for Business

Disclosing Energy

Efficiency Information:

A Guide for Online Sellers

of Appliances

FTC FACTS

BUSINESS

1-877-FTC-HELP

FEDERAL TRADE COMMISSION FOR THE CONSUMER

www.ftc.gov

I

f you sell home appliances online, you may be required to observe the disclosure requirements of the Federal Trade Commissions Appliance Labeling Rule.

The Rule requires manufacturers of certain appliances to affix yellow-and-black

EnergyGuide labels to these appliances. It also requires appliance retailers to leave

the labels in place.

The labels give consumers information about the energy efficiency of competing models of appliances, and enable them to factor the cost of operating an

appliance into their buying decisions.

Consumers who purchase appliances through a website or catalog never

come face-to-face with EnergyGuide labels. To ensure that these consumers have

access to the energy efficiency information on the EnergyGuide labels before they

buy, the FTC requires merchants to post the information on their sites and catalog

sellers to print it in their catalogs.
Facts for Business

If you sell certain appliances through a

website, the following questions and answers

should help clarify your legal obligations.

Q. According to the FTCs Appliance

Labeling Rule, which appliances require

energy efficiency disclosures?

A. The FTCs labeling and disclosure

requirements apply to:

 Refrigerators, freezers, dishwashers, clothes

washers;

 Water heaters, furnaces, boilers;

 Central air conditioners, room air conditioners, heat pumps; and

 Pool heaters

Q. What energy efficiency information

must an e-tailer or a catalog seller provide?

A. Dealers who sell covered appliances

online or through a catalog must disclose:

 The capacity of the particular model.

 For refrigerators, freezers, dishwashers,

clothes washers and water heaters, the

models estimated annual energy consumption.

 For air conditioners, heat pumps, furnaces,

boilers and pool heaters, the energy efficiency

rating.

 The range of estimated annual energy consumption or energy efficiency ratings of

comparable appliances.

Q. Must all websites provide this information?

A. Websites must comply with the Appliance Labeling Rules disclosure requirements if

they meet the Rules definition of a catalog 

that is, printed material which contains the terms

of sale, retail price, and instructions for ordering,

from which a retail consumer can order a covered

product. A website is considered a catalog if it

offers the appliances covered by the Rule, states

the price at which they are available, and has

instructions for consumers to order these products.

Q. Where on the website should the

disclosure information appear?

A. You may put this information next to the

description of the appliance, or you may use a

hyperlink to take the reader to another page that

contains the required information. If you use a

hyperlink, it should be:

 Next to the description of the appliance so

that the reader will see it. The link should be

clear and conspicuous, that is, easy to see and

notice.

 Readily identified as a link. Use visual cues

for the link: make it a different color than the

surrounding text, underline it or incorporate a

small graphic or icon. Using the same text

style for all hyperlinks throughout your site

will help the reader identify the link.

 Meaningful. It should give the visitor a

reason to click on it. For example, labeling

the link Energy Efficiency Information is

more likely to bring a consumer to the link

than a label that says Legally Required

Disclosures. Consider using a label and a

yellow-and-black EnergyGuide icon, which

you can download from the FTCs website at

www.ftc.gov/appliances.

 A direct connection to the energy efficiency

information. The link should go directly to

the page providing the information, not to an

intermediate page that requires the reader to

click again. In addition, the reader should not

have to scroll down the screen to find the

applicable information.

Q. A manufacturer of covered appliances

maintains a website with information about its

products, including model numbers, photos,

features, technical specifications, dimensions,

and installation instructions. Is it required to

post energy efficiency information on the site?

A. A manufacturer is required to include

energy efficiency information on its website only

if the site gives prices for the appliances and

instructions for ordering them. If the site provides information about the appliances but

doesnt offer them for sale, the FTCs disclosure
Facts for Business

requirements dont apply. However, a manufacturer may voluntarily provide the information to

help alert consumers to the energy efficiency of

its products.

Q. A dealer sells appliances through a

bricks-and-mortar showroom, and maintains

a website with its address and phone number

and information about its products. The

dealer does not sell appliances through the

website; indeed, it advises callers and emailers

to visit its showroom. Does the site have to

post the energy efficiency disclosures?

A. If a site does not provide instructions for

ordering, it is not subject to the disclosure requirements. This applies even if the dealer accepts orders from consumers who see the product

information on the website. Nevertheless, the

dealer may want to provide the energy efficiency

information as a customer service.

Q. A dealer sells appliances through a

showroom and a website, but requires consumers who buy online to pick up their purchases from the showroom. Is the website

required to post the disclosures?

A. The site is required to post the disclosures because it gives instructions for ordering

appliances. It makes no difference whether the

purchaser picks up the item at the showroom or

has it delivered.

Q. A dealer offers appliances through a

website. Consumers cannot order online, but

the site gives consumers a telephone number

to call to place their order. Is the website

required to post the disclosures?

A. The website is required to post the

disclosures because it gives customers ordering

instructions. It doesnt matter how the customer

places the order.

Q. A dealer sells appliances through a

website, but doesnt physically handle the

merchandise. Once the dealer receives an

order, he notifies the manufacturer or a local

distributor, who makes  or arranges for 

the delivery. Does the website have to post the

disclosures?

A. Yes, because the dealer sells the appliances through its website, even though it doesnt

stock them.

Q. Company X provides website services

to an appliance dealer. The company designs

the dealers site, hosts the site on its server,

and processes credit card orders placed

through the site. The system routes the ordering information to the dealer, who fulfills the

order and receives the payment via its merchant account. Is company X responsible for

making the website disclosures ?

A. No. Company X is involved in online

appliance sales indirectly. Its services to the

appliance dealer fall into the category of those

provided by the dealers telecommunications

provider, landlord or accountant. In this case, the

dealer would be responsible for posting the

required disclosures.

Q. A trade association operates a website

that serves as a locator and host for individual

appliance dealers sites. Based on a template,

each dealer site has the same layout, but is

personalized. The trade association controls

what is posted on the sites, and dealers cannot

alter their sites. Each dealers site allows

customers to order online: When they click on

a Shop Online icon, customers are transferred to a page where they select their appliance and then click on a Buy Now icon.

The ordering information is transmitted

directly to the dealer, who fulfills the order.

Who is responsible for making the energy

efficiency disclosures?

A. The dealers are responsible for making

the disclosures. Although the dealers allow the

trade association to control the contents of the

site, each dealer offers appliances for sale. That

makes each dealer responsible for disclosing the

energy efficiency information.
Federal Trade Commission

Bureau of Consumer Protection

Office of Consumer and Business Education

October 2000

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Facts for Business

Q. A portal operates a shopping area.

Visitors click to a page where they can select a

category of appliances. After choosing a

category, they get descriptions of the models

offered by several dealers, with links to each

dealer. Visitors can order appliances through

the portal, which forwards the information to

the dealer. Who is responsible for posting the

disclosures?

A. The dealer is responsible for posting the

disclosures. The dealer is advertising in a catalog

by virtue of the content it maintains on its own

site.

Q. A website offers information about a

variety of appliances and recommends specific

models. Consumers can click on an icon to get

information about online dealers who sell the

appliances. They also get information from the

dealers websites, displayed in a frame on the

page, that they can use to place an order.

Who is responsible for posting the disclosures?

A. The dealer is responsible for posting the

disclosures because he is offering the appliances

on his website.

For More Information

For more information about the Appliance

Labeling Rule, visit www.ftc.gov/appliances. For

more information about complying with various

FTC Rules and Guides, including the brochure,

Dot Com Disclosures, call 1-877-FTC-HELP, or

visit www.ftc.gov. Click on Business Guidance.

Your Opportunity to Comment

The Small Business and Agriculture Regulatory Enforcement Ombudsman and 10 Regional

Fairness Boards collect comments from small

business about federal enforcement actions. Each

year, the Ombudsman evaluates enforcement

activities and rates each agencys responsiveness

to small business. To comment on FTC actions,

call 1-888-734-3247.