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Print articleI Have a Number of Websites Which Promote my Business Products. What Information About my Company do These Need to Contain?
March, 2007 - Daniel Lee
Much has been made of the e-communication provisions set out in the new Companies Act 2006. However, less is known of a piece of legislation which came into force on 1 January 2007, the Companies (Registrar, Languages and Trading Disclosures) Regulations 2006, which affect the electronic communications of every company and limited liability partnership in the UK.
The new regime means that full company details must be included on all forms of electronic communication such as the company website, emails, electronic purchase forms and faxes. Details must include the company name, company number and registered office address.
The information must be clear and easily accessible. In the case of a website, the information need not appear on every page and can be set out in the "Legal Information" or "Contact Us" section. With emails, such information should be added to increasingly voluminous sign-off signatures.
The penalty for failure to comply with the 2006 Regulations is a fine, which can be imposed on any officer of the company or on any other person who authorises the issue of the document or website in breach of the Regulations.
Although this new disclosure obligation merely extends the scope of the requirement currently contained in the Companies Act 1985 that a company's corporate details be set out in a company's business letters, order forms, invoices and other correspondence (and to that extent compliance with the new provisions is not overly onerous), it is critical that companies review the terms of their websites and the templates used for electronic communications (including emails) to ensure they contain the required information.
The new regime means that full company details must be included on all forms of electronic communication such as the company website, emails, electronic purchase forms and faxes. Details must include the company name, company number and registered office address.
The information must be clear and easily accessible. In the case of a website, the information need not appear on every page and can be set out in the "Legal Information" or "Contact Us" section. With emails, such information should be added to increasingly voluminous sign-off signatures.
The penalty for failure to comply with the 2006 Regulations is a fine, which can be imposed on any officer of the company or on any other person who authorises the issue of the document or website in breach of the Regulations.
Although this new disclosure obligation merely extends the scope of the requirement currently contained in the Companies Act 1985 that a company's corporate details be set out in a company's business letters, order forms, invoices and other correspondence (and to that extent compliance with the new provisions is not overly onerous), it is critical that companies review the terms of their websites and the templates used for electronic communications (including emails) to ensure they contain the required information.
Footnotes: Danny Lee is an associate specialising in corporate finance with the commercial law firm Shepherd and Wedderburn. +44(0)131 473 5141 |
