3 Ways to Place a Click Wrap Agreement On Your Website

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Table of Contents

• 1. Hyperlink to the Terms in the Click Wrap Agreement
• 2. Include a Scroll Box in the Click Wrap Agreement
• 3. Website Footer in the Click Wrap Agreement
• Key Takeaways

If you are planning to publish your own website or other software, customers should understand what they are using or downloading by accepting your terms and conditions. This article lists three ways you can display the click wrap agreement on your website. Each method has its own advantages and disadvantages. You will need to choose the method that best suits your business and situation.

Below are three strategies to upload your click wrap agreement. You can use these to ensure customers accept your terms and conditions clearly.

1. Hyperlink to the Terms in the Click Wrap Agreement

A common way to upload a click wrap agreement is to include the terms and conditions in a hyperlink. The hyperlink is placed next to a statement and tickbox that says “I have read and I accept these terms and conditions”. Clicking on the hyperlink takes customers to a separate page where they will see the terms and conditions. A customer indicates they accept your terms and conditions by clicking the tickbox.

Advantages

The advantage of this option is that it makes it easy for customers to click and purchase your good or service. Terms and conditions can look daunting, which is why many businesses choose to display their terms in a hyperlink. It is up to the customer to click through to the terms and to read them. However, they do not have to, which makes the buying process quicker and easier for the customer.

Disadvantages

A customer may not spend the extra second to click through to reach your terms and conditions. Therefore, they might argue that they never reviewed your terms. Although it is the customer’s responsibility to review your terms and conditions, you should ensure your customers are aware of your terms at every step of the buying process. This is particularly important if you run a riskier business. Do not leave any room for argument that a customer never read your terms or did not have a chance to read your terms.

Suitability

The hyperlink method may be appropriate for a lower-risk business selling goods like clothing or decorative items. If you operate a high-risk business, such as an IT service, you might want to display your terms in a scroll box.

2. Include a Scroll Box in the Click Wrap Agreement

Another common way to display a click wrap agreement is to include the agreement in a scroll box. Customers still need to click a tick box next to a statement that says “I have read and I accept these terms and conditions”. However, the difference is that the customer needs to scroll through the terms before being able to tick the box.

Advantages

The advantage of this strategy is that it is impossible for a customer to click the tick box and accept your terms before they have scrolled all the way through the terms. A customer would find it difficult to argue that the terms were not displayed clearly or transparently. It is the customer’s responsibility to make sure they have read the terms and understand them.

Disadvantages

The disadvantage of the scroll box method is that customers must face scrolling through a set of legal terms. Having to read a legal document could dampen a customer’s desire to buy.

Suitability

We commonly see scroll box click wrap agreements for businesses offering IT services that pose more risk for the business, including:

• services such as software as a service (SaaS) agreements;
• development agreements;
• maintenance agreements; or
• service management contracts.

3. Website Footer in the Click Wrap Agreement

The third common strategy for uploading click wrap agreements is the website footer approach. This should only be used in limited circumstances. The website footer option is not paired with a ‘click to accept box’ and statement of acceptance. Acceptance of a click wrap agreement uploaded to the footer of a website is usually implied by a customer’s actions.

The only two common legal documents that you should display in the footer of a website are:

• website terms of use; or
• privacy policy.

Website Terms of Use

There are likely thousands of browsers who never buy your goods and services and so never agree to your terms and conditions. Website terms of use apply to all browsers. Their acceptance of the terms of use is implied by the continued use of the website. Ensure that the terms of use state that “use of the website” constitutes a browser’s acceptance of the terms of use.

Privacy Policy

A privacy policy can also be displayed in the website footer, but should also be displayed wherever you collect an individual’s personal information. For example, if you have a web form where people submit information to sign up for a newsletter, you should display the privacy policy on this page as well.

Key Takeaways

You can display your business terms and conditions in the footer of your website for transparency. But to demonstrate that a customer has accepted the terms, you need to use either a:

1. hyperlink with a tick to accept box and acceptance statement; or
2. scroll box.

Ultimately, it is important to display your click wrap agreement correctly. This will demonstrate that each of your customers have accepted your terms and conditions. 

If you have any questions about your click wrap agreement, get in touch with LegalVision’s online lawyers on 1300 544 755 or fill out the form on this page.