
• Process subscription payments for shop accounts
• Improve our AI models and platform performance
• Comply with legal obligations and resolve disputes

3. SMS Consent and Opt-Out

How you consent: By submitting a shop referral request on our platform or by signing a repair authorization form (Form V1), you expressly consent to receive SMS text messages from Instamate and participating repair shops. These messages may include referral status updates, repair authorizations, appointment confirmations, and job status notifications.

Message frequency: Message frequency varies based on your interactions with our platform. You may receive up to several messages per repair job.

Opt-out: Reply STOP to any SMS message to opt out of future messages. After opting out, you will receive a single confirmation message and no further SMS messages will be sent.

Help: Reply HELP to any SMS message for assistance, or contact us at [email protected].

Message and data rates may apply. Check with your mobile carrier for details.

Mobile opt-in data and consent will never be shared with, sold to, or used by third parties or lead generators for marketing or promotional purposes. Mobile opt-in consent is not a condition of purchase or use of any Instamate service.

4. Sharing with Third Parties

We share your information only as necessary to provide our services:

• Supabase — cloud database and authentication provider that stores your account and job data
• Anthropic — AI provider that processes vehicle damage descriptions and photos to generate estimates
• Twilio — SMS messaging provider that delivers text messages to consumers and shops
• Resend — transactional email provider that delivers estimate and confirmation emails
• Stripe — payment processor for shop subscription billing and invoice payments
• Google Maps Platform — location services used to find nearby repair shops
• Repair shops: when you request a referral, your name, phone number, vehicle information, and damage summary are shared with participating shops to facilitate contact

We do not sell your personal information to third parties for marketing purposes.

5. Data Retention

We retain your data for as long as necessary to provide our services and comply with applicable law:

• Estimate and job records: retained for a minimum of 3 years in accordance with California Bureau of Automotive Repair (BAR) recordkeeping requirements
• Account data: retained while your account is active and for 2 years after closure
• SMS opt-out records: retained indefinitely to honor your preferences
• Payment records: retained as required by Stripe and applicable tax law

6. California Privacy Rights (CCPA)

If you are a California resident, you have the following rights under the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA):

• Right to know: request disclosure of the categories and specific pieces of personal information we have collected about you
• Right to delete: request deletion of your personal information, subject to certain exceptions
• Right to opt out of sale: we do not sell personal information; no opt-out is required
• Right to non-discrimination: we will not discriminate against you for exercising any CCPA rights

To exercise these rights, contact us at [email protected]. We will respond within 45 days.

7. Security

We use industry-standard security measures including encrypted connections (HTTPS/TLS), access controls, and secure third-party infrastructure. No method of transmission over the internet is 100% secure; we cannot guarantee absolute security.

8. Children's Privacy

Our services are not directed to individuals under 18 years of age. We do not knowingly collect personal information from children. If you believe a child has provided us with personal information, contact us immediately.

9. Changes to This Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. We will post the revised policy with an updated effective date. Continued use of our services after changes are posted constitutes your acceptance of the revised policy.

10. Contact Us

For questions, requests, or concerns about this Privacy Policy, contact:

Instamate
Email: [email protected]