What a South African online shop must show
The details a South African business selling online must show on its website under the ECT Act, from its legal name to the full price and how to pay.
By Achekam · · 4 min read · For Running a business businesses in South Africa
Plenty of small South African online shops look polished and still leave a buyer asking basic questions. Who exactly am I buying from? Is there a real address behind this? Will delivery be added at checkout? Can I pay by EFT? When a customer cannot find those answers, they either leave or buy with doubts that come back as disputes later.
The Electronic Communications and Transactions Act turns those questions into a legal checklist. A supplier selling goods or services online must show certain information on its website. This guide sets out what the list includes, how it ties in with pricing and cancellation rules, and how Achekam's pay pages and storefront fit in.
The Act behind the rules
The Electronic Communications and Transactions Act 25 of 2002 commenced on 30 August 2002, and the government's page records that it has since been amended by the Consumer Protection Act 68 of 2008 and the Cybercrimes Act 19 of 2020. The provisions described here come from the Act's text as originally published on that page, so check the current consolidated wording for any fine point. The government's page for the ECT Act carries that official text, with the commencement and amendment history.
Who you are: name, legal status and contact details
The Act as published requires a supplier selling goods or services online to show on its website:
- its full name and legal status, so a customer can tell a registered company from a sole trader or a partnership;
- its physical address and telephone number;
- its website address and e-mail address.
A trading name and a contact form are not enough on their own. The registered name, the type of entity, a street address and a working phone number tell the customer that a real business stands behind the shop. Put them in the site footer and on an "About" or "Contact" page, not only in the terms and conditions.
The full price, including transport and taxes
The same section requires the website to show the full price of the goods or services, including transport costs and taxes. That rules out the checkout surprise, where delivery or VAT appears only on the last screen.
The dtic's booklet on the Consumer Protection Act adds rules that apply to prices generally: suppliers must display prices of goods and services in full view, may not charge the higher of two displayed prices, and must state how long a promotion in a catalogue or brochure lasts or honour the price. For an online shop, that means a sale price with an end date, and a cart that charges the price the product page showed.
A worked example in words: an online homeware shop lists a lamp at one price and charges courier delivery by region. To meet the requirement, the product page or the cart shows the delivery cost for the customer's area before payment, and the total the customer sees before paying includes the lamp, the delivery and the VAT.
How customers can pay
The Act as published also requires the website to show the manner of payment. List the methods you accept, such as card, instant EFT or bank transfer, and say when payment is due, for example on order or before dispatch. If card payments go through a payment provider, say so; online card payments and PCI DSS covers what that involves for the business.
Cancellation goes with disclosure
Disclosure and cancellation work together. The Act as published gives a consumer the right to cancel an electronic transaction without reason or penalty within seven days after receiving the goods, or after concluding the agreement for services, with any payment refunded within 30 days, and the only charge allowed is the direct cost of returning the goods. Tell customers this on the site, next to your returns information. Seven-day cancellation for online purchases explains how to handle a cancellation when it arrives.
Pay pages and the storefront in Achekam
Two parts of Achekam touch online selling, and they are at different stages.
Pay links on invoices. A business can create a payment link for an issued customer invoice, copy it or e-mail it with the invoice, and the customer pays on a public page that shows the business's name and branding. There is no link for a draft or voided invoice. A link lasts 14 days by default, which the business can set anywhere from 1 to 720 hours, and an open link for the same amount is reused rather than duplicated. Because the pay page carries your name and branding, keep the company details in Achekam's settings consistent with what your website discloses.
The online storefront. Achekam's Commerce area includes an online storefront screen, but it stores nothing today, and the screen says so. It is not a place to run a shop from. Businesses selling online need their own website or store platform for the catalogue and checkout, with Achekam handling invoices, pay links and the books.
Website disclosure checklist
- Full registered name and legal status, visible on every page.
- Physical address and telephone number.
- Website address and e-mail address.
- Prices that include VAT and show transport costs before payment.
- Promotions with stated start and end dates.
- Accepted payment methods and when payment is due.
- The seven-day cancellation right and how to use it.
Read your own site as a first-time customer would, with the list beside you. Anything you have to hunt for, a customer will not find either.
General guidance only, not advice on your own circumstances. Tax and payroll rules change: check the current position with the authority or your adviser.
