Privacy Policy
Revised January 2020
Spire Inc. Privacy Policy
Spire Inc. is the parent company for individual public utility companies, among other affiliates. Each of these public utility companies and other affiliates is a separate and distinct legal entity. Each public utility subsidiary of Spire Inc. has its own service territory, federal, or state utility regulatory regimes, rate structures, and customers. Neither Spire Inc. nor any subsidiary or other affiliate of Spire Inc. will be liable for the obligations, or entitled to the benefits of, any other subsidiary or affiliate of Spire Inc., except as may be expressly provided by a duly authorized and executed, legally enforceable written agreement. Solely for reasons of convenience, the terms “Spire”, “Company”, “we”, “us”, and “our” are used herein to refer individually and collectively to Spire Inc. and its various affiliates and subsidiaries. For purposes of this Privacy Policy, the terms “Spire”, “Company”, “we”, “us”, and “our” may also refer to contractors and service providers engaged by Spire to support its business activities, as the context may require. The terms “you”, “your”, and “yours” refer to any natural person who uses Spire’s services or accesses Spire’s Website for business, personal, family, or household purposes and about whom Spire collects information.
Spire takes very seriously the protection and proper use of your information. We want you to understand what information may be collected from you, how such information is used, and the choices you have regarding the use of this information. Accordingly, this privacy policy (the “Privacy Policy”) explains how we collect, maintain, use, and disclose your information. This Privacy Policy also lets you know about the privacy choices you have and how you can manage them to get the most from your relationship with us. We will treat your information consistent with this Privacy Policy unless you have consented otherwise. You may opt-out of certain uses and disclosures of your information, as further explained in this Privacy Policy.
By using Spire’s services or accessing and using the Website, either as a casual visitor or by actively submitting information to it, you confirm your agreement to the terms of this Privacy Policy as may be in effect at that time and consent to the collection, use, and disclosure of your information in accordance with this Privacy Policy
1. Spire’s Website
Spire wants you to have a safe and secure experience at our Website and wants to explain the steps we take that are aimed at preventing unauthorized disclosure of information you may provide as you visit the Website. In addition to information that you may have given us offline, such as by telephone, by mail, or in person, this Privacy Policy applies to the information Spire collects at the www.spireenergy.com website and other websites, apps, or online services owned, operated, or otherwise controlled by Spire that provide a link to this Privacy Policy, and all products, features, and content available on such websites, apps, or online services (collectively, the “Website”). This Privacy Policy will not apply to the extent that you navigate to a third-party website linked from the Website. SPIRE DOES NOT CONTROL AND IS NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR WHAT THIRD PARTIES DO IN CONNECTION WITH THEIR WEBSITES, OR HOW THEY HANDLE PERSONAL INFORMATION. PLEASE EXERCISE CAUTION AND CONSULT THE PRIVACY POLICIES AND TERMS OF USE POSTED ON EACH THIRD-PARTY WEBSITE FOR FURTHER INFORMATION.
Please refer back to the link to this Privacy Policy on our Website to review the contents of this Privacy Policy frequently, as we reserve the right to and may change it from time to time to reflect changes in our services and our policies relating to customer Personal Information (as hereinafter defined). This Privacy Policy supplements, but does not replace, the general Website Terms of Use for the use of the Website. In the event of a conflict between the terms of this Privacy Policy and the terms of the general Website Terms of Use, the terms of this Privacy Policy will govern and control with respect to the matters addressed in this Privacy Policy. Certain websites of entities affiliated with Spire may have separate privacy notices or terms and conditions that are specific to those websites, and when you use or access such websites those separate privacy notices or terms and conditions will apply and will control in the event of a conflict with the terms of this Privacy Policy.
You are responsible for all activity on the Website accessed by your user name and password. You agree that the protection of the confidentiality of your user name and password is your responsibility.
2. Categories of Information We Collect and Why
We may collect, maintain, and use both Personal Information and Anonymous Information (as described below) about you. For purposes of this Privacy Policy, “Personal Information” means any information or combination of information that we collect or use that identifies you personally, and “Anonymous Information” means information that we collect or use (primarily by or through the Website) that does not identify you personally or contain personal identifiers about you. Personal Information may include, for example, your name, home address, email address, telephone number, details of transactions you carry out with us, financial information, or other personal information. Anonymous Information may include, for example, information about your device or internet browser, information obtained from cookies that have been placed on your device or internet browser at the Website or at other websites you have visited, demographic information, aggregated information, blind information about how you use our Website and about the transactions you perform using our Website, and other information that does not identify you personally. We may supplement the information we collect from you with information we receive about you from other sources.
3. How Spire Collects, Uses, and Shares Your Personal Information
We may collect information through and about your access to and use of the Website. During your access or use of the Website, you may be asked to voluntarily provide certain Personal Information. For example, you may register to access various services related to your residential or business account on the Website, which may prompt you to submit Personal Information. You may also be asked to submit additional Personal Information or financial information in order to use certain specific services offered in customer account transaction areas. It is always your choice whether to provide this Personal Information; however, without providing some of the requested Personal Information, certain features will not be accessible, and you will not be able to conduct transactions through the Website. We will protect information you provide us on the Website, as set forth below and in accordance with Spire’s Terms of Use.
We may also collect information that you submit to us by email, by telephone, by mail, or in person. If you communicate with Spire by email, then you agree that email sent by Spire to you will be deemed to be sent with your consent. You acknowledge and agree that any such email will be accessible to anyone who has access to your email.
In addition, we may obtain information about you from other sources, including third-party sources, and combine that information with other Personal Information that we collected.
We may use Personal Information for the following purposes:
(i) To contact you and to respond to an inquiry that you send to us;
(ii) To keep you informed about Spire and the services we provide;
(iii) To send administrative information to you, such as information regarding the Website and changes to our terms, conditions, and policies;
(iv) To send you educational marketing communications that we believe may be of interest to you;
(v) As you agree, authorize, or consent, or as you accept in connection with products and services you obtain from us;
(vi) For our business purposes, including (but not limited to) such purposes as (1) data analysis, (2) audits, (3) new product or service development, (4) enhancing, improving or modifying our products and services, including but not limited to sending surveys to collect additional information to allow us to enhance, improve, or modify our products or services (5) identifying usage trends, (6) determining the effectiveness of our promotional campaigns, (7) operating and expanding our business activities; and (8) to process transactions and payments;
(vii) As we believe in our sole discretion to be necessary or appropriate (1) under applicable law, (2) to comply with legal process and otherwise to comply with applicable laws, rules and regulations, (3) to respond to lawful requests from public and government authorities, (4) to enforce our terms and conditions, (5) to protect our operations or those of any of our affiliates, (6) to protect our rights, privacy, safety ,or property, or that of our affiliates, you, or others, and (7) to allow us to pursue available remedies or limit the damages that we may sustain; and
(viii) For other purposes not prohibited by this Privacy Policy or by law.
We do not sell, rent, trade, share, license, or otherwise disclose your Personal Information to anyone else, except:
(i) We may disclose Personal Information in response to requests from law enforcement officials conducting investigations, subpoenas, court orders, or if we are otherwise required to disclose such information by law;
(ii) We may disclose Personal Information where disclosure is necessary to protect our legal rights, enforce our Terms of Use or other agreements, or to protect ourselves or others (for example, we may share information to reduce the risk of fraud or if someone uses or attempts to use the Website for illegal reasons or to commit fraud);
(iii) We may disclose Personal Information to third parties in situations where such disclosure is necessary to (1) comply with our regulators, (2) enable Spire’s employees, partners, vendors, subcontractors, consultants to provide service to you or to otherwise perform their duties, (3) comply with interchange functions, or (4) resolve customer disputes or inquiries; and
(iv) We may provide your Personal Information to third parties, including (but not limited to) media firms or market research firms, who offer products or services, including (but not limited to) market research, that we believe may be of interest to you or which allow us to enhance, improve, or modify our products or services.
Before Personal Information is disclosed to a third party, we endeavor to require the third party to agree to protect the privacy and confidentiality of your Personal Information.
4. How Spire Collects, Uses, and Shares Your Anonymous Information
Like many other websites and applications, the Website may automatically collect certain Anonymous Information regarding users of the Website. Such information may include, without limitation, the Internet Protocol ("IP") address of your computer, your device ID, the IP address of your Internet service provider, your zip code, the date and time you access the Website, the Internet address of a referring website, the operating system you are using, the sections or pages of the Website that you visit, and the images and content viewed. Some of the ways in which we or the Website may collect and use Anonymous Information are further described below.
a. How We Use IP Addresses. An IP address is a number automatically assigned to your computer every time you browse the Internet. When you visit the Website, our servers log your current IP address. We may use your IP address to help diagnose problems with our servers and to administer the Website. While we gather data when our servers log your IP address, we do not tie your IP address to your Personal Information, and it is not used to identify you.
b. How We Use Cookies, Tags, and Similar Technologies. The Website may involve use of a mechanism called “cookies” or similar technologies to gather information. A cookie is a small amount of data, which often includes an anonymous unique identifier that is sent to your browser from a website's computers and stored on your computer's hard drive, if your browser settings permit it. The Website may also involve use of “tags” or similar technologies to gather information. A tag is an object that is embedded in a web page or email and is usually invisible to the user but allows checking that a user has viewed the page or email. Tags are commonly used for email tracking and page tagging for Web analytics.
We use cookies, tags, and similar technologies to collect information about usage of the Website, such as the number of visitors to the Website and the number of users that click on certain links or that use certain services. We do not tie the Anonymous Information that we collect to your Personal Information. For example, we use cookies and tags to help us understand your preferences based on previous or current site activity, which enables us to provide you with improved services. We also use cookies to help us compile aggregate data about site traffic and Website interaction so that we can offer better site experiences and tools in the future. We may contract with third-party service providers to assist us in better understanding our Website visitors.
If you do not agree to this use of cookies you can adjust your browser settings to reject all cookies (each browser is different, so check the “Help” menu of your browser to learn how to do this). However, if you select this setting you may be unable to access certain parts of our Website. Unless you have adjusted your browser setting so that it will refuse cookies, our system will issue cookies when you direct your browser to our Website. Alternatively, you can choose not to use the Website.
If you choose to reject all cookies using your browser settings, you will not be able to use Spire products, services, or websites that require you to “sign in,” and you may not be able to take full advantage of all offerings on the Website. However, many Spire online services do not require that you accept cookies.
c. We may use third-party companies to help tailor Website content to users or to serve ads on our behalf. These companies may employ cookies, tags, or similar technologies to improve the Website or measure advertising effectiveness (such as which web pages are visited). And, this data in an aggregate form may be used by Spire for marketing, advertising, or other uses. We do not have access to or control over the cookies, tags, and other technologies used by these third-party companies and we cannot state whether these parties will comply with this Privacy Policy. Any information that these third parties collect via cookies and tags is not linked to any Personal Information collected by us.
d. We may use, disclose, and share Anonymous Information as described in this Privacy Policy or for any other purpose, subject to the requirements and restrictions of applicable law. As a result, Anonymous Information may be shared with any number of third parties. If we combine Anonymous Information with Personal Information (such as combining your name with your geographical location), we will treat that Anonymous Information as Personal Information for so long as it is combined with Personal Information.
e. While browsing the Website, you may encounter links to other third-party operated websites. If you click on one of these hypertext links to view one of these third-party operated websites, then these other third-party websites may send their own cookies to you, log your IP address, and otherwise collect data or solicit Personal Information. We have no responsibility, liability for, or control over those other websites or their collection, use, and disclosure of your information. You should consult the privacy policies and terms of use posted on each third-party operated website for further information.
5. Social Media
We may from time to time use social media websites and applications (e.g., Facebook®, Twitter®, YouTube®, LinkedIn®, Instagram®, Vimeo®, or other social media platforms) to interact with you and to communicate information about us and about our products and services. We may collect information from our interactions with you at such social media websites and applications, and we may use the information for the purposes and uses described in this Privacy Policy. If we disclose any terms of use at specific social media pages that we manage, you also will be subject to those terms when you interact with those pages. The owners and operators of social media websites and applications may impose their own terms of use and privacy policies with respect to the use of their websites and applications. This Privacy Policy does not govern the use, handling, and treatment of content you may post at social media websites and applications by the owners and operators of those websites and applications. You should review the terms of use and privacy policies of any social media website or application that you use to make sure you understand your rights and obligations with regard to content that you post.
6. Children’s Privacy Online
We understand children’s privacy is important. Our Website is not directed to children under the age of 13. If you utilize the services on our Website you are representing that you are an adult. If you are under the age of 13, you are not permitted to use our Website and you should not submit Personal Information on the Website or any websites without the consent of your parent or guardian. If any parent, guardian or other responsible adult becomes aware that we have collected Personal Information from a child under the age of 13, please contact us at CustomerEmail@SpireEnergy.com.
7. Security Regarding Online Services
You may login to Spire’s Website to register for email alerts or request investor information. When you login with your user name and password to Spire’s online services, any information you enter or that is otherwise displayed in your browser window is secured using an industry standard security technology known as Secure Sockets Layer (“SSL”). By using SSL, we attempt to safeguard the confidentiality of transmission of your Personal Information. Your browser must be capable of supporting SSL. Please check with your browser manufacturer for details.
8. Opt-Out Process/Options
There are several ways in which you may opt-out of the various programs and services we provide. Some of the ways in which you may opt out are described below. Please note that we may continue to send you transactional and/or service-related emails regarding your services and account even after you opt-out of receiving other emails. Please contact us by emailing, calling, or mailing your request as indicated below to opt-out of various marketing and promotional programs and services we provide. Users of our online account management platform My Account may adjust their preferences while logged into their accounts. Additionally, we may at times use third-party systems to communicate new programs and services we provide. In this case, you may also opt-out using the preference management page linked to in the bottom of such third-party email communications.
Email: CustomerEmail@SpireEnergy.com
Call the Compliance Hotline at: 800-866-2553
Mail: Spire, Attn: Customer Communications, 700 Market St., St. Louis, MO 63101
9. How to Access Your Personal Information
You may request access to your Personal Information by contacting CustomerEmail@SpireEnergy.com. Subject to certain exceptions prescribed by law, you will be given reasonable access to your Personal Information, the ability to challenge the accuracy and completeness of the information, and the ability to have it amended as is appropriate. You can help us maintain the accuracy of your information by notifying us of any changes to your Personal Information.
10. Changes to Privacy Policy
We reserve the right and have the sole discretion to change, modify, add, or remove portions of this Privacy Policy from time to time. Changes and amendments are effective when posted on the Website, emailed, or mailed to customers. Our collection, use, and disclosure of your information will be governed by the version of this Privacy Policy in effect at the time your information was collected, unless you indicate your assent to a newer version of the Privacy Policy by continued use of our Website or our services following the posting of any changes, in which event the new version will govern the collection, use, and disclosure of your information. Your continued use of the Website or our services following the posting or mailing of any changes to this Privacy Policy means that you accept such changes.
11. Questions About this Privacy Policy
You may direct any questions about this Privacy Policy to:
Compliance Hotline
800-866-2553
700 Market St.
St. Louis, MO 63101