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How to Write your Website Terms and Conditions
The task of writing the terms and conditions (the 'Legal Bit') for your website can be a daunting experience. However it is an imperative exercise for any aspiring online trader.
Dependant upon your business model, terms and conditions for sale of products or the provision of services can differ largely dependant upon your intended audience, and considerations should be made for different trading conditions i.e. business to business, business to business with retention of title and business to consumer, can all necessitate the need for different clauses, and so must be structured accordingly.
Your terms and conditions are important because they create the bases of the agreement between you and your customers. They also detail the service you will provide and what you will expect from your customer to start and complete the service. It is imperative that it is in writing, agreed by the customer and not left to assumptions.
Your terms and conditions will have also need to comply with existing legislation including the Sale of Goods Act, the Consumer Credit Act if appropriate, the Distance Selling Act, and any legislation relating to restrictive trade practices (eg, the Unfair Contract Terms Act).
It is also vital to ensure that your terms and conditions actually apply to the contract. To ensure that they do, agree them before or at the time of the contract.
The following are mandatory in accordance with card scheme rules:
- Complete description of goods, e.g. if selling electrical goods the merchant must state the voltage requirement as this varies between countries.
- Customer service contact information, including e-mail address or telephone number.
- Return, refund and cancellation policy.
- Delivery policy.
- Country of merchant domicile.
- Transaction currency or currencies.
- Export restrictions.
These additional requirements are recommended when you write your terms and conditions of sale:
- Privacy statements.
- Identifiers that easily match the website to the "doing business as" name - in other words you should not conceal your real identity from customers.
- Commitment to process orders promptly and sending an e-mail confirmation and order summary within one business day of the initial order.
- Up-to-date stock information.
- Commitment to respond to all customer service e-mails and phone calls within two business days.
- Statements to describe transaction security type.
- Statements encouraging cardholders to retain a copy of the transaction and the relevant reference numbers.
If you require other online payment provider services such as a UK main stream merchant bank, they will require a copy of your trading terms when assessing your application. We therefore recommend that you employ the services of a professional to complete terms of service that are relevant to your business.
There are many online resources that specialise solely in creating your terms, and these services can be procured for around £30.
Once completed we will implement your terms;
- so that they can be reviewed at any time during the customers visit to your site, and;
- are required to be read and understood at the time of purchase i.e. at the checkout.
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