Privacy Policy

1. Who We Are

RaceBench is a radio-controlled (RC) motorsport platform that helps drivers, clubs, and partners track race results, analyse performance, and grow the sport. For the purposes of UK data protection law, RaceBench is the data controller responsible for your personal data.

Data Protection Owner: David Tipping
Email: support@racebench.app
Website: racebench.app

If you have any questions about this policy or how we handle your personal data, please contact us at the email address above.

2. Information We Collect

We collect the following categories of personal data:

Account data

• Name, email address, and authentication credentials (including OAuth tokens from Google sign-in)
• Profile information: display name, avatar, bio, RC racing preferences
• Billing information processed by Stripe (we do not store full card numbers)

Race data

• Direct collection: lap times, race results, finishing positions, transponder IDs, penalties, and DNF/DNS/DSQ statuses uploaded via our timing software or entered manually
• Scraped from public sources: historical race results collected from publicly available websites including RC Results, bbkRC, and MyRCM to build driver profiles and statistics
• Derived data: DIS ability scores, rivalry/encounter records generated from race co-occurrence, championship standings, experience points (XP) earned from race participation and achievements, leaderboard rankings, and aggregate statistics

Setup data

• Vehicle setup configurations (suspension, gearing, electronics settings) you choose to store
• Setup data is private by default and only shared when you explicitly opt in

Device and usage data

• Device type, operating system, browser type and version
• IP address, access times, referring URLs, pages viewed, session duration
• Performance and crash data (via Sentry)

Cookies and local storage

See Section 12 (Cookies) for full details on cookies and similar technologies we use.

3. How We Collect Data

• Directly from you: when you create an account, enter race results, save setups, or communicate with us
• Timing software integration: clubs using RaceBench timing software publish results which include driver names, transponder IDs, and lap data. Transponder matching and fuzzy name matching are used to link results to driver profiles
• Web scraping of publicly available results: we collect race results already published on third-party platforms (RC Results, bbkRC, MyRCM) to build comprehensive driver histories. These results are already public sports data
• Third-party authentication: if you sign in with Google, we receive basic profile information (name, email, avatar) from Google OAuth
• Automated collection: cookies, server logs, and error tracking collect device and usage data as you interact with the service

4. How We Use Your Data

Under UK GDPR (Article 6), we process your personal data only where we have a lawful basis. The table below sets out each purpose and its corresponding lawful basis.

Account management

Purpose: Creating and maintaining your account, authenticating sign-ins, managing your subscription.
Lawful basis: Performance of a contract (Article 6(1)(b)).

Race data display and statistics

Purpose: Displaying your race results, lap times, finishing positions, and historical statistics on your driver profile.
Lawful basis: Legitimate interests (Article 6(1)(f)) — providing the core value of the platform. You can request erasure of specific results (see Section 8).

DIS ability scoring

Purpose: Calculating Driver Index of Strength (DIS) scores from race performance data to enable skill-based comparisons across the RC racing community.
Lawful basis: Legitimate interests (Article 6(1)(f)) — providing meaningful performance analytics that benefit the racing community.

Rivalry and encounter generation

Purpose: Generating rivalry records and head-to-head statistics from race co-occurrence (drivers who have raced against each other).
Lawful basis: Legitimate interests (Article 6(1)(f)). You can opt out of rivalry features in your account settings, and we will cease generating new rivalry data for your profile.

Experience points and achievements

Purpose: Awarding experience points (XP) and achievements based on race participation, results, and platform engagement to track progression and celebrate milestones.
Lawful basis: Legitimate interests (Article 6(1)(f)) — gamification features that enhance the racing experience. Achievement data is derived from your existing race results.

Share-by-default model

Purpose: Making race results and driver profiles visible to other registered RaceBench users by default, reflecting the public nature of competitive sports results.
Lawful basis: Legitimate interests (Article 6(1)(f)) — RC race results are inherently public (announced at events, published by clubs). We apply the same model digitally. You can adjust visibility settings in your account.

Partner analytics

Purpose: Providing aggregated and anonymised analytics to partners (e.g., industry trends, participation volumes, class popularity).
Lawful basis: When data is properly aggregated and anonymised, it is no longer personal data under UK GDPR. We never share individually identifiable data with partners.

Sponsor challenges

Purpose: Enabling you to participate in sponsor-created challenges where the named sponsor may see your participation data (display name, results within the challenge).
Lawful basis: Consent (Article 6(1)(a)) — obtained per-challenge when you choose to join. You may withdraw consent by leaving a challenge at any time.

Email notifications

Purpose: Sending service-related notifications (race results published, championship updates, account security alerts).
Lawful basis: Legitimate interests (Article 6(1)(f)) for service communications. You can unsubscribe from non-essential notifications at any time via your account settings.

Billing and financial records

Purpose: Processing subscription payments, maintaining invoices and transaction records as required by UK tax and accounting law.
Lawful basis: Performance of a contract (Article 6(1)(b)) and legal obligation (Article 6(1)(c)) for the 7-year retention of financial records.

5. Data Sharing and Visibility

RaceBench does not sell your personal data. We share data only as described below.

Registration requirement

All driver profile data requires a registered RaceBench account to view. Anonymous visitors and search engines cannot access individual driver data (see also our robots.txt which blocks indexing of driver pages).

Three-tier visibility model

• Owner only: setup data (private by default), account settings, billing details
• Followers: setup data when you explicitly opt in to share with followers
• Registered users: public profile information, race results, statistics, DIS scores, championship standings

Partner Portal

Partners access only aggregated, anonymised analytics. No individual driver can be identified through the Partner Portal.

Sponsor challenges

When you join a sponsor challenge, the named sponsor may see your display name and results within that challenge. This is disclosed at the point of joining and requires your consent.

Club timing data

Race results published by clubs through our timing software are treated as public sports results, consistent with how clubs already publish results at events and on their websites. This processing is supported by a Legitimate Interests Assessment (LIA) which balances the community benefit of comprehensive race records against individual privacy expectations in a competitive sporting context.

Legal compliance

We may disclose personal data when required by law, regulation, legal process, or government request.

Business transfers

In connection with a merger, acquisition, or sale of assets, personal data may be transferred. Affected users will be notified.

6. Community-Sourced Club Data

RaceBench maintains a registry of RC racing clubs. Some clubs are verified (“claimed”) by their operators, while others are added by the community from publicly available information.

• Tier 1 (claimed) clubs: verified and managed by the club operator, who controls their own data and published results
• Community-configured clubs: basic club information (name, location, track type) contributed by community members from publicly available sources
• Community-sourced club data is clearly labelled as unverified until claimed by the club operator

7. Data Retention

We retain personal data only as long as necessary for its purpose:

8. Your Rights (UK GDPR)

Under UK data protection law, you have the following rights:

• Right of access: request a copy of the personal data we hold about you
• Right to rectification: request correction of inaccurate data. You can also use the “Flag Result” feature in the app to flag specific race results you believe are incorrect
• Right to erasure: request deletion of your personal data. We will complete deletion within 30 days (see Section 9 for what happens on deletion)
• Right to restriction: request that we restrict processing of your data in certain circumstances
• Right to data portability: receive your personal data in a machine-readable format. We provide CSV export of your race data within the app
• Right to object: object to processing based on legitimate interests, including rivalry generation and the share-by-default model
• Rights related to automated decision-making: DIS scores and rivalry records are generated automatically from race data. You may request human review of any automated output that significantly affects you

To exercise any of these rights, contact us at support@racebench.app. We will respond within one month as required by UK GDPR. If we need more time (up to two additional months for complex requests), we will inform you within the first month.

You also have the right to lodge a complaint with the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO).

9. Account Deletion

When you delete your RaceBench account, we process your data as follows:

• Personal data deleted: account details, profile information, email address, authentication tokens, setup data, and notification preferences
• Club standings anonymised: your entries in club championship standings are replaced with “[Deleted Driver]” to preserve the integrity of historical competition records
• Billing records retained: financial records are kept for 7 years as required by UK tax law, after which they are deleted
• Rivalry data removed: all rivalry and encounter records linked to your profile are deleted
• Derived scores purged: DIS scores, aggregate statistics, and any other computed metrics linked to your identity are deleted
• Completion SLA: all deletion processing is completed within 30 days of your request

10. Children's Privacy

RaceBench is intended for users aged 13 and over. We require age confirmation at sign-up. We do not knowingly collect personal data from children under 13.

If we become aware that we have collected data from a child under 13, we will delete it promptly. If you believe a child under 13 has provided us with personal information, please contact us immediately at support@racebench.app.

11. International Transfers

RaceBench is based in the United Kingdom. Some of our sub-processors operate in the United States. Where personal data is transferred outside the UK, we rely on:

• UK adequacy decisions where applicable
• Standard contractual clauses approved by the ICO
• The sub-processor's own data protection certifications and safeguards

See Section 13 (Sub-Processors) for the full list of third-party services and their locations.

12. Cookies

RaceBench uses cookies and similar technologies in two categories:

Essential cookies (always active)

• Authentication session cookies (Supabase auth)
• CSRF protection tokens
• Cookie consent preferences

Analytics cookies (opt-in only)

• Usage analytics to understand how the service is used and improve the experience
• Error tracking (Sentry) to diagnose and fix issues

You can manage cookie preferences at any time through your browser settings or our cookie consent controls. Disabling essential cookies may affect core functionality.

13. Sub-Processors

We use the following third-party services to operate RaceBench:

14. Changes to This Policy

We may update this privacy policy from time to time. Each version is identified by a version number and effective date at the top of this page.

• Minor changes (clarifications, formatting): updated in place with a new date
• Material changes (new data uses, new sharing, reduced rights): notified via email and/or in-app banner, with re-consent obtained where the change affects processing based on consent

Your continued use of the service after a non-material update constitutes acceptance. For material changes, we will seek your explicit acknowledgement before applying the new terms to your data.

15. Contact

For questions, concerns, or requests related to this privacy policy or your personal data, please contact:

RaceBench
Data Protection Owner: David Tipping
Email: support@racebench.app
Website: racebench.app

We aim to resolve all queries promptly. If you are not satisfied with our response, you have the right to complain to the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO).