Surf and Turf - are you an impatient online shopper?.

I have abandoned shopping when sites wanted me to register and sign on for an account. I will not do this, so just left the site and bought elsewhere. I think I was not alone in doing this because fewer and fewer sites demand that you register in order to buy. Most offer you a choice.

I rarely buy clothes online because, with a few limited exceptions, almost every garment I have ever ordered has been returned because, either colour, size or quality has not measured up to what was shown online.

I am not a prolific clothes buyer, never have been. I would rather go into a good shopping town blitz the shops for an hour or two, return home and be glad that I can forget about clothes shopping for the next six months.

It's best not to think of it as an actual basket and I wouldn't have thought that 'shops' or 'online retailers' can actually see what's in your 'basket' till you get to the paying stage. Don't feel guilty! You're doing all the work. If you don't 'save' the things you may be interested in then often you can't find them again. It is just a place to collate what you have liked the look of before comparing further with other sites, checking the details more fully and considering whether you need them or not. It is not the same as getting help from a shop assistant, using her time and expertise, getting to the checkout then walking away. Don't forget, we are doing all the work as well as being the customer. It is not 'lost sales' and saying they lose millions is absolute rubbish! I have often been pesters with 'have you forgotten sonething?' emails from places I've not completed a purchase from. I am not sure that I've given them my email address either but maybe I have previously.....I find that an intrusion-I can make my own decisions!

If I am guilty it is usually because I discover - at the end of the process that I will be responsible for high delivery for even more annoyingly, high returns charges.

I assume that a retailing model is robust enough to include these charges (which obviously, as it is a postal service, have to be paid). As some stores do charge and some don't, it is a bit of a minefield.

I do now try and ascertain the charges I will be responsible for before putting anything into my basket but even these change from time to time as the company offers a promotion.

I think that obfuscation is a word that could be used in relation to on-line shopping....!