Buying Online Why buy online? It's little wonder that new buyers quickly learn to love Internet shopping. At the moment, the best deals on the Web are in clothes, books, CDs, videos, flights and holidays. Advantages — Buying online does have a number of potential advantages: Price: items are usually cheaper on the Web because warehouse and staff costs are lower, and because online shops want to attract and keep customers. Convenience: shopping can be much easier on the Internet. It can be done at home, at a convenient time and be very quick. Wide choice: Internet shopping allows you access to a wide range of shops all around the world, some of which don't exist on the high street. Online shops also usually carry a much larger stock. Quick delivery: most Internet sites are able to deliver within a few days. Disadvantages — There are also some disadvantages buying online: Delivery: many sites still use traditional carriers and don't deliver at night or at weekends. Often you end up having to go and collect from a warehouse. Costs and returns: adding up transport and, if buying from outside the European Community, tax and duty, can often mean an item isn't as cheap as it seems. Returning a purchase often means having to parcel it up and take it down to the post office. Cost of using the Internet: although online access is getting cheaper, many Internet providers still charge per minute. Browsing around a wide range of shops can take as long as a traditional shopping visit, so beware. Buying more: because everything is at the click of a mouse, it's very easy to buy and spend more than you intended to. How to go about shopping online Most high-street names now have a presence online. These shops and other well-known Internet shopping sites are a good place to start, It's best to get used to buying online from a brand you already know and trust. Simply search for it under its own name, adding 'www' at the start and either '. com' or '. co. uk' at the end. If this doesn't work, most search engines and Internet shopping directories should be able to help. They'll also be the place to go if you're looking for a particular item. Most online shops work on the 'shopping basket' principle. You tour the site and click when you see something you want. The item gets placed into a virtual shopping basket. When you want to pay for the items in the basket, you'll be asked to register. You'll then be taken to a secure part of the site to give details of your credit or debit card. You're usually able to send a check instead, but this can mean a wait of a week or two, because the company will often want to clear the check before sending you the goods. Tips before you buy Pay by credit card because this may give you some additional protection. Only use debit cards when you're dealing with shops you know you can trust. When giving out these details, always ensure you're using a secure site. Do some real-world research as well as Internet research to compare prices. Internet prices may not always be the cheapest. Print out your order and keep any terms and conditions in a safe place along with the company's postal address and telephone number. Check the company's policy on returning goods. If you've bought the item from a site abroad, you may find returning it costly. Look out for loyalty schemes and email alerts where shops will contact you with bargains or new deals. Be careful about spending too long surfing for a bargain it can be addictive and costly. Security and privacy Security is far less of a problem than it appears if you ensure you only shop at websites that offer secure payment pr