Email is now the preferred and most common method of communication for a lot of businesses. It is because of this that email laws are tightening in terms of the details that business emails must contain.
Throughout the UK and Europe, there are a number of laws that require companies to display their company details within their email signature. Not adhering to these laws can carry significant punishment.
There is a Dutch law that requires every company to display their CoC number on all outgoing letters, orders, invoices, quotes and other written communications (this includes email). Failure to follow this law is an economic crime which can result in a fine of up to €16,750 or up to six months imprisonment!
There is also a similar law in the UK, requiring all business emails to contain the following in legible text:
Company name:
Your company registration number:
Your place of registration:
Your registered office address:
Failure to mention these details warrants a £1,000 fine for each director or company. For further information about regulations throughout Europe, check out this post from Rob. These laws are tightening and becoming more common all over the world.
Although the laws do not state that these details must be in the signature block at the bottom of an email, this seems to be the most common place, (see example below).
Not having the correct details within every email that leaves your company could cost you a lot of money. It is certainly in your best interest to invest the time to design an attractive email signature to house your company details. For example, I have attached my current email signature below. Rather than having the company details and registered number in a large font, it has been ‘greyed out’ to attract minimal attention. This means that all of my emails contain the legal requirements but are still attractive and professional.
If you don’t already, I suggest that you place a disclaimer at the end of your emails. Even if you are not based in Europe, it ensures the reader that your company is registered and displays professionalism.
For more information about how you can automatically add a disclaimer to the bottom of every email leaving your company, click here.
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