Fair trading, accurate descriptions and Trading Standards

When you sell products and services, you must comply with fair trading laws - covering areas such as:

• pricing
• weights and measures
• descriptions of products and services
• the contract between a buyer and seller
• competition between businesses
• intellectual property and counterfeiting

What are the rules around fair trade?

The law sets out practices that are illegal when selling goods or services. These unfair practices include misleading customers and using aggressive selling practices.

Misleading customers

You must not mislead customers about the goods or services you sell. For example, it is against the law to give customers wrong information, such as advertising something as being reduced when it never costs a higher price. It is also illegal to keep important information hidden. You must be open and honest with your customers. 

Aggressive selling

You must not use aggressive selling techniques. It is illegal to pressure a customer to buy goods or services. For example, this might be refusing to leave their home until they make a purchase or constantly contacting them. 

Other unfair practices include taking away a customer's statutory rights by displaying signs such as 'sold as seen' or 'no refunds' - a customer is entitled to redress if goods or services are faulty or misdescribed under the rules of the Consumer Rights Act 2015. 

Pricing and other fair trading rules

If your business sells goods or services, you must provide the price to customers. This rule applies whether you are selling to individuals or other businesses. 

If the price for a good or service is not pre-determined by your business, you must supply, if asked:

• the price of the good or service
• the method for calculating the price - if you can't give an exact price - so the customer can check the price
• a sufficiently detailed estimate

Read more on the rules of pricing goods and services.

You must also give customers:

• the general terms and conditions that you use, if any
• information on any contract terms governed by the law of a particular country
• the existence of an after-sales guarantee, if any, not imposed by law
• the main features of the service, if not already apparent from the context
• the name of the regulating institution if you work in a regulated profession
• information about your insurance cover, the contact details of the insurer and territorial coverage - if you are required to hold professional liability insurance or a guarantee
• contact details where any complaint can be made
• your legal status and form (for example, whether you are a sole trader or a limited company)
• Your business address and contact details where you can be reached directly 

Note that this list is not exhaustive and not all service providers are covered by these rules. There may also be further information that you must provide to a customer if they ask for it.

Fair trading law for certain goods and services

There are trading laws covering businesses that deal in specific goods and services, such as:

• property
• holidays

Understanding the laws that affect you is required for running a successful business. If you don't comply, you could face legal penalties. It could also damage your business reputation.