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EU law for websites

Company Registration information that must appear on all websites by law

An amendment was made recently to the Companies Act that implements a European Law relating to company information that must be included on a web site.

The following is the minimum information that must be on any company's website (taken from OUT-LAW's guide, The UK's E-commerce Regulations).

Minimum requirements for all websites:
The name, geographic address and email address of the service provider. The name of
the organisation with which the customer is contracting must be given. This might differ
from the trading name. Any such difference should be explained. For example: "DIY_handyman.com is the trading name of John Smiths building services Limited."

It is not sufficient to include a 'contact us' form without also providing an email address and geographic address somewhere easily accessible on the site.

A PO Box is unlikely to suffice as a geographic address; but a registered office address would.

If the business is a company, the registered office address must be included.

If a company, the company's registration number should be given and, under the Companies
Act, the place of registration should be stated (e.g. "John Smiths building services Limited is a company registered in England and Wales with company number 9876543")

If the business is a member of a trade or professional association, membership details, including any registration number, should be provided.

If the business has a VAT number, it should be stated-even if the website is not being used for
e-commerce transactions.

Prices on the website must be clear and unambiguous. Also, state whether prices are inclusive
of tax and delivery costs.

Finally, do not forget the Distance Selling Regulations which contain other information requirements for on-line businesses that sell to consumers (B2C, as opposed to B2B, sales).

For more info visit the Department of trade and Industry website: www.dti.gov.uk or give us
a call.