13 October 2015

Is your website legal?

Consumers and businesses are now familiar with internet shopping, and your customers expect you to have a website. You may have engaged a website design service, or created your website yourself. The graphics probably look great, and technically it may function well, but have you considered all the legal aspects of entering into the world of e-commerce?

If you have a website that you use to sell or promote your products and services, then there are many rules and regulations that you need to comply with. If your business is based in the UK, then UK law applies, even if your website is hosted in another country.

Some of the regulations only apply to customers who are consumers, and not to business customers; but if they are ordering goods through your website, you may not know which is which and so you may need to treat all customers as consumers.

Here are a few things to consider:

The Companies Act requires you to show the same information on your website and electronic communications as you should have on your letterhead. That is, the full name of your company, registered company number, and registered office address.

E-Commerce and Consumer Contracts (Information, Cancellation and Additional Payments) Regulations require you to display certain information about your goods, prices, delivery, your terms and conditions, and require you to acknowledge orders. In the case of consumers you must allow a fourteen day cooling off period, and rights of cancellation.

The Data Protection Act applies to any information that your website gathers relating to your customers. Most websites function by sending email acknowledgements, and therefore need to store email addresses. This information is personal data, and you will need to be registered with the Information Commissioner's Office, and comply with the regulations on the use and storage of personal data.

Trade Descriptions apply to websites as with other advertising. The descriptions of your goods and services must be accurate and not misleading.

Intellectual Property Rights apply and you must ensure that you have the right to use all text and images that appear on your site. You may wish to include samples of your work, but you may not always have the copyright in an image or a logo.

The above is a general guide only, and is not intended as a substitute for detailed legal or technical advice. If you require legal advice please contact Nicola Langley, BPIF Commercial Solicitor at [email protected] or call 01676 526 062.