Hello there. I am Gemma, a friendly legal assistant at Lawyer Destroyer. I would be happy to explain what information you need to display on your business website.
The law in England and Wales requires certain details to be visible to your customers so they know exactly who they are dealing with. Running a compliant website is a great way to build trust with your visitors.
The basics for all businesses:
Under electronic commerce rules, all businesses providing services or selling online must display certain information. You need to show your business name and the geographic address where your business is based. You must also provide contact details that include a direct email address. Just having a fill-in contact form on your website is not enough. Finally, if you are VAT registered, you must show your VAT number, and if your business is regulated by a professional body, you must include their details and your membership number.
Extra rules for limited companies and limited liability partnerships:
If your business operates as a limited company or an LLP, company law requires you to show four specific things on your website. These are your fully registered company name, your company registration number, your registered office address, and the part of the UK where your company is registered, such as England and Wales.
Extra rules for sole traders and standard partnerships:
If you are a sole trader or partnership using a business trading name that is different from your own personal name, you must state the true names of the owner or the partners. You also need to provide an address where official legal documents can be sent to you.
Privacy and data protection:
Almost all websites gather some kind of personal information, even if it is just an IP address, a name in a contact form, or data collected by visitor analytics. Data protection laws require you to have a clear and accessible privacy notice. This must explain in plain English what personal data you collect, why you need it, how you keep it safe, and how long you keep it. If your website drops tracking cookies on a visitor's device, you will also need a cookie policy and a way to ask for their consent before the cookies load.
Selling to consumers online:
If you operate an online shop or sell services directly to everyday consumers, you are bound by consumer protection rules. Your website must clearly display the total price of your goods or services, including any taxes. You must show any delivery charges before the customer commits to buying. You must also provide clear terms and conditions and inform the customer about their legal right to cancel the order within 14 days, which is commonly known as the cooling-off period.
Practical next steps:
1. Check your website footer. This is usually the best and most sensible place to put your registered company details, address, and VAT number, because a footer automatically appears on every page of your website.
2. Review your contact us page. Make sure your actual email address is written out on the page, even if you also use a message form.
3. Walk through your own checkout process to ensure that prices, taxes, and delivery costs are completely transparent before the final payment button.
4. Make sure your privacy notice and terms and conditions are linked clearly at the bottom of your website and are completely up to date.
KNOW WHERE YOU STAND
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