Are website terms of use legally required in Scotland?
Not strictly, although they are strongly recommended. If you collect personal data, the law does require a privacy notice.
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Website and app terms of use (Scotland)
Terms of use for a website or app lay down how people may use your site, covering acceptable use, who owns the content, disclaimers, liability and the governing law. They are distinct from any terms of sale you use for selling online, and from the privacy notice that UK data protection law makes compulsory any time personal data is collected.
When you need one
Every public website or app should have them, particularly where users can set up accounts, post content or rely on the information you put out.
What it should contain
Acceptable use
What users must not do.
Intellectual property
Ownership of site content and how users may use it.
User content
Rules for, and a licence over, any material users post.
Disclaimers
The status of information on the site.
Liability
Limits that are fair to consumers.
Changes and governing law
Updating the terms, and the governing law.
Points specific to Scotland
- The same consumer, data protection and cookie rules apply in Scotland. A consumer resident in Scotland can usually bring a claim in the Scottish courts, whatever the terms say.
Different rules can apply elsewhere in the UK: see the England and Wales version of this guide.
Common mistakes
- Borrowing terms from another site that do not suit your business.
- Treating terms of use as a substitute for a privacy notice.
- Exclusions that cannot be enforced because they are unfair to consumers.
View a specimen website and app terms of use: a brief sample of the structure and core clauses, in the format the app generates.
Quick answers
Can I limit my liability to website users in Scotland?
Yes, but only within limits. Liability for death or personal injury caused by negligence cannot be excluded, and any exclusion relied on against a consumer must be fair.
Start drafting your website and app terms of use
Be Contract Wise (Scotland)'s powerful, carefully prepared drafting tools turn a short set of plain-English questions into a website and app terms of use under Scots law, laid out to a professional standard, with an explanation of every clause. Simple or complex, export to Word or PDF.
Start drafting — freeBrowse all guidesReviewed 2026-09-24. General legal information about Scots law, not legal advice.