ON-LINE Shopping, especially during this long coronavirus lockdown, appears to be the new, modern, trendy and easy way to purchase one’s needs.

However, I beg to differ.

On-line shopping can be a real nightmare that can ultimately leave you ‘shutting-down’ and purchasing nothing.

It’s all those negative ‘reviews’ that keep putting me off.

Today, for example, I wanted to order a simple thing like a home thermometer.

I clicked on many that I thought would fit the bill, but then I read the lower reviews: ‘Don’t buy this cheap rubbish as it fails to work!’ ‘I ordered two and both arrived broken!’ ‘Tried it out as soon as it arrived – it stuck on 20C. I have binned it!’

It’s the very same with all other things I have tried to order: a waterproof coat – ‘It left me soaked right through and during a light rain’. A stylish winter bucket hat – ‘Lost its shape within one day and it smelt funny!’ A pair of slippers – ‘Badly made, I almost fell down my stairs!’

I mean, are there people actually out there making a ‘sport’ out of constantly writing bad reviews?

Imagine going around your local high street stores (ah, the good ol’ days), or even your modern day supermarket and while you venture around looking at items – you have somebody constantly behind you saying ‘No I wouldn’t buy that – the stitching falls apart after one wash!’ ‘That tin of soup.., I bought that and I was ill for weeks!’ ‘I bought that same TV and it blew up! I am still having surgery.’

Again, you would leave the store bagless!

The question I now ask myself is, if I want to continue my fruitful shopping, should I just simply stop reading the ‘reviews’?

CHRISTINE PETERS
Wellington Road, Bournemouth