Hidden charges when shopping online
If you're shopping online the price that you see is sometimes not the total cost of your goods. Before you confirm your order, you need to know the total costs that you may have to pay
Booking fees
If you're buying tickets for a gig or to see a movie, you'll often have a booking fee added to your bill. Booking fees pay for general administration costs like issuing and posting out tickets and the running costs of the booking system.
Booking fee costs often vary, depending on what you're buying and where you're buying it from. For example, if you're buying tickets directly from the cinema, the booking fee may be less than one pound.
If you're buying tickets for an international sporting match or a sell-out concert, they're often issued through a ticket agency that charges extra for their services. Don't be surprised if you're charged five pounds or more per person when you're going to see a top event.
When you're confirming your payment, make sure that you find out how much the booking charge is per ticket.
Two or three pounds may not sound like a lot. But if you're buying concert tickets for yourself and a group of mates an extra £20.00 on top of what you were expecting to pay can come as a shock.
Delivery charges
Buying goods over the internet can save you a lot of money. But you should always check if extra delivery costs are added to your order.
Some companies don't charge at all. If they don't, it's likely that they'll make this very clear on their website as it will be one of their main selling points.
Companies that do add a delivery cost to your order can charge per item, per delivery or both. Delivery charges are sometimes taken off if your order is over a certain amount.
So if you want to save some money, it's a good idea to order things at the same time instead of buying them individually.
Customs charges
Anything posted or couriered to you from another country goes through customs to check it's not banned or restricted and you pay the right tax and duty.