As of today, the Office of Fair Trading's (OFT) website has a handy guide (http://www.oft.gov.uk/Consumer/Your+Rights+When+Shopping+From+Home/Internet+auctions.htm) to the dos-and-don'ts of Internet auctions.

The OFT has identified (http://www.oft.gov.uk/News/Press+releases/2004/64-04.htm) some common complaints about such auctions, namely:

• Late or non-delivery of items to buyers or non-payment to sellers
• Goods of lesser value or substantially different from the description sent to the buyer
• Failure to disclose relevant information about a product or terms of sale

Accordingly, it is warning buyers to:

• Make sure they understand how feedback facilities work. Feedback, when available, provides users with information about recent transactions by other users
• Check an item's description
• Ask questions of the seller
• Read the terms and conditions including those relating to any dispute resolution procedures offered by the site
• Do not be tempted to trade off-site if approached and offered a similar item to one that they have bid on unsuccessfully

More of this good, solid advice can be found here (http://www.oft.gov.uk/Consumer/Your+Rights+When+Shopping+From+Home/Internet+auctions.htm). ®

Related stories

UK probes too good to be true Internet offers (http://www.theregister.co.uk/2004/04/01/uk_probes_too_good/)
OFT to clamp down on misleading online travel deals (http://www.theregister.co.uk/2003/04/04/oft_to_clamp_down/)
OFT cracks down on dodgy domain sellers (http://www.theregister.co.uk/2003/12/02/oft_cracks_down_on_dodgy/)