Distance Selling Regulations For Internet Artists
Distance selling of artwork using the Internet is potentially problematic.
Artwork purchased on the strength of a small digital image seen on a PC screen can look very different life-size and in the flesh.
It is wholly reasonable to anticipate that some customers might change their minds about their purchase once they have received the goods.
The purpose of the distance selling legislation is to give consumers confidence where there is no face-to-face contact with the seller, and the right to change their mind.
The legal requirements of you (the trader) are to provide key (pre contractual) information about your goods and services, payment terms and delivery costs, your payment address, and "cancellation rights".
The need for such information is pretty obvious, however, in my experience "cancellation rights" are frequently missed by Internet Artists.
Let's look at cancellation rights in more detail.
Briefly, the customer has the right to change their mind if they are not happy with goods or services, and is entitled to a cooling-off period of seven working days in which to make this decision.
Unlike buying face-to-face, the first time the customer will have the opportunity to inspect the artwork is when it is received by them.
The item does not have to be defective in any way: the customer has the right to ask for their money back if they are not satisfied with their purchase.
The critical point here is that if you specify a seven working day time limit for cancellation of goods, the customer's right to ask for their money back ends after seven working days (from the date of receipt of the goods).
If you do not specify cancellation rights, the customer has 3 months and 7 working days in which to decide to return the goods.
You cannot legally specify a lesser date.
You also need to specify how artwork should be returned.
If the customer does not wish to accept the goods, they remain your possessions, and you cannot expect the customer to pay for transportation of your merchandise! So, if you have all those details on your web site, are you compliant with the law.
Well, no...
not quite.
The law requires terms and conditions to be conveyed in a "durable" medium.
Durable medium means a form that can be retained, reproduced, but cannot be edited.
Web sites are not considered to be a durable medium as their content can easy be changed.
To comply with the law, you should consider providing "pre-contractual" information to customers in a durable form such as a letter or email.
Consider putting your pre contractual details in a Word document, and appending that to email correspondence with customers? With commissioned work, the Artist is selling a service.
Rights and obligations for services are pretty similar to those for goods, but there are a few notable differences that are relevant to Artists.
Customers do not have the right to cancel custom made goods once provision of services has been agreed.
You the trader therefore need to allow a cooling-off period before you start work.
When you start work, the customer is contractually bound to honor his or her part of the contract so long as you have provided written "pre-contractual" information (as outlined above), received their agreement to start work, and told them that their cancellation rights will end as soon as you start work.
You can give the customer additional cancellation rights, but that's up to you.
For most Internet Artist, the sale of goods or services proceeds informally via a dialog with the customer.
These dialogs form contracts: a contract does not need to be a formal document.
Artists need to be aware that when they discuss work/sales, they are forming contracts with their customers.
By providing pre contract information in a durable format, and observing cooling-off periods, the Artist can ensure that they are trading fairly, and do not fall foul of the distance selling regulations.
Artwork purchased on the strength of a small digital image seen on a PC screen can look very different life-size and in the flesh.
It is wholly reasonable to anticipate that some customers might change their minds about their purchase once they have received the goods.
The purpose of the distance selling legislation is to give consumers confidence where there is no face-to-face contact with the seller, and the right to change their mind.
The legal requirements of you (the trader) are to provide key (pre contractual) information about your goods and services, payment terms and delivery costs, your payment address, and "cancellation rights".
The need for such information is pretty obvious, however, in my experience "cancellation rights" are frequently missed by Internet Artists.
Let's look at cancellation rights in more detail.
Briefly, the customer has the right to change their mind if they are not happy with goods or services, and is entitled to a cooling-off period of seven working days in which to make this decision.
Unlike buying face-to-face, the first time the customer will have the opportunity to inspect the artwork is when it is received by them.
The item does not have to be defective in any way: the customer has the right to ask for their money back if they are not satisfied with their purchase.
The critical point here is that if you specify a seven working day time limit for cancellation of goods, the customer's right to ask for their money back ends after seven working days (from the date of receipt of the goods).
If you do not specify cancellation rights, the customer has 3 months and 7 working days in which to decide to return the goods.
You cannot legally specify a lesser date.
You also need to specify how artwork should be returned.
If the customer does not wish to accept the goods, they remain your possessions, and you cannot expect the customer to pay for transportation of your merchandise! So, if you have all those details on your web site, are you compliant with the law.
Well, no...
not quite.
The law requires terms and conditions to be conveyed in a "durable" medium.
Durable medium means a form that can be retained, reproduced, but cannot be edited.
Web sites are not considered to be a durable medium as their content can easy be changed.
To comply with the law, you should consider providing "pre-contractual" information to customers in a durable form such as a letter or email.
Consider putting your pre contractual details in a Word document, and appending that to email correspondence with customers? With commissioned work, the Artist is selling a service.
Rights and obligations for services are pretty similar to those for goods, but there are a few notable differences that are relevant to Artists.
Customers do not have the right to cancel custom made goods once provision of services has been agreed.
You the trader therefore need to allow a cooling-off period before you start work.
When you start work, the customer is contractually bound to honor his or her part of the contract so long as you have provided written "pre-contractual" information (as outlined above), received their agreement to start work, and told them that their cancellation rights will end as soon as you start work.
You can give the customer additional cancellation rights, but that's up to you.
For most Internet Artist, the sale of goods or services proceeds informally via a dialog with the customer.
These dialogs form contracts: a contract does not need to be a formal document.
Artists need to be aware that when they discuss work/sales, they are forming contracts with their customers.
By providing pre contract information in a durable format, and observing cooling-off periods, the Artist can ensure that they are trading fairly, and do not fall foul of the distance selling regulations.
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