If today we buy more and more online, there are details to know to avoid pitfalls and disappointments. Follow the guide !
Buying on the Internet has become a trivial matter for most of you. The French even place 33 online orders per year. But do you pay attention to the essential points in order to avoid disappointment or even a scam? Here are our ten tips for buying well on the Internet.
Observe legal restrictions
To begin with, be aware that it is prohibited to import certain products into France such as, for example, counterfeit products or products containing certain dangerous substances (lead salts, nickel, etc.). If your purchase is intercepted by the authorities, you risk, in addition to the seizure of the objects, a heavy fine and sometimes even imprisonment (up to five years’ imprisonment and a fine of 500,000 euros for the purchase of counterfeits).
The site Service-public.fr identifies the goods subject to restrictions. Better to consult it before starting.
Compare
The product you want is probably offered on several websites. Compare the prices offered by each other, but do not rush headlong into the lowest price and do not immediately crack when you see the mention “Only 3 items left”. There are other elements that may ultimately make you choose a price perhaps a little higher: delivery times, the reliability of the seller, his address in France …
Subscribe to newsletters
If your purchase is not urgent, it may be a good idea to wait until an opportunity arises to pay a little less. There are of course the sales periods, but not only that. All the brands regularly carry out special operations, exceptional offers… And to keep you informed of these promotions, nothing better than to subscribe to their newsletter.
Read the technical sheet
If you do a search on the Internet for a given product, the answers provided give you a range of prices offered by different sellers. Except that you should not click with your eyes closed on the lowest price: it may not correspond exactly to your request.
To realize this, there is only one option: read the technical sheet and the description linked to the product. This is where you will know if the laptop you want has or not a disk reader / writer for example or that the SSD at 77.95 euros does not have a capacity of 480 GB but 240. Take advantage. -en to verify that the product you are buying is new!
Read reviews and write
Blogs, forums, social networks, sellers’ sites … there are many platforms where you can find opinions on a product and / or a seller. Consulting several of them can help you make a more informed choice. That said, don’t take all of these reviews at face value. We know that some of these banknotes – both positive and negative – can unfortunately be False. The only solution to “avoid” disappointments, to cross the sources.
For your part, play the game: if you are satisfied (or not) with a product and / or a seller, share your opinion online, other Internet users will appreciate this gesture.
Consult the general conditions of sale
If a merchant site must give you access to this information, we usually find the link at the bottom of its home page. Do not hesitate to scroll to access it because when you confirm an order on a website, you declare “Have read and accepted the general conditions of sale of the site” either by simply clicking on the buy button or by checking an additional box. It is therefore better to have at least covered them before.
It includes the seller’s contact details, the currency used on the site, whether the prices are exclusive of tax or not, delivery times, the terms and conditions for subscribing to payment in installments, your rights of withdrawal, how the merchant will use your personal data …
Pay attention to additional costs
Have you set your sights on a smartphone offered by a site abroad at 580 euros instead of 860 on a French site? Very well. But beware of “hidden” costs. Apart from the shipping costs, the seller may in fact charge you administration fees, you may also have to pay fees to your bank for payment by credit card abroad (generally around 2% of the amount of purchase) without forgetting that you will probably have to add customs fees and VAT if this is not included in the displayed price.
Don’t buy from just any site
The first thing to check when placing an order online is that the seller really exists. Try to find on the site the coordinates of the company, the legal notices, the CGV… if you do not find any of these mentions, flee.
Favor well-known sites or, in any case, of which you have been able to trace the existence. Also note that when you place an order online, you are making a remote purchase which is framed by the Consumer Code which imposes obligations on the seller and gives you rights. You will therefore be, in most cases, better protected on a French site which must comply with the law. You will also be able to contact them more easily in the event of a problem.
Make sure the payment is secure
Online purchases are generally paid by credit card. Before entering your card details, check that the site is secure: the URL of the page must start with https (s for Secure) and a padlock or a key must appear next to the URL. Then, an honest merchant will never ask you to provide your bank details in clear (by SMS or e-mail) or a copy of your payment card. If so, run away.
Also favor sites that promote strong authentication via 3D Secure. In this case, you will receive a code by SMS to confirm your order, once your banking information has been entered on the merchant site.
You can also use payment methods more specific to online purchases. The e-bank card has a fictitious number issued by your financial institution which will only be used once. This avoids leaving the details of his “real” bank card. Some sites, such as Fnac, PriceMinister or Rue du Commerce for example, accept payments from alternative payment services such as Paypal, Paylib or even 1euro.com. It is also a practical tool for paying on foreign or little-known sites.
Some sites also accept payment by wire transfer or check, but this is rarer.
Track and verify your order
The act of purchase does not stop when you click on the payment button but when you take possession of your order. Many sites offer you to follow the progress of your order. Preparation, dispatch, arrival in a distribution center… each step is the subject of a point in the tracking section of your orders on the seller’s website or even in an e-mail.
Once your package has arrived, check that its contents correspond to your order, errors may occur. If the item is not what you ordered or is defective, contact seller customer service immediately. If you can’t get along with the site, you can turn to a consumer association such as UFC Que Choisir.
You can also use the consumer mediation procedure. Normally, sellers should indicate the relevant mediator in their Terms and Conditions. Otherwise, the list of mediators is available on the portal of the Ministry of the Economy, Finance, Action and Public Accounts. This procedure makes it possible to settle amicably a dispute between a consumer and a seller.