Email Disclaimers in Australia: Examples for Marketers

What to include in an email disclaimer in Australia

What you include in your email disclaimer depends on the type of message and who’s receiving it. The goal is to protect sensitive information, clarify intent, and support compliant communication.

1. Recipient clause

A recipient clause lets readers know who the email is for and what to do if they got it by mistake. It’s helpful for messages with account-specific details, like exclusive offers or content meant for a specific subscriber group.

2. Confidentiality notice 

A confidentiality notice explains that an email may contain private, confidential, or commercially sensitive information and shouldn’t be copied, shared, or used without permission.

While less common in broad promotional campaigns, it’s useful for emails with customer-specific details, account information, or restricted content. It’s especially helpful when communicating with clients about strategy, customer data, offers, or campaign materials and it supports stronger governance whenever personal information or internal planning is involved.

3.  Liability and accuracy disclaimer 

A liability and accuracy disclaimer clarifies that the email is for general information, reflects what was known at the time of sending, and isn’t a substitute for formal legal, financial, or contractual advice.

This can be helpful in promotional emails featuring pricing, product availability, limited-time offers, or campaign messaging that may change. It helps set expectations—but for legal email compliance, the content still needs to be honest and not misleading.

4. Virus and security warning 

A virus and security warning tells readers to be careful with attachments, links, and any request for sensitive information. It can also remind them that email is not always fully secure.

This can be a simple way to build trust with the audience. It shows customers that the brand takes security seriously and wants to help them spot anything suspicious.

5. Opinions disclaimer 

An opinions disclaimer says that views expressed in the email are general in nature or should not be taken as formal advice unless clearly stated otherwise.

This can work well in newsletter content, brand commentary, trend roundups, or educational emails where the message reflects a point of view rather than a guaranteed outcome or official recommendation.

6. Marketing compliance 

A marketing compliance notice makes it clear that promotional emails are still subject to rules around consent, sender identification, privacy law, and unsubscribe options.

This matters because Australian spam laws apply to commercial electronic messages, from SMS marketing to promotional emails. It shows customers that your emails are designed to follow the rules. Remember: disclaimers can support your compliance efforts, but they are not a substitute for them.

For more tips, you can check out our guide: What is an email disclaimer?

How email disclaimers help your business

Email disclaimers can help make your marketing emails clearer, more consistent, and easier for customers to understand. They are not a substitute for compliance, but they can still play a useful supporting role.

What disclaimers can do:

• Show confidentiality and intent: A disclaimer can help explain who the email is for and what it is meant to do. This can be useful if a message includes account-specific information, limited offers, or content that should not be shared more widely.
• Reduce the risk of relying on incorrect information: Details can change. A disclaimer can make it clear that facts were accurate at the time of sending, but may not be now. This is especially helpful in emails about pricing, availability, promotions, or limited-time offers.
• Clarify opinions or company statements: Some emails include commentary, recommendations, or educational content. A disclaimer can help show when something is general information or opinion, rather than formal legal, financial, or professional advice.
• Support internal policies and compliance: Disclaimers can help reinforce the standards your business already follows around privacy, security, and customer communication. They can also help keep messaging more consistent across your teams.

What disclaimers can’t do:

• Remove liability: A disclaimer cannot protect a business from responsibility if an email is misleading, inaccurate, or non-compliant. The content still needs to be clear, truthful, and up to date.
• Replace compliance with privacy or spam laws: A disclaimer can support good practice, but it cannot take the place of meeting your legal obligations. Your emails still need to follow the rules around consent, privacy, sender identification, and unsubscribes.
• Create legal privilege: A disclaimer cannot turn an ordinary email into a legally protected one. In Australia, legal professional privilege usually applies only to confidential communications with a lawyer for the main purpose of getting legal advice or dealing with litigation. So even if an email says “privileged” in the footer, that doesn’t automatically protect it.
• Fix an issue after it occurs: A disclaimer cannot undo a privacy issue, a spam breach, or an email sent in error. It may help explain the intent behind the message, but it cannot reverse what has already happened. If an issue arises, the business still needs to take the right next steps, such as correcting the error, addressing the compliance risk, or following its internal response process.

Email disclaimer examples

Confidentiality example 

A confidentiality disclaimer is useful when an email is meant only for the person it was sent to. This can work well for account updates, order details, private business information—or any message that is not meant to be shared more widely. It won’t stop someone from forwarding the email, but it does make your intent clear and shows that the message should be treated carefully.

• “This email is intended only for the person or business it is addressed to. If you received it by mistake, please let us know and delete it.”
• “This message may contain confidential information and should not be copied, shared, or used by anyone other than the intended recipient.”
• “If this email was sent to you in error, please delete it and let us know straight away. Any information in this message is intended only for the named recipient.”

Employer liability example 

An employer liability disclaimer can help separate a business’s official position from an employee’s personal views. For small businesses, this can be useful when team members send emails that include opinions, commentary, or informal remarks that should not be taken as the brand’s official view. It helps set expectations, but it does not excuse inappropriate or harmful behaviour.

• “Any views expressed in this email are those of the sender unless clearly stated otherwise.”
• “This message does not necessarily reflect the official views of the business unless confirmed by an authorised representative.”
• “Unless stated otherwise, the views in this message are personal to the sender and should not be taken as an official business position.”

Security example 

A security disclaimer is useful to warn readers that email is not always completely secure. This can apply to messages with attachments, invoices, account details, or payment information. The disclaimer can act as a general warning about viruses and help customers spot phishing or bank fraud.

• “Please be careful with attachments and links, as email is not always fully secure. Contact us directly if anything in this message seems unusual.”
• “We will never advise changes to our bank details by email alone. If you receive a payment request or updated banking details, please contact us directly before taking action.”
• “While we take care to keep our emails secure, we recommend checking any attachments and verifying unexpected requests for payments or sensitive information.”

Best practice disclaimer tips 

The best disclaimer is not the longest or most detailed one. It should be easy to read, accurate, and consistent with how the business actually operates.

• Keep it short and readable: A disclaimer should be easy to scan and simple to understand.
• Avoid heavy legal talk: Plain English is usually more useful than long, formal wording.
• Match disclaimer to actual business practices: Only include statements that reflect how your business really handles privacy, security, and customer communication.
• Keep it aligned with your other policies: Your disclaimer should be consistent with your privacy policy, terms and conditions, and internal policies.
• Use consistent formatting across teams: A standard format can help keep messaging clear and more consistent across the business.