Privacy Policy

The Cowart Group (“we,” “us,” or “our”) is an executive benefits consulting firm based in Mobile, Alabama. We design and administer executive benefit, deferred compensation, and related insurance-based programs for our clients and their key employees. Because of the nature of our work, we routinely handle sensitive personal and financial information, and we take our responsibility to protect that information seriously.

This Privacy Policy describes the types of information we collect, how we use and share it, and the choices available to you. It applies to information we collect through our website, in our offices, by phone or email, and in the course of providing our services. By providing information to us or engaging our services, you acknowledge the practices described in this Policy.

1. Information We Collect

In the course of providing executive benefits consulting and related services, we may collect the following categories of information about clients, plan participants, beneficiaries, and prospective customers:

Personal and Contact Information

• Name, home and business addresses, telephone numbers, and email addresses.
• Date of birth, marital status, gender, and Social Security or other taxpayer identification numbers.
• Information about spouses, dependents, and beneficiaries when relevant to a benefit program.

Financial and Employment Information

• Compensation, bonus structure, equity, and other employment-related financial information.
• Banking, payment, and account information necessary to administer benefits or process transactions.
• Information about existing insurance coverage, retirement accounts, and other financial holdings relevant to plan design.

Health-Related Information

• To the extent required by an insurance carrier for underwriting a life, disability, or related insurance product, we may collect or transmit medical history, height and weight, tobacco use, prescription history, and similar information.

Information Collected Automatically Online

• If you visit our website, we may automatically collect technical information such as IP address, browser type, device identifiers, pages viewed, referring URLs, and dates and times of access through cookies and similar technologies.

Information from Third Parties

• We may receive information from your employer, plan sponsor, insurance carriers, medical information bureaus, consumer reporting agencies, attorneys, accountants, and other professional advisors involved in administering your benefits.

2. How We Use Your Information

We use the information we collect for legitimate business purposes, including to:

• Design, recommend, place, and administer executive benefit, deferred compensation, life insurance, and related programs;
• Communicate with you, your employer, plan sponsors, and insurance carriers regarding your coverage and benefits;
• Process applications, claims, payments, and other transactions;
• Maintain accurate client and policy records;
• Comply with applicable federal and state laws, including the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act (GLBA), the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) where applicable, IRS reporting requirements, and Alabama Department of Insurance regulations;
• Detect, prevent, and respond to fraud, unauthorized activity, and security incidents;
• Send you account updates, service notices, and, where appropriate, information about products or services that may be of interest to you.

3. How We Share Your Information

We do not sell your personal information. We share information only as reasonably necessary to provide our services or as required by law, including with:

• Insurance carriers and plan providers to underwrite, issue, and administer policies and benefit programs.
• Employers and plan sponsors to the extent necessary to design and administer their executive benefit programs.
• Service providers such as third-party administrators, recordkeepers, actuaries, technology vendors, and professional advisors who perform services on our behalf and are bound to protect the confidentiality of your information.
• Reinsurers, medical information bureaus, and consumer reporting agencies in connection with insurance underwriting and claims.
• Regulatory authorities and law enforcement when required by law, subpoena, court order, or other valid legal process.
• Professional advisors such as attorneys and accountants engaged by you, your employer, or our firm in connection with the services provided.
• Successors in interest in the event of a merger, acquisition, reorganization, or sale of business assets.
• Other parties with your consent or at your direction.

4. Confidentiality of Nonpublic Personal Information

In accordance with the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act and applicable Alabama insurance privacy regulations, we restrict access to nonpublic personal information about you to those employees, representatives, and service providers who need to know that information in order to provide products or services to you. We maintain physical, electronic, and procedural safeguards designed to protect your nonpublic personal information.

5. Data Security

We maintain reasonable administrative, technical, and physical safeguards designed to protect personal information against unauthorized access, disclosure, alteration, or destruction. These measures include secure file storage, access controls, employee training, and protected electronic transmission of sensitive data where appropriate. However, no method of transmission or storage is completely secure, and we cannot guarantee absolute security. You should take care when transmitting sensitive information to us, particularly by unencrypted email.

6. Data Retention

We retain personal information for as long as necessary to provide our services, administer policies and benefit programs, comply with our legal, tax, and regulatory obligations, resolve disputes, and enforce our agreements. Retention periods for insurance and financial records are often governed by state and federal law. When information is no longer needed, we dispose of it in a secure manner.

7. Your Choices and Rights

You may have the following choices regarding your information:

• You may request access to, or correction of, personal information we maintain about you, subject to applicable legal limitations and our recordkeeping obligations.
• You may opt out of receiving marketing communications from us at any time by contacting us using the information below or by following the unsubscribe instructions in our emails.
• You may adjust your browser settings to refuse cookies, though doing so may limit certain features of our website.

Requests will be handled in accordance with applicable law. We may need to verify your identity before responding to a request.

8. Children’s Privacy

Our services are directed to businesses and adult individuals. We do not knowingly collect personal information from children under the age of 13. If we learn that we have collected such information, we will take steps to delete it.

9. Third-Party Websites

Our website may contain links to third-party websites, including those of insurance carriers and service providers. We are not responsible for the privacy practices or content of those websites. We encourage you to review their privacy policies before providing any information.

10. Changes to This Privacy Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in our practices, technology, legal requirements, or for other operational reasons. The revised Policy will be posted with an updated effective date. We encourage you to review this Policy periodically.

11. Contact Us

If you have questions, concerns, or requests regarding this Privacy Policy or our handling of your information, please contact us at:

The Cowart Group

501 Bishop Lane N., Suite 2, Mobile, AL 36608

Phone: (251) 342-0446