Website Terms and Conditions: Notes

Please read these notes before you complete the website terms and conditions that you have downloaded from our website. There are two key reasons for the use of website terms and conditions. Firstly, they set out objectively the contractual framework for the use of the website, and secondly, they act to satisfy a number of the legal obligations placed upon certain types of businesses and websites. Our Terms and Conditions Template is designed to be used on websites focused on and/or based within England and Wales. It may, however, be adapted so that it can be used in other jurisdictions. Please note, that for your Terms and Conditions to be applicable in another jurisdiction, they should be adapted to comply with the jurisdiction in which you wish to use them by someone with the requisite knowledge of the relevant law of that jurisdiction. We therefore suggest that whilst our terms and conditions would provide a suitable starting point you should have them finalised by someone in the relevant country. The Terms and Conditions Template is designed for use with some of the most common kinds of websites, including information sites, online brochures, product advertisements and services, personal websites, and comparable types of websites. It contains elective stipulations for websites with restricted access and/or user generated content. It is not on its own sufficient for use on websites which collect personal information (which also require a privacy policy). Websites containing non-standard or unusual features should always use custom-built terms and conditions, therefore the Terms and Conditions Template will need to be edited before it is ready for use. Square brackets in the document indicate the sections that are likely to need to be edited. You then must carefully review the entire document to ensure that it meets with all of your requirements. If you have any doubt or query, you should seek professional advice. The completed website terms and conditions should be easily accessible on your website, and should preferably be accessible from every page so that users are aware of the terms and conditions. Should users have to register to enter a restricted area of the website, or to operate the website, you must ensure that they accept the terms and conditions, for example by clicking an I accept button located on an electronic version of the terms and conditions. You must retain evidence of each acceptance of the terms and conditions by each user. The scope of the licence to use will vary with each website. You should consider precisely what your users should be allowed to do with your website and the material on your website. Where you have content purposely obtainable for redistribution, it is recommendable to have a more comprehensive detailing of the licence stating the redistribution rights. This section should be included if your website or parts of your website have, or will in future have, restricted access, such as a password-protected area for members. This section should be incorporated if your website contains a chat room facility, comments feature, bulletin board, or other similar user generated content functionality. There are two things you shall need to consider carefully; firstly, the terms of the licence which the user grants to you and secondly, the restrictions you intend to place upon users. The intention of this provision is to disclaim editorial responsibility for user content. It is hoped that this should give you a better chance of gaining the protection of the general defences contained in Section 17-19 of the Ecommerce Regulations, as well as the libel-specific defence in Section 1 of the Defamation Act 1996.

As this has a very broad exclusion of liability, the courts hold elements of it unenforceable. Therefore, the courts look very closely at liability caps and so amongst other things, an unreasonable liability cap shall not be deemed enforceable. Changes to the notices shall not be retrospectively effective. This provision is intended to exclude any rights a third party could have under the Contracts (Rights of Third Parties) Act 1999. If you intend to collect personal information/data from users, you need to have a privacy policy as well as your terms and conditions. Here you should also refer to, for example, any terms of sale or terms of subscription which relate to your website. The questions of what law governs a contract, and where disputes relating to the contract may be litigated, are two separate questions. These terms and conditions have been drafted in accordance with English law, and the governing law provisions should not be changed or altered without first obtaining expert advice from a qualified lawyer in the relevant jurisdiction. It should be noted that the courts will sometimes apply the provisions of their local law, for example local competition law or consumer protection law, irrespective of a choice of law clause stating that a different law applies. You should choose non-exclusive jurisdiction if you want to enforce the terms and conditions against users outside England and Wales. Otherwise, choose exclusive jurisdiction. In certain circumstances, particularly if you are contracting with a consumer, your jurisdiction clause could be overridden by the courts. This section can be deleted where The Electronic Commerce (EC Directive) Regulations 2002 (also referred to as the Ecommerce Regulations) do not apply. Often the Regulations will apply unless a website is of a non-commercial nature, such as where the website does not offer any goods or services and does not include any remuneration, for example remuneration for carrying AdSense or other advertising. Under the Ecommerce Regulations, where the service provider takes on an activity that is to be subjected to Value Added Tax (V.A.T), the relevant identification number must be disclosed.