Some time ago I wrote about a new law that was coming into effect in Britain that had psychics, mediums and healers running scared. (If this brouhaha has passed you by, you can play catch-up by doing the background reading with my previous article.) Well, the regulations are now in force and yet too many of my colleagues are still shaking in their boots.

Some have stopped recording their readings. Others have started recording their readings. But there’s one thing that nearly all of them have done and that is to post on their websites a disclaimer that states:

Due to recent changes in the law, I am required to tell you that all readings are for entertainment purposes only.

What a load of nonsense! That’s right, such disclaimers are completely unnecessary and only show up the psychic, medium or healer as gullible at best or as nothing more than an entertainer at worst.

You might say this disclaimer requirement is just another example of an urban legend. You know how they go. It’s usually something along the lines of – “Someone who a friend of mine knows spoke to someone else who said that they were told that unless you had this disclaimer you could be sued under the new law.” Again, what a load of twaddle!

So, recently I decided that enough was enough and that I needed to wade in and try to get some of my colleagues to see sense. I wrote a letter to the editor of Psychic News, the leading Spiritualist newspaper in Britain and regarded as THE trade publication for UK psychics, mediums and healers.

This week I have decided to offer the letter I wrote and which was published by Psychic News on both of my websites (PsychicBridges and IntuitiveBridges) as something of an open letter to every practising psychic, medium and healer out there as well as to our clients.

To the Editor:

I have noticed a trend on psychic websites to feature a disclaimer that readings are offered as “entertainment only” and are “experiments”. I assume this is in response to the Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations 2008.

As a psychic and medical intuitive as well as a former lawyer, I have read the regulations along with the accompanying guidelines from The Office of Fair Trading. I cannot find any requirement for this disclaimer to be included on the websites of psychics, mediums or healers.

My concern is that these unnecessary disclaimers give the wrong impression. My readings are most definitely not for “entertainment only”. I am surprised that fellow professionals are happy to present their work in this way. Might we not just be playing into the hands of sceptics by describing what we do as mere “entertainment”?

Moreover, as I read the legislation, such disclaimers will not protect us from complaints made to trading standards officers under the new regulations. Blanket disclaimers do not absolve us of the need to treat our clients fairly and exercise common sense at all times.

Of course, our websites should spell out what we offer. Where our readings do not constitute legal, financial or medical advice, we should say so. Provided we treat our clients professionally, we should have nothing to fear from recent changes in the law.

With more clients discovering our services through the internet, this strikes me as an important issue. Do such disclaimers portray our community and our valuable work in the right light?

Regards,
Alan Bridges

So there you have it. I have taken the stand that my readings, while hopefully entertaining, are most certainly NOT “for entertainment only”. If you’ve never had such a reading, why not treat yourself to one now? Check out my range of psychic services here. A reading with me could bring the answers, advice and insight that have been eluding you for far too long.

Please join me in my Psychic Chat forums and let’s get the discussion flowing. Tell me what you think about this law or about readings that are “for entertainment only".

As always, feel free to contact me with any comments, suggestions or feedback on PsychicBridges.

Thanks again for all your support and until next time,

Kindest regards,

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