Online shoppers get dispute resolution service

Consumers buying goods or services online from today have a way to resolve any disputes that should be free and painless.

The company handling the Irish and British end of this EU platform hopes to build it into a multinational one, employing around 30 people over the next year or so.

Surveys show that people do not shop as much on the internet as they would like, especially from other EU countries, because they fear being left with inferior goods or services and with no way of recovering their money.