# Must my online shop tell an unhappy customer about ADR? What section 308 has required in complaint replies since 6 April 2026 > Since 6 April 2026 a complaint reply must name any ADR scheme the trader is bound to join. What that means for a small online shop, and what to write. - Page to cite: https://aeolookup.com/online-shops/customer-complaint-reply-must-name-adr-online-shop-uk-2026/ - Publisher: AEO Lookup (https://aeolookup.com/) - Section: Online shops, Running the shop - Published 6 October 2026 - Key fact: We read section 308 subsection by subsection. It has 6 subsections; the duty sits in subsection (3), fires on 1 event (you communicate the outcome of your consideration of a complaint), and has something to name only if the shop is obliged to take part in a scheme by 1 of 3 named sources (legislation, the terms of the customer contract, or other contractual arrangements the shop is party to). Of the 4 example shops in the table below, 1 has nothing to name and 3 may have to name something, depending on a source we cannot see from outside the shop; we did not find any source that makes every shop join a scheme. - Sources: Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024, section 308 (Duty of trader to notify consumer of ADR arrangements etc), legislation.gov.uk, which records that it came into force on 6 April 2026 under the Commencement No. 3 and Transitional Provisions Regulations 2026; legislation.gov.uk page for regulation 19 of SI 2015/542 (Consumer Rights ADR regulations), which shows it revoked from 6 April 2026; GOV.UK publication page for the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024 (Alternative Dispute) Regulations 2026; all read 6 October 2026. The four example shops are our own illustration. A customer writes to say the parcel never came, or the item is not as described, and you reply with your decision. Since 6 April 2026 that reply has one more job. Section 308 of the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024 says what the reply must also tell the customer if they are not satisfied. The wording is narrower than the headline suggests, so it is worth reading before you change every template. This guide sets out what the section says, which shops it bites on, and how to word the reply. It covers a complaint about a consumer contract only. For the refund rules behind the complaint, see our guide to [what to refund on a return](https://aeolookup.com/online-shops/do-i-have-to-accept-this-return-what-do-i-refund/). ## What the section says Section 308 applies "where a trader responds to a complaint from a consumer in respect of any matters relating to a consumer contract between them". The matters include the making of the contract, anything done before or after it, and the trader's obligations under it and how they were performed. That is wide: a late parcel, a faulty item, a refused return and a misleading listing all count. The duty itself is in subsection (3). When you communicate the outcome of your consideration of the complaint, you "must... also inform the consumer about any ADR or other arrangement that is available if the consumer is dissatisfied with the outcome". ADR means alternative dispute resolution: an independent third party helps settle the dispute without a court. ## The part that limits it Subsection (4) defines "ADR or other arrangement". It is a scheme that is available to the customer "by virtue of an obligation of the trader to participate", and that obligation must come from one of three places: 1. legislation; 2. the terms of the consumer contract (your terms and conditions); 3. other contractual arrangements to which the trader is party. So the section does not say "every shop must join an ADR scheme", and in the text we read we did not find anything that does. It says that if you are already bound to one, the customer must be told when you give your answer. Subsection (6) adds that this does not affect any other duty to give information to a consumer. Our reading, which we cannot verify for your shop: if your terms do not promise a scheme, you have not signed up to one, and no law we found puts you in one, there may be nothing to name. We could not confirm from the sources we read whether other sector rules or your marketplace agreements impose a scheme on you, so check those yourself. ## What changed on 6 April 2026 Two things moved on the same date, according to the pages we read: - Section 308 came into force. - Regulation 19 of the 2015 ADR regulations, which was the older provision on this point, now shows as revoked on legislation.gov.uk. The page does not show its text, so we cannot say how it compared with the new section. GOV.UK also published new ADR regulations on 6 April 2026 that introduce a mandatory accreditation framework for ADR providers. That is about the providers, not about you. The page did not set out trader duties, so we have not described any. ## What happens if you do not Subsection (5) applies section 302 to a trader in breach. Section 302 deals with enforcement notices. We did not read section 302 in full and cannot say who issues the notice, what it can require or whether a financial penalty can follow. Treat the risk as real but unquantified. ## Four shops, sorted | Shop | Where the obligation might come from | Anything to name? | |---|---|---| | Own-website shop, no scheme in its terms, no trade body | None we can see | No, on our reading; check your terms | | Own-website shop whose terms say disputes go to a named scheme | The customer contract | Yes, that scheme | | Shop that belongs to a trade association with a scheme in its code | Other contractual arrangements | Yes, if the code obliges you to take part | | Seller on a marketplace whose seller terms set up a dispute process | Other contractual arrangements | Possibly, read the seller terms | We counted one shop out of four with nothing to name. That is an illustration, not a survey, and it is not evidence of how many real shops are bound. ## How to word the reply If you do have a scheme, the sentence sits in the outcome message, not in a separate notice: > "That is our decision on your complaint. If you are not satisfied with it, you can take it to [scheme name], which [one line on what it does]. You can contact it at [address or website]." If you have nothing to name, do not invent a scheme. A reply that is clear on the decision, the refund date and where the customer can get advice is better than a made-up referral. We did not find a rule that makes you point to Citizens Advice, but it is a fair, neutral place to mention. Keep a copy of the sent reply with the complaint. Our guide on [how long to keep order records](https://aeolookup.com/online-shops/how-long-must-online-shop-keep-order-records-customer-data/) covers the periods. ## Where it sits next to chargebacks A customer who gets a "no" and no next step often goes to their card issuer instead. Our guide to [chargebacks](https://aeolookup.com/online-shops/chargebacks-small-online-shop-how-to-respond/) covers how those disputes run, and the guide on a parcel that is [lost or late](https://aeolookup.com/online-shops/parcel-lost-or-late-who-pays-what-next/) covers the most common complaint that starts one. ## What we could not confirm - Whether any law makes a general online shop join an ADR scheme. We found none in the sources read. - What section 302 enforcement can require of a trader. - How the revoked regulation 19 compared with section 308. - Whether your marketplace or trade body terms oblige you to take part in a scheme. Overlyft ![](https://aeolookup.com/img/d/ours-badge.png) can set up an AI assistant that drafts a reply to each complaint from your policy, adds the named scheme line only when your terms list one, and files the sent copy with the order for you to check before it goes. This is general information, not legal advice. --- ![](https://aeolookup.com/img/d/owner-line.png) General information for UK small firms, not legal, tax or financial advice.