Effective Date: 18 May 2026 | Last Updated: 18 May 2026
1. Introduction
Auction Central (Pty) Ltd (“Auction Central”, “we”, “our”, or “us”) is committed to protecting your privacy and handling your personal information responsibly, in compliance with the Protection of Personal Information Act 4 of 2013 (“POPIA”) and all applicable South African privacy legislation.
This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, store, share, and protect personal information when you visit our website at www.auctioncentral.co.za, register to bid, list a property with us, or otherwise interact with our services.
By using our website or services, you confirm that you have read and understood this Privacy Policy.
2. Who We Are
Auction Central (Pty) Ltd is the responsible party for the personal information we process. Our contact details are:
• Registered Name: Auction Central (Pty) Ltd
• Website: www.auctioncentral.co.za
• Address: The Interchange, 22 Skeen Boulevard, Bedfordview
• Email: hello@auctioncentral.co.za
• Telephone: 010 880 4750
3. Information We Collect
We collect personal information only to the extent necessary to provide our auction and real estate services. The categories of personal information we may collect include:
3.1 Information You Provide Directly
• Full name
• Email address
• Phone or cell number
• Location or area of interest
• Property type preferences
• Identity documents (where required for bidder registration or regulatory compliance)
• Any other information you choose to submit through our contact, registration, or enquiry forms
3.2 Information Collected Automatically
• IP address and browser type
• Pages visited and time spent on our website
• Device type and operating system
• Referral URLs and clickstream data
This information is collected via cookies and similar technologies to help us improve website performance and user experience.
3.3 Information from Third Parties
We may receive information about you from estate agency partners, referral sources, or third-party service providers acting on our behalf, where lawful to do so.
4. How We Use Your Information
We process your personal information for the following lawful purposes:
• To register you as a bidder and facilitate participation in property auctions
• To respond to your enquiries, contact requests, or property alert subscriptions
• To send you information about upcoming auctions, sold properties, and market intelligence relevant to your stated interests
• To fulfil our contractual and legal obligations in connection with property transactions
• To comply with applicable laws, regulations, and the instructions of regulatory authorities
• To improve our website, services, and marketing based on aggregated analytics
• To prevent fraud, unauthorised access, and other unlawful activity
We will not process your personal information for purposes incompatible with those listed above without obtaining your prior consent.
5. Legal Basis for Processing
Under POPIA, we process your personal information on one or more of the following lawful grounds:
• Consent — you have given us express consent to process your information for a specific purpose (e.g. property alerts or marketing communications).
• Contract — processing is necessary to perform a contract to which you are a party or to take steps at your request before entering into a contract.
• Legal obligation — processing is necessary for compliance with a legal obligation that applies to us.
• Legitimate interest — processing is necessary for our legitimate business interests, provided these do not override your rights and interests.
6. Sharing of Personal Information
We do not sell, rent, or trade your personal information. We may share your personal information with:
• Estate agency partners and property professionals involved in a transaction you are participating in
• Service providers who assist us with website hosting, IT support, email marketing, analytics, and payment processing — all bound by appropriate data processing agreements
• Regulatory bodies, law enforcement, or courts where required by law or legal process
• Professional advisors such as attorneys and auditors, where necessary
Any third party that receives your personal information is required to keep it confidential and to use it only for the purpose for which it was disclosed.
7. Cookies and Tracking Technologies
Our website uses cookies and similar technologies to enhance your browsing experience and collect analytical data. Cookies are small text files stored on your device.
We use the following types of cookies:
• Essential cookies — required for the website to function properly.
• Analytical/performance cookies — help us understand how visitors interact with our website (e.g. Google Analytics).
• Marketing cookies — used to deliver relevant property and auction information to you.
You may disable cookies through your browser settings; however, this may affect certain features of our website.
8. Retention of Personal Information
We retain your personal information only for as long as is necessary to fulfil the purposes for which it was collected, to comply with our legal and regulatory obligations, or as required by applicable law. When personal information is no longer required, it will be securely deleted or anonymised.
9. Security of Personal Information
We implement appropriate technical and organisational measures to protect your personal information against unauthorised access, disclosure, alteration, or destruction. These measures include encrypted data transmission, secure servers, and access controls.
While we take every reasonable precaution, no method of transmission over the internet is completely secure. In the event of a data breach that is likely to prejudice your rights, we will notify you and the Information Regulator in accordance with POPIA.
10. Your Rights Under POPIA
As a data subject, you have the following rights in respect of your personal information:
• Right of access — to request confirmation of whether we hold personal information about you and to receive a copy of that information.
• Right to correction — to request that inaccurate, incomplete, or outdated personal information be corrected or updated.
• Right to erasure — to request the deletion of your personal information in certain circumstances.
• Right to object — to object to the processing of your personal information for legitimate interests or direct marketing purposes.
• Right to withdraw consent — where processing is based on consent, to withdraw that consent at any time, without affecting the lawfulness of prior processing.
• Right to lodge a complaint — to lodge a complaint with the Information Regulator of South Africa if you believe your rights have been violated.
To exercise any of these rights, please contact us at hello@auctioncentral.co.za. We will respond within a reasonable time and in accordance with POPIA requirements.
11. Information Regulator
If you are dissatisfied with our handling of your personal information or our response to a rights request, you may lodge a complaint with the Information Regulator of South Africa:
• Website: www.justice.gov.za/inforeg
• Email: inforeg@justice.gov.za
• Tel: 010 023 5207
12. Third-Party Websites
Our website may contain links to third-party websites, including those of our estate agency partners. We are not responsible for the privacy practices of those websites and encourage you to review their privacy policies independently.
13. Children’s Privacy
Our services are intended for adults and we do not knowingly collect personal information from persons under the age of 18. If you believe we have inadvertently collected information from a minor, please contact us immediately so that we may delete it.
14. Changes to This Policy
We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in our practices, technology, or legal requirements. The updated policy will be published on our website with a revised effective date. We encourage you to review this page periodically.
15. Contact Us
If you have any questions, concerns, or requests relating to this Privacy Policy or the handling of your personal information, please contact us:
• Email: hello@auctioncentral.co.za
• Telephone: 010 880 4750
• Address: The Interchange, 22 Skeen Boulevard, Bedfordview
• Website: www.auctioncentral.co.za