Consumer protection authorities across Europe regularly inspect online stores – both large platforms and small, single-person WooCommerce shops. Their published reports show that the vast majority of violations found relate to legal documentation: terms and conditions, privacy policy or complaint conditions. The good news is that most problems are avoidable. You just need to know what inspectors look for – and check your own documentation in advance.
Contents
- Right of withdrawal – whether the customer is properly informed about the 14-day cancellation right, whether the cancellation form is accessible and whether conditions have not been unlawfully restricted.
- Pre-contractual information – whether the customer sees complete information about price, delivery and purchase conditions before ordering.
- Prices and promotions – since the Omnibus Directive, particular attention is paid to displaying the lowest price from the last 30 days in promotional offers.
- Customer reviews – whether the store discloses where reviews come from and whether they are verified.
- Unfair contract terms – clauses in terms and conditions that are unlawful.
- Accessibility of terms – whether they are visible, available for download and written in plain language.
Most common errors in WooCommerce terms and conditions
- Missing or incorrectly described right of withdrawal.
- Incorrect complaint conditions – for example requiring goods to be returned in original packaging.
- Missing or incorrect privacy policy.
- Promotional prices without the Omnibus-required 30-day lowest price disclosure.
- Reviews without verification disclosure.
- Unfair clauses carried over from old templates.
How does a regulatory inspection typically unfold?
An inspection can be remote or on-site. Remote inspection involves analysis of the website, documents and correspondence without a physical visit. On-site means an inspector visit to your premises.
Typically, an inspection starts with reviewing the website: terms and conditions, privacy policy, price presentation and customer reviews. If the inspector finds violations, they may request documents and explanations. The process can end with an administrative decision and a financial penalty.
How to prepare your WooCommerce store before an inspection
- Check that your terms and conditions are current and contain all required information, including right of withdrawal and complaints procedure.
- Verify that your privacy policy reflects how you actually process data.
- Ensure promotional offers show the lowest price from the last 30 days.
- Add a review policy if you collect or display customer reviews.
- Make the cancellation form accessible on your site as a separate downloadable file.
- Remove or correct clauses that may be considered unfair.
What penalties can you face?
Regulatory authorities can impose fines of up to 10% of annual turnover. For a small store generating 100,000 euros annually, that is up to 10,000 euros. Beyond the financial penalty, regulatory decisions are public and published in official registers – which can seriously damage your store's reputation.
Something is coming – stay tuned
We are building a tool that takes care of your store's legal documentation automatically – tailored to your business, always up to date with the law. Stay tuned.
