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Online reviews can play an important role in helping consumers make the right choices.听

In order to maintain people鈥檚 trust, review sites should check and present reviews in a way that avoids distorting the overall picture presented to people that read them.听

Our research estimates that more than half of UK adults use online reviews.听

If your business鈥檚 website allows people to review products - whether they鈥檙e yours, or someone else鈥檚 - you should publish all genuine, relevant and lawful reviews. You should also make sure that your processes to collect, moderate and publish reviews don鈥檛 hinder this.听

If you engage in misleading practices when managing or presenting reviews, you could be in breach of consumer protection law.

Be clear with users听

Explain to site users the difference between leaving a review intended for publication and making a complaint to you.

Give users the full picture听

Users of review sites expect your content to accurately reflect reviewers鈥� feedback on their experiences. Your processes should ensure that users see the full picture, including ensuring:听

• aggregate ratings reflect all genuine reviews and are not distorted by fake or incentivised reviews
• published reviews are relevant to the product they describe, and aren鈥檛 outdated
• once submitted, reviews are published without unreasonable delays

Include negative reviews

Do not only collect reviews from customers you know are satisfied (unless these are clearly labelled as testimonials), or offer incentives for positive reviews.听

You must not:听

• edit, withhold, remove or delay publication of genuine negative reviews听
• give businesses the right to block reviews they do not like听
• make an offer of dispute resolution contingent on a customer not leaving a negative review听
• treat a negative review intended for publication as a complaint and not publish it听
• try to persuade customers to submit a complaint to you, rather than a review for publishing听
• try to dissuade customers from leaving a review on their experience - even if their initial problem has been resolved听听

Have the necessary policies and procedures in place听

You should subject both negative and positive reviews to checks of the appropriate rigour, and have procedures in place to prevent and remove fake reviews. You should also have a published policy that clearly prohibits fake reviews and states your approach to banned content. For more information, see our听detailed guidance on fake reviews and short guide for businesses.听

Make it clear to site users how reviews have been collected and checked, what they need to do to get their review published, and why their review might not be published.听

Disclose any interests听

Clearly and prominently disclose any commercial relationships you have with the businesses listed.

More information听

• Fake reviews: CMA208听
• Unfair commercial practices: CMA207听
• CMA guidance collection on鈥�online reviews and endorsements听and the CMA鈥檚听case page, for detail on previous and ongoing casework听
• CTSI听, in particular听听

These materials do not constitute legal advice and should not be relied upon as such.