How we handle (or rather, don't handle) your data.
DriveSmarter is a static, client-side web application. This means:
In short: your financial inputs and calculation results stay on your device. We cannot see what you enter. If you sign in with Google, we only store your display name and avatar locally in your browser for convenience — never on our servers.
We do not collect, transmit, or store on any server the following:
If you sign in with Google, your name, email, and profile picture are received from Google's authentication service. These are stored only in your browser's localStorage and are never transmitted to any server we operate. We use them solely to display your name on screen and to remove the daily usage limit.
DriveSmarter uses localStorage (browser-only storage) for two limited purposes:
{"date":"2026-03-29","count":2}). This resets daily and is used to enforce the 3-free-comparisons-per-day limit for non-signed-in users.No cookies are used. Calculator inputs and results are not stored — every time you load or refresh the page, the calculator resets to its default values.
You can clear all DriveSmarter data at any time by clearing your browser's localStorage for this site, or by clicking "Sign out".
The website loads the following external resources:
These services may log standard web request data (IP address, browser type, timestamp) as part of their CDN operations. We have no control over or access to this data. If this concerns you, you can use browser extensions to block external font loading or CDN requests.
DriveSmarter does not use any analytics services. We do not use Google Analytics, Facebook Pixel, Hotjar, Mixpanel, or any other tracking or analytics tool. We have no way to know how many people use the site, which pages they visit, or how they interact with the calculator.
The website is hosted as a static site. The hosting provider may collect standard server access logs (IP address, requested URL, timestamp, HTTP status code, user agent) as part of normal web server operation. We do not actively access or analyse these logs.
DriveSmarter is a general-purpose educational tool. We do not knowingly collect any information from anyone, including children under the age of 16. Since no data is collected, no special provisions are required under the NZ Privacy Act 2020 or similar legislation regarding children's data.
Under the New Zealand Privacy Act 2020, you have rights regarding your personal information. Since DriveSmarter does not collect or store any personal information:
If you have any privacy concerns, you are welcome to contact us — though we anticipate there will be nothing to report.
Our website may contain links to external sites (e.g., NZTA, energy providers, government resources). We are not responsible for the privacy practices or content of these external sites. We encourage you to review the privacy policies of any site you visit.
We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. Any changes will be posted on this page with an updated "Last updated" date. Since we don't collect email addresses, we cannot notify you of changes directly — please review this page periodically.
If you have any questions about this Privacy Policy or DriveSmarter's privacy practices, you can raise an issue on our project repository or contact the maintainers directly.