Buying online

Millions of internet sales take place every day. Know your consumer rights when buying online.

The following steps will help you enjoy trouble-free internet shopping.

• Shop around to get the best deal. Use price comparison websites to help.
• Find out what the delivery charge will be.
• Find out if the trader is based in the UK. If not then delivery charges may be more expensive and you may have to pay import duty and VAT. Goods may take longer to arrive and be more expensive to return.
• Only give your credit or debit card details if the trader uses a secure payments system. Look for the padlock symbol in the corner of the web page and “https” in the internet address line.
• Check to see if there is an additional fee to use your credit card.  If a business intends to do this they must tell you before you place an order.
• Check the terms and conditions
• Extra protection is available if the item or service you are buying costs more than £100 and you use your credit card to pay for all or part of the purchase. 
• Save or print a copy of your order confirmation. It might be useful if you have problems later on.

You can find further information on internet, mail order and telephone shopping on the Adviceguide website.