Testing your contact & order forms
Why we test your website forms regularly, what we check, and what to do if a form stops working.
Your website forms — contact forms, enquiry forms, booking forms, order forms — are often the most business-critical part of your site. If they stop working silently, you lose enquiries and orders without ever knowing. This guide explains how we test forms and why it matters.
Quick summary
We periodically submit test entries through your website forms to verify they deliver correctly. A form can look perfectly fine on your site but fail silently — meaning submissions vanish without reaching you. Regular testing catches this before it costs you business.
Why forms fail silently
This is one of the most common (and most damaging) website problems. A form can break and not show any error to the visitor. They fill it in, click submit, see a success message — and you never receive it.
Common causes of silent form failures:
| Cause | What happened |
|---|---|
| Email delivery issue | Your server's ability to send email was blocked or changed |
| Plugin update | A form plugin update broke something in the sending process |
| Spam filter | Your form notifications are landing in your spam folder |
| Configuration change | A hosting or email setting change affected form delivery |
| Plugin conflict | A new plugin is interfering with your form plugin |
Check your spam folder
Before assuming a form is broken, check your spam or junk folder. Form notification emails are sometimes flagged as spam, especially if your email DNS records (SPF, DKIM) aren't fully set up. See Email DNS records for more.
What we test
When we test your forms, we check:
Submit a test entry. We fill in your form with clearly labeled test data (so you can recognize it if it arrives) and submit it.
Verify delivery. We check that the notification email arrives at the address you have configured to receive form submissions.
Check the thank-you message or redirect. After submitting, the form should show a confirmation message or redirect to a thank-you page. We verify this works correctly.
For stores: check order confirmation. If you have an order form or checkout, we check that order confirmation emails reach both you and the customer.
Check integrations. If your form connects to a CRM, mailing list, or spreadsheet, we verify those connections are working too.
What happens if a test fails
If a form test shows a problem:
- We identify the cause — is it a plugin issue, an email delivery issue, or something else?
- We fix or escalate — some fixes are quick; email delivery issues may involve your hosting provider or email setup
- We re-test after the fix to confirm it's working
- We let you know what happened and what was done
How to tell if your form has stopped working
Between our scheduled tests, you can keep an eye out for these signs:
- You haven't received any enquiries in an unusually long time
- A customer mentions they "sent a message through your website" but you never got it
- You're getting spam filter bounces for your notification email address
If you suspect a form isn't working, contact us and we'll investigate right away.
Common questions
Related guides
- Broken links & why they matter
- Why websites need maintenance
- How to report a bug effectively
- What to check on your site monthly
- What is SMTP (and why your site needs it)
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