How to check an online shop before you buy

A convincing website is easy to copy. Check who is behind it.

The answer in 2 lines. Before buying from an unfamiliar website, check the seller's business name, postal address and contact details. Read delivery and return terms, look for independent feedback and check the website address carefully. A secure connection does not prove that a shop is honest. Prefer a card payment to a transfer to an unfamiliar seller. If something feels wrong, leave the checkout. If you have already paid and suspect fraud, contact your bank immediately using its usual secure channel.

Start with these checks

Identify the seller. Find its business name, geographical address and contact details. A contact form alone leaves you with little to check.
Read the full offer. Check the total price, delivery charges, expected arrival and return address before paying.
Check the website address. Look for misspellings or extra words. Open the shop independently rather than following an unexpected message.
Look beyond its own reviews. Search for independent experiences, including complaints about missing orders and refunds.
Check how you can pay. Be wary if a seller insists on a bank transfer or changes the payment instructions at checkout.

Stop: danger

A padlock is not a recommendation. It concerns the connection, not whether the seller will deliver.
A deadline is not a reason to skip checks. Pause if a countdown or supposed shortage is pushing you to pay.
Do not share banking security codes with a seller. Complete any genuine payment approval through your bank's normal secure process.

Check the details behind the design

Copied photographs, polished wording and a familiar-looking layout can all appear on a fraudulent shop. Compare the name in the contact information with the name in the terms and checkout. Unexplained differences, missing addresses and contradictory delivery promises deserve further checking.

Read the National Cyber Security Centre's shopping guidance before using an unfamiliar store. Use its advice to assess the seller and protect the account you create. Avoid reusing a password from your email or banking accounts.

Read the terms before the bargain

A trader should explain who it is, what you are buying, the price and delivery arrangements. The GOV.UK distance-selling checklist shows the information to look for before ordering. Missing details are a reason to ask questions or shop elsewhere.

Check where returns must be sent, especially if the seller is overseas. A UK-looking website does not establish a UK return address. Read who pays return postage and whether import charges could apply. Rights can be harder to enforce against an overseas seller; do not assume the website's appearance settles which protections you have.

What not to do

Treating glowing reviews displayed by the seller as independent proof.
Paying by transfer because an unfamiliar shop says its card facility is temporarily unavailable.
Saving your card details when you have not established whether the shop is trustworthy.
Deleting the advert, order confirmation or messages when a purchase starts to look suspicious.

If you have already paid

Save the order confirmation, website address, promised delivery terms and messages. For an ordinary delivery dispute, write to the seller explaining what you want it to do. If the shop appears fraudulent, contact your bank immediately: explain how you paid and ask about protecting your account and recovering the payment.

For help in England, use the Citizens Advice consumer service. Choose the consumer chat or contact option and prepare the seller's details, payment evidence and a short account of what happened. Advisers can explain your options and pass relevant information to Trading Standards.

Report a suspicious website

Use the official suspicious-website reporting form: copy the website address without reopening it, select how you received it and explain what made you suspicious. This helps tackle the website; it does not replace contacting your bank for a refund.

For the current route after losing money, open the official online-shopping fraud page and follow its lost-money reporting link. Scotland has a different police reporting route.

Good to know

A genuine seller can still provide poor service. Separate a contractual dispute from evidence of a fake shop.
For cancellation rights and exceptions, open GOV.UK's returns guidance and read the section on online purchases before assuming an item can be returned.
This guide is for England. Use GOV.UK's consumer-advice directory to select the appropriate service for Wales, Scotland or Northern Ireland.

Illustrative example: in Leeds, Aisha finds a heavily discounted kitchen appliance. The shop has no postal address, and checkout switches from card payment to a bank transfer. She saves the website address, leaves without paying and reports the suspicious page through the official form.

A made-up story, for illustration.

Bobby

Sources, verification, confidence

Verified on 5 November 2026, for England. Confidence: high for seller checks, consumer-information requirements and official advice routes; medium for recovery after payment, which depends on the payment method and circumstances. No check guarantees that a seller is genuine.