E-commerce and the law

E-commerce – selling goods over the internet – is subject to legislation and regulation which can be complex and changes regularly. Transactions and any electronic marketing – such as promotional emails or online newsletters – are regulated.

This guide introduces you to the various regulations and provides advice on where to get additional information. However, it is not a substitute for professional legal advice.

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E-commerce Regulations

The 2002 E-commerce Regulations apply to businesses that:

• sell goods or services to businesses or consumers on the internet, or by email or Short Message Service (SMS), ie text messages
• advertise on the internet, or by email or SMS
• convey or store electronic content for customers, or provide access to a communications network

They do not cover direct marketing by phone or fax.

The regulations specify information you must give to customers when you sell online. See the page on provide consumers with clear information in our guide on distance selling and online trading.

The regulations also provide guidelines on advertising and promotions. “Commercial communications” must:

• be clearly recognisable as such
• say on whose behalf they are sent
• clearly identify promotional offers and any qualifying conditions

The regulations also cover “unsolicited commercial communications”, commonly referred to as spam.

You can download a beginner’s guide to the E-commerce Regulations [opens in a new window].

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Regulations applying to telephone and fax marketing

There are a number of regulations that apply to businesses that promote themselves using telephone and fax.

The Privacy and Electronic Communications Regulations 2003 govern direct marketing by telephone and fax. For more information, see the page on the Privacy and Electronic Communications Regulations in our guide on privacy and data protection in direct marketing.

The regulations also cover the Telephone Preference Service (TPS) and the Fax Preference Service (FPS). These are registers of individuals and businesses who have indicated that they don’t want to receive unsolicited phone calls or faxes.

You must respect the wishes of any subscriber who asks you not to contact them on a particular phone or fax number, whether or not they are registered with the TPS or FPS.

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Distance Selling Regulations

The Distance Selling Regulations 2000 are designed to protect customers who are not physically present with the seller at the time of purchase. They cover purchases made via email and the internet, together with telephone and mail order.

They only apply to transactions between businesses and consumers (individuals acting outside the course of their business) and do not include business-to-business contracts and auctions.

For more information see our guide on distance selling and online trading.

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Provision of Services Regulations

The Provision of Services Regulations 2009 removed many of the barriers to the international trade in services with the aim of making it easier for individuals and businesses to provide services to, or from, anywhere in the European Economic Area (EEA).

UK and EEA authorities can no longer make the access to, or the carrying out of, a service subject to an authorisation scheme or requirement unless it can be objectively justified. Businesses can also access a ‘Point of Single Contact’ in each EEA country where they can securely apply for any authorisations they require in order to trade in that country.

Under the regulations almost all service providers offering services in the UK (including those from other EEA countries) are required to provide certain information to the recipients of their services. For an explanation of what is required, see the page on how to provide consumers with clear information in our guide on distance selling and online trading.

You must also make sure you do not discriminate on the grounds of nationality or location when providing services, unless it can be justified by ‘objective criteria’ – for example, increased transport costs when providing a service internationally.

For detailed information, download a guide to the Provision of Services Regulations [opens in a new window].

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