Part 11 (1/2)

How to Buy Online

Buying online can be a great idea What'sat your co the item show up on your doorstep a few days later?

Virtually all retailers that have brick-and-mortar stores also have online stores If you haven't tried online shopping, give it a shot, at least for a small purchase You're likely to become hooked on how easy it is

How to Buy Online, 1-2-3

1 Prefer co cost versus sales tax

3 Use a credit card

For those of you who are experts at shopping online, I'o over some basics for people who have never tried it

Online shopping is si, in that you choose items you want, pay for the, you usually identify ite on a ”buy” button and placing the cart Then, as if you were in a real store, you proceed to a ”checkout” screen There, you provide pay inforet an e-mail that confirms the transaction

Of course, the top question asked by shoppers who haven'tsafe?” To which, I'd have to respond, ”Compared hat?”

If some computer hacker were to sohly unlikely-so what? When the thief al purchase, you call your credit card company and cancel the card The bank will issue you a new card and waive any fraudulent charges You take just as great a risk every time you hand a restaurant waiter your credit card and he disappears with it to a backrooister How hard would it be for the waiter to copy down the number and use it elsewhere?

Most online transactions are encrypted,out, look at the Web address in your browser It's secure if it says https: instead of http: You can also look for a padlock icon in your Web browser, which signifies a secure site

If you're worried about not getting merchandise you paid for, you can stick with merchants you've heard of And, as discussed later in this section, if you use a credit card, you probably have further consumer protections offered by your card company

If you're worried about your naht be shocked at how easy it is to get that infor that's OK; just that online shopping doesn't add much to that risk

1 Prefer Co is best for products that are commodities, in the sense that they are identical no matter where you buy them They're widely available and it makes no difference which copy of the article you buy

Sure, you can buy shoes and custoet to touch, try on, and thoroughly examine online products That's a drawback for some purchases

Early on in electronic co the first products sold They were ideal to purchase on the Internet because each copy of a new book is exactly the same The same was true of ood for the opposite-finding uncos, such as antiques and oddball er than you will find in any one region of the country

But especially if you're just getting started with online shopping, opt for co froe, and do a quick Google search on the retailer's na for other customers' experiences Some comparison sobts rate retailers If the retailer has a privacy policy, all the better

2 Consider shi+pping Cost Versus Sales Tax

The biggest drawback to ordering online is the item has to be shi+pped to you That means you'll have to wait a few days, which a lot of us aren't very good at More i charges

You'll find sos have a very low price for the product, but exorbitant shi+pping fees This happens a lot on auction site eBaycom Bulky and heavy items, such as televisions, can cost more than 100 to shi+p

In the end, all you should care about is the total price So, always add together both components of an online purchase-the purchase price, plus shi+pping and handling Often, you'll find online prices to be so much lower that it's still cheaper to buy online, even if you have to pay for shi+pping and handling

One advantage of online shopping is you won't necessarily have to pay state sales tax on the purchase If the retailer has no locations in your state, it is not required to collect sales tax on checkout Technically, most states require you to pay sales tax on Internet purchases, presu for the tax on your state income tax form But almost nobody does that, which essentially makes Internet purchases fro that avoiding state sales tax on Internet purchases is right or wrong I' that's how it is Still, this is a fluid issue, as state govern sales-tax money from Internet sales So, stay tuned

3 Use a Credit Card

Use a credit card for online transactions because the consuer than for debit cards This is especially true if you're dealing with unfa a credit card is its dispute service If you have a probleet it resolved, pass the dispute on to your credit card company and allow them to battle the retailer for you

Further, if so purchases with it, you're not liable for them By federal law, you're liable for 50, but all the major credit card companies limit your liability to zero