Search for the problem, not just the legal phrase
A consumer may know “my default is wrong” without knowing PRAAD, data accuracy or the role of a credit-reference agency. ConsumerWise search therefore uses titles, summaries, full text, aliases, tags and editorial relationships rather than relying only on exact page-title matches.
Database-first search with a static fallback
Where the live backend is available, search sends the phrase to ConsumerWise’s own search endpoint and queries the current content database. A static search index remains available as a fallback for resilience. Results can include guides, tools, templates, regulator pages, rebuttals and relevant sections inside longer pages.
Search privacy
The text you type is transmitted to ConsumerWise so matching results can be returned. The search application is not designed to create a personal search-history profile and does not deliberately write ordinary queries into a user account or query-history table. As with other web requests, server/security logs may process request information.
Do not put account numbers, passwords, medical records or unnecessary identifying details into a search box. Optional Matomo analytics is configured to record the page path without the query string, so the ?q=... part of a search-results URL is not intentionally used as the analytics page URL.
Aliases and relationship-aware ranking
Common equivalents and acronyms, for example SAR/DSAR, FOS/Financial Ombudsman Service and FOI/Freedom of Information, are connected editorially. Relationship mappings can also boost a useful concept that the user did not know to name. Those connections affect ranking only; they do not create a legal conclusion about the user’s case.
Typo tolerance and limits
Conservative fuzzy matching helps with minor spelling mistakes. Search avoids aggressive “correction” where similar-looking legal terms have different meanings. Exact or strong title matches receive more weight than incidental mentions in body text, and weak matches can be filtered rather than filling the page with noise.
Maintaining search quality
New and changed pages should be added to the search index at the same time as navigation and sitemap updates. Broken routes, stale summaries and old aliases are search defects, not merely SEO issues. ConsumerWise tests ordinary consumer phrasing as well as formal legal language.