Here are some tips to make sure you are getting the best out of online shopping.

Make sure you are you are making a saving – One of the best things about internet shopping is that it should be cheaper than buying from a shop. Buy you should still do your homework before you make a purchase as prices can vary considerably for the same item at different online retailers.

Kelkoo and Shopping.com are shopping search engines they will take the hard work out of hunting for the cheapest price for something. It is worth remembering that these shopping search engines are still a business at the end of the day and will be paid by the shops they advertise, so the cheapest price on the site may not be the absolute cheapest price you can buy something for, but they give you a good base to start from.

Make sure a online shop is trustworhty - at the very least, make sure the reatiler has a land line phone number in the contact section, not a mobile number, and make sure there is an address should you need to contact them, not just a PO Box number.

Also make sure the payment page is secure, you will know because the http in the url will change to https and a little padlock will appear in the locked position on the bottom right of the browser window (this is the case for internet explorer).

Legally online shops must confirm your order by email, and must let you return items unused a minimum of 7 days after you have purchased them, this is your statutory right. You can find more info about statutory rights at the office of fair trading website below. http://www.oft.gov.uk

How to pay - the safest way to make any purchase is by credit card. If something goes wrong it is the credit card company that is liable along with the retailer. This applies to purchases between £100 and £30,000 and also includes purchases you may have made outside the UK.

Cahoot the online bank have a very clever web credit card. It works like a normal credit card, but it generates a unique credit card number/details for that particular purchase you are making. If someone gets hold of those details they will not work. More details http://www.cahoot.com/webcard.html

For added reassurrance look for the ISIS logo (internet shopping is safe) on the shop you are buying from -

All ISIS credited merchants certify that they are

• registered with the ISIS programme and undertaken to trade in a manner that is LEGAL, DECENT, HONEST, TRUTHFUL AND FAIR;
• had its web site and service reviewed and monitored by IMRG;
• had its Business, VAT and Data Protection registrations checked by IMRG.

Meaning you can shop with confidence.

If you have bought something from a site that you then can’t contact try visiting http://www.allwhois.com you will be able to find out the website owners name and address and should be able to contact them this way.