Five Things to Check on Your Business Website This Week

Most business websites were built once and then left alone. The design still looks fine, the contact form still works, and nobody has looked at the small print since launch day.

The trouble is that the rules around websites have kept moving. Cookie consent, accessibility and privacy expectations are very different from what they were even three years ago. Small gaps are easy to miss, and they tend to surface at the worst moment: a complaint, a lost tender or an awkward question from a customer.

Here are five things worth checking this week. None of them needs a developer to spot.

1. Cookie consent that actually works

Under the UK's Privacy and Electronic Communications Regulations (PECR), non-essential cookies, such as analytics and advertising, should only be set once a visitor has agreed to them.

Open your website in a private browsing window and ask yourself:

• Does a cookie banner appear before anything else loads?
• Is "Reject" as easy to find as "Accept"?
• If you click "Reject", do the analytics and advertising tags stay switched off?

A banner that only offers "OK", or one that loads tracking before you choose, is one of the most common issues we see.

2. A privacy policy that matches what you do

Your privacy policy should explain what personal data you collect, why, who you share it with and how people can exercise their rights under UK GDPR.

The common problem isn't a missing policy. It's an out-of-date one. If you've added a booking tool, a chat widget, a newsletter platform or a new analytics service since the policy was written, it probably no longer describes reality.

3. Accessibility for everyone

Around one in four people in the UK has a disability, and many use screen readers, keyboard navigation or zoom to get around the web. The Equality Act 2010 expects service providers to make reasonable adjustments, and public sector buyers increasingly ask suppliers about accessibility.

Quick checks you can do yourself:

• Do images have meaningful alternative text?
• Can you move through the whole site using only the Tab key?
• Is text readable against its background?
• Do form fields have proper labels?

The Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG 2.2) are the recognised standard to work towards.

4. Basic security settings

Visitors and search engines both expect a website to be secure. As a minimum, every page should load over HTTPS, and your server should send standard security headers that protect against common attacks such as clickjacking.

These settings are invisible to visitors, which is exactly why they get forgotten.

5. The essential business details

UK companies must show certain information on their website, including the registered company name, company number, registered office address and place of registration. If you sell online, customers should also be able to find clear terms, delivery information and how to cancel.

This is often tucked away in a footer, or missing altogether after a redesign.

Why this matters

None of these checks is complicated on its own. The challenge is keeping on top of them as your site changes. A new plugin, a marketing tag or a page added in a hurry can quietly undo good work.

The businesses that stay on top of it don't do a big audit once a year. They check regularly and fix small things as they appear.

Take the challenge

ComplianceCheck scans your website across cookies, privacy, accessibility, security and essential business information, then gives you a plain-English list of what to fix, in priority order.

Your first scan is free and you don't need an account. Ongoing monitoring starts from £30 a month (excl. VAT), with alerts if something changes.

ComplianceCheck helps you find and fix common issues. It is not legal advice, and you should take professional advice on your own situation.

See where your website stands at dmg-compliancecheck.com.