The Critical Importance of Website Compliance for UK Businesses

In the digital landscape, having a strong online presence is crucial for businesses of all sizes. However, it’s not just about having an attractive and functional website – ensuring your site is compliant with relevant laws and regulations is equally important. At GSDIT, we understand the complexities of website compliance and its significance for UK businesses.

What is Website Compliance?

Website compliance refers to adhering to laws, regulations, and industry standards that govern how websites should operate, protect user data, and provide accessibility. In the UK, this encompasses various areas, including data protection, accessibility, e-commerce regulations, and more.

Why is Website Compliance Critical?

1. Legal Protection: Compliance helps protect your business from potential lawsuits and legal issues. Non-compliance can result in hefty fines and damage to your reputation.
2. Enhanced User Experience: Many compliance standards, such as those for accessibility, improve the overall user experience, making your website more inclusive and user-friendly.
3. Building Trust: A compliant website demonstrates your commitment to user privacy and security, fostering trust with your customers and partners.
4. SEO Benefits: Search engines favour compliant websites, potentially boosting your search rankings and online visibility.
5. Competitive Advantage: In an increasingly regulated digital world, compliance can set you apart from competitors who may not be as diligent.

Quick Wins for Improving Website Compliance

While comprehensive compliance can take time, there are several quick and easy steps you can take to improve your website’s compliance in the short term:

1. Update Your Privacy Policy: Ensure your privacy policy is up-to-date, clearly written, and easily accessible from every page of your website. Practical steps:
   • Review your current privacy policy against GDPR requirements.
   • Use plain language and avoid legal jargon.
   • Include information on data collection, usage, storage, and user rights.
   • Place a link to your privacy policy in the footer of every page.

Tools:

• Privacy policy generators like Termly or FreePrivacyPolicy can help create a basic policy.
• Grammarly can help ensure your policy is clearly written.

2. Implement a Cookie Consent Banner: Add a cookie consent banner that allows users to accept or reject non-essential cookies. Practical steps:
   • Identify all cookies used on your website and categorise them (essential vs. non-essential).
   • Create a cookie policy explaining the types of cookies used and their purposes.
   • Implement a banner that appears on first visit, allowing users to accept or reject non-essential cookies.
   • Ensure the banner doesn’t obscure important content and is easy to interact with.

Tools:

• CookieYes offers a free plan for small websites.
• Cookiebot provides comprehensive cookie consent management.
• OneTrust offers enterprise-level cookie compliance solutions.

3. Review Forms: Ensure all forms on your website clearly indicate which fields are mandatory and provide error messages that explain how to correct mistakes. Practical steps:
   • Audit all forms on your website.
   • Clearly mark mandatory fields (e.g., with an asterisk *).
   • Write clear, specific error messages for each field.
   • Ensure error messages appear near the relevant field.
   • Test forms thoroughly, including with screen readers.

Tools:

• FormStack offers accessible form templates.
• Ninja Forms (for WordPress) includes accessibility features.
• WAVE can help test form accessibility.

4. Add a Terms of Service Page: If you don’t have one, create a clear terms of service page that outlines the rules for using your website or service. Practical steps:
   • Outline user rights and responsibilities.
   • Explain your intellectual property rights.
   • Describe limitations of liability.
   • Include information on account termination (if applicable).
   • Link to your Terms of Service from your footer and during any sign-up processes.

Tools:

• TermsFeed offers a terms and conditions generator.
• Rocket Lawyer provides customizable legal templates.

5. Include Business Information: Make sure your company’s physical address, registration number, and contact details are easily found on your website. Practical steps:
   • Create a dedicated ‘Contact Us’ or ‘About Us’ page.
   • Include your business name, registration number, and physical address.
   • Provide multiple contact methods (e.g., phone, email, contact form).
   • Consider adding this information to your website footer for easy access from any page.

Tools:

• Google My Business can help manage your business information across Google services.
• Contact Form 7 (for WordPress) allows you to create customizable contact forms.
• Yext helps manage business information across multiple platforms.

By implementing these quick wins, you can significantly improve your website’s compliance in a short amount of time. Remember, while these steps are a great start, they don’t guarantee full compliance. It’s always recommended to conduct a thorough compliance audit and seek professional advice for comprehensive website compliance.

There are various other ways to quickly secure your website against compliance issues such as security HTTPS certificates, accessibility options and mobile responsiveness. However the quick wins above can significantly improve your website’s compliance and user experience while you work on more greater compliance measures.

Key Areas of Website Compliance for UK Businesses

1. Data Protection and GDPR

The General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and the UK Data Protection Act 2018 set strict rules for handling personal data. These regulations apply to all businesses that process personal data of EU and UK residents, regardless of the company’s location.

Key requirements include:

• Obtaining explicit consent for data collection and processing
• Providing clear and comprehensive privacy policies
• Implementing data protection measures (encryption, access controls, etc.)
• Allowing users to access, correct, and delete their personal data
• Reporting data breaches within 72 hours
• Appointing a Data Protection Officer (DPO) for certain organisations

Penalties for non-compliance can be severe, with fines up to €20 million or 4% of global annual turnover, whichever is higher.

2. Accessibility (WCAG Compliance)

The Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) provide a framework for making web content more accessible to people with disabilities. In the UK, the Equality Act 2010 requires service providers to make “reasonable adjustments” to make their services accessible to disabled people, which includes websites.

WCAG 2.1 is the current standard, with three levels of conformance: A, AA, and AAA. Most organisations aim for AA compliance.

Key areas include:

• Providing text alternatives for non-text content
• Ensuring content is perceivable and operable with keyboard navigation
• Making content understandable and compatible with assistive technologies
• Offering captions and audio descriptions for video content
• Ensuring sufficient colour contrast and text size
• Providing multiple ways to find content on the site

Failure to make your website accessible could lead to legal challenges under the Equality Act 2010.

3. E-Commerce Regulations

If you sell products or services online, you must comply with the UK’s E-Commerce Regulations 2002, The Consumer Rights Act 2015 and the Consumer Contracts Regulations 2013. These regulations aim to protect consumers and ensure fair trading in the digital marketplace. Key requirements include:

• Providing clear information about your business (company name, geographic address, contact details)
• Transparent pricing, including all taxes and additional charges
• Clear description of goods or services
• Information on the right to cancel (for most online purchases)
• A straightforward process for correcting errors in orders
• Clear terms and conditions
• Information on after-sales service and guarantees 

Non-compliance can result in enforcement action from trading standards or the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA). 

For example, in 2022, three major sports retailers faced hefty fines for violating competition law and consumer rights:

• JD Sports was fined £1.8 million
• Footasylum received a £380,000 penalty
• Elite Sports had to pay £459,000

Their offence? Fixing the retail prices of Rangers FC replica football kits. The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) imposed these penalties, highlighting the serious financial consequences of breaching e-commerce regulations and consumer protection laws.

4. Cookie Compliance

The UK’s Privacy and Electronic Communications Regulations (PECR) work alongside the GDPR to govern the use of cookies and similar technologies. The Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) enforces these regulations.

Key requirements include:

• Informing users about the use of cookies
• Obtaining consent before setting non-essential cookies
• Providing clear and encompassing information about how cookies are used
• Allowing users to reject non-essential cookies
• Making it as easy to withdraw consent as it was to give it
• Not making access to your website conditional on accepting non-essential cookies

Failure to comply with PECR can result in monetary penalties of up to £500,000.

5. Age-Appropriate Design Code (Children’s Code)

The Age Appropriate Design Code, also known as the Children’s Code, is a data protection code of practice for online services likely to be accessed by children. It came into full effect in September 2021.

Key principles include:

• Providing a high level of privacy by default
• Only collecting and retaining the minimum amount of personal data needed
• Ensuring geolocation services are off by default
• Providing age-appropriate tools to exercise data protection rights
• Ensuring profiling is off by default
• Not using nudge techniques to encourage children to provide unnecessary personal data

Non-compliance can result in the same penalties as breaches of the GDPR.

The Path to Compliance

Achieving and maintaining website compliance can be complex, but it’s an essential investment in your business’s future. At GSDIT, we specialise in helping UK businesses navigate the intricacies of website compliance. Our team of experts can:

• Conduct full compliance audits
• Recommend necessary technical changes
• Support with GDPR compliance policies and procedures
• Provide ongoing support and updates as regulations evolve

Don’t let non-compliance put your business at risk. Contact us today to ensure your website meets all necessary standards and regulations. If you need help in a specific or range of aspects see our other services in IT support, Cyber Security or Microsoft and Google management.

In the digital age, compliance isn’t just about following rules – it’s about building trust and positioning your business for long-term success.