The design of an online store does more than look good. Product pages, cart pages and policy pages all tell shoppers what they will pay and what happens if something goes wrong. Australian consumer law has firm rules about both. Getting the wording and layout right is part of building a store people trust.
This guide looks at two areas where store design and the law meet. The first is how prices are shown. The second is how returns and refunds are described. Both are easy to get wrong with a template written for another country.
Showing the total price
The Australian Government’s business website says that if you display or advertise prices, you should always include the total price. That total must cover compulsory amounts such as GST. The ACCC explains the same idea through its rule on component pricing. If a price is split into parts, the business must also state the total as a single figure.
Prominence matters as much as the figure itself. The ACCC says the total price must be displayed just as prominently as any component of the price. Its example is a $1,000 stove with $100 GST. Showing “$1,000 + $100 GST” with no total is not allowed. Showing the $1,100 total in smaller print than the stove price is not allowed either.
What this means for product page design
On a product page, the main price shown should be the full price the shopper must pay. Avoid designs where a low base price sits in large type and compulsory fees appear in small grey text. Service fees the customer is required to pay belong in the total too. The ACCC gives storage or installation fees as examples.
Delivery costs are handled a little differently. The business.gov.au guidance gives delivery fees as an example of an optional charge that does not have to be included in the total. Even so, shoppers appreciate seeing delivery costs early. A clear delivery note near the price or a simple calculator in the cart saves surprises at checkout.
Price comparisons need care as well. The same guidance warns that showing a recommended retail price can mislead customers if the product has never been sold at that price. It also says that if you cannot show sales at a previous higher price for a reasonable period, you are likely misleading customers. Strike through prices and “was” labels are common design features. Use them only when the old price was real.
Consumer guarantees and why they matter for your store
Consumer guarantees are part of the Australian Consumer Law. The ACCC explains that customers receive them automatically when they buy. For products, they include guarantees that goods are of acceptable quality and match their description. The ACCC also says businesses selling online must follow all the usual consumer laws, including these guarantees.
The key point for store owners is that these rights cannot be removed. The ACCC says the basic rights covered by consumer guarantees cannot be taken away by anything a business says or does. That includes a “no refunds” sign or a claim that the business is not responsible for problems. You can read more on the ACCC page about consumer rights and guarantees.
Warranties are a separate thing. The ACCC describes them as extra promises a business can choose to make on top of the consumer guarantees. A store can offer a warranty as a selling point. It should never present that warranty as the only remedy for a faulty product.
Overseas businesses are not exempt either. The ACCC says overseas businesses that supply Australian consumers directly must follow the Australian Consumer Law. This matters if you run a store from overseas or use policy wording written for another market. Text built for one country often does not fit here.
What the ACCC found when it reviewed retail websites
In February 2025 the ACCC reported on a sweep of more than two thousand Australian retail websites. It reviewed their return policies and website terms and conditions. Many sites already told customers about their consumer guarantee rights. Others contained statements that concerned the regulator.
The problems included time limits on reporting faulty products and blanket “no refund” rules for sale or made to order items. Some sites named a manufacturer warranty as the only way to claim for faulty goods. Others charged restocking fees on faulty returns or refused to refund delivery fees on faulty items. The ACCC sent warning letters to several businesses and most changed or removed the statements. The full details are in the ACCC report on its sweep of online return policies.
Writing and designing a clear returns page
A returns page should be easy to find from every product page and from the footer. It should explain in plain words what happens when a product is faulty. It should keep that separate from any change of mind policy. The ACCC notes that consumer guarantees do not cover buyers who simply change their mind or find a lower price elsewhere.
That distinction matters for how the page is laid out. Any change of mind policy is a choice the store makes for itself. What a store cannot do is word that policy so it appears to limit rights for faulty goods. Separate headings for each situation help both shoppers and staff.
Good copywriting helps here as much as good layout. The same thinking behind great sales copy applies to policy pages. Know who is reading, what they are worried about and what you want them to do next. Short sentences and plain headings make a policy feel fair rather than defensive.
The ACCC’s general guidance for online sellers also lists features that help customers sort out problems. It suggests clear steps for solving problems and giving replacements and refunds. It also suggests showing a physical address, a contact number and an ABN or other business registration number. Placing these details in the footer and on the contact page makes a store feel established.
Policy pages often get the least design attention on a site. Yet they are where nervous customers go before spending money. Giving them the same fonts, colours and tone as the rest of the store keeps trust intact. Consistency like this is one of the simpler ways to brand yourself in web design.
Bringing it into the build
Pricing and policy rules are easiest to handle during the design stage. Agree on how prices, fees and delivery costs will appear before the product templates are built. Write the returns page early rather than leaving it as a placeholder. For a new business still weighing up online sales, our post on ecommerce activities for a startup covers the bigger questions.
Once the store is live, check it the way a customer would. Add a product to the cart and follow it through to checkout. Look at whether the price you advertised matches the price at the end. When you promote the store, keep the same price wording across ads and emails as part of your basic digital marketing campaign.
Frequently asked questions
Do prices on my online store need to include GST?
The business.gov.au guidance says the total price you display must include compulsory amounts such as GST. The ACCC’s component pricing example shows GST as part of the single total. If you split out GST, the total still has to appear as one figure. It must be just as prominent as the parts.
Can I have a no refunds policy on sale items?
You cannot use a policy that takes away consumer guarantee rights for faulty goods. The ACCC flagged blanket “no refund” rules for sale items in its 2025 sweep. A store can still decide how it handles change of mind returns. Keep the wording for the two situations clearly separate.
Is a warranty the same as a consumer guarantee?
No, they are different things. The ACCC says consumer guarantees are automatic and cannot be removed. Warranties are extra promises a business chooses to make on top of them. A warranty adds to the guarantees but never replaces them.
Do these rules apply to overseas stores?
The ACCC says overseas businesses that supply Australian consumers directly must follow the Australian Consumer Law. That includes the consumer guarantees. Stores built on overseas templates should have their policy wording checked against Australian rules. Getting this right early is far easier than rewriting pages later.
This article is general information only and is not legal advice. Laws and regulator guidance can change over time. State and territory fair trading agencies also enforce these rules alongside the ACCC. For advice about your own store, speak with a qualified lawyer.
