Hidden charges are a philfy practice

 

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By Simon Aughton

Posted on 22 May 2007 at 09:21

First there was phishing, then wilfing and now a new term has entered the Internet lexicon: philfing. Standing for 'purposely hiding what I'm looking for' the word describes the practice of websites that hide extra charges for delivery, credit cards, baggage and insurance.

Ninety-three per cent of UK online shoppers have been 'annoyed' by hidden charges and almost two-thirds said they had decided no to buy as a result, according to a survey of more than 2,400 Net users by MoreComputers.com.

The research found that shoppers are most frustrated by so-called 'free delivery' incentives - those that that turn out to require an extra purchase or spending over a certain amount - and hidden surcharges for paying by credit card. They are also irritated by poor stock information, the lack of contact telephone numbers and the use of 0870 premium rate numbers.

Other examples of philfing practices include sites that make no mention of a delivery fee until you get to the shopping basket; shopping sites that say delivery is free then charge for 'packaging and handling'; budget airlines that charge extra for checking in your luggage; train ticket sites that charge extra for ticket insurance; and credit card handling charges that state £2 then turn out to be £2 per person, per flight.

And according to MoreComputers' operations manager Brian Trevaskiss the 'classic' philfing practice is no indication if prices include VAT - resulting in a nasty surprise at the checkout.

'Shopping online is without doubt quick and convenient,' Trevaskiss said. 'However this growing trend of Philfing is so annoying for consumers that they abandon their baskets at Philfers' sites and shop elsewhere.'

One consequence of philfing is that shopping comparison websites are finding it increasingly difficult to maintain a level playing field when listing prices.

'We carefully monitor merchants for any signs of illegitimate or misleading behaviour,' said Justin Sedgmond, merchant relations director for PriceGrabber.co.uk. 'When we are made aware of any suspicious activity, we verify the problem and take appropriate action from there. We will contact the merchant, and solve the problem to make sure our customers are protected.'

MoreComputers has set up a website at philfing.info and is asking net users to submit Philfing examples.