There have been no prosecutions for breaching the laws below. This is partly because (apparently) the department in charge of up holding these laws is running on a very small budget. This is not to say they will not be taken more seriously in the future.
The web accessibility and disability discrimination act differs in that anyone can make a complaint. Again there have been no successful prosecutions. The Royal National Institute for the Blind has forced two large corporations to make accessibility changes as an out of court settlement.
Company information
Your are required to display the information
Place of registration
Registration number
Registered office address
Sole traders must display their name
Partnerships must display both names and both addresses
If the business is being wound up
Web Accessibility and the Disability Discrimination Act, Priority 1
In general
Provide a text equivalent for every non-text element with an ALT tag
Ensure that all information conveyed with color is also available without color, for example from context or markup.
Clearly identify changes in the natural language of a document’s text and any text equivalents (e.g., captions).
Organize documents so they may be read without style sheets.
Ensure that equivalents for dynamic content are updated when the dynamic content changes.
Until user agents allow users to control flickering, avoid causing the screen to flicker.
Use the clearest and simplest language appropriate for a site’s content.
If you use tables
For data tables, identify row and column headers.
For data tables that have two or more logical levels of row or column headers, use markup to associate data cells and header cells.
If you use applets and scripts
Ensure that pages are usable when scripts, applets, or other programmatic objects are turned off or not supported. If this is not possible, provide equivalent information on an alternative accessible page.
If you use multimedia
Until user agents can automatically read aloud the text equivalent of a visual track, provide an auditory description of the important information of the visual track of a multimedia presentation.
For any time-based multimedia presentation (e.g., a movie or animation), synchronize equivalent alternatives (e.g., captions or auditory descriptions of the visual track) with the presentation.
The data protection act
If your website collects users data, even a simple enquiry form asking for Name, Email and Phone Number, you should include a Privacy Policy that informs website visitors how you retain and process their data.
E-commerce sites
Consumer Protection (Distance Selling) Regulations
The following information must be shown on your website, and this is commonly done via pages such as Terms & Conditions, Delivery Details, Returns Policy etc.
Identity of the supplier and address whereby payment is upfront
A description of the service
The contract price inclusive of taxes
Delivery Cost (if applicable)
Payment and delivery arrangement
Notification of the right of cancellation
The cost of the means of communication by which the contract is to be concluded (e.g. premium rate phone numbers)
The period for which the terms are available
Minimum duration of the contract, where it is not of one-off performance
Electronic Commerce Regulations
The EU Ecommerce Directive is a policy for online service providers to ensure that customers can easily and quickly contact their service provider.
You should display the name of your business.
We recommend you display your company registration number or proprietor’s name (as you would in a letter).
You should show your geographic address (street number etc, not just a PO box).
You should show your contact information such as phone number and email address.
You should show your VAT number if you are VAT registered.
Refer to trade or professional recognition schemes, with registration number, if applicable.
Provide clear information on price, tax and delivery.
Show clear Terms and Conditions and acknowledge orders.
Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI DSS)
Using a third party shopping cart like PayPal or WorldPaywill save you having to worry about any of the points below.
Install and maintain a firewall configuration to protect data
Do not use vendor-supplied defaults for passwords or other security parameters
Protect stored data
Encrypt the transmission of cardholder data and sensitive information
Use and regularly update anti-virus software
Develop and maintain securer systems and applications
