Web kitemarks still in business

The Which? Web Trader scheme may have closed down at the of January but the concept of the safe shopping kitemark lives on.

The Interactive Media in Retail Group (IMRG) has said it will continue to run its own larger but less well-known scheme featuring the Internet Shopping Is Safe (ISIS) logo, which runs on similar principles to Which? Web Trader.

James Roper, chief executive of the IMRG, explained that the kitemark had a two-pronged approach, to improve consumer confidence in online shopping and to widen choice.

"The consumer has a raft of regulations to protect them but without a kitemark there is no way of knowing if a site is good or bad. So people are happy sticking with large e-tailers but are less sure of shopping from smaller sites, which narrows their choice and doesn't help smaller traders," he said.

Members of the IMRG, which has government and industry backing, sign up voluntarily for the right to use the logo and agree to be bound by certain criteria. These include promising to run their e-commerce services in a legal, decent, fair, honest and truthful manner, with any disputes handled promptly and efficiently.

The IMRG runs regular and random spot checks of members using the kitemark. Any problems encountered are reported, in total confidence, to the merchant concerned, who is given a time limit to resolve them.

Breaches of compliance, or any activity that threatens the reputation of the industry, may result in withdrawal of the right to display the kitemark, with the details being published and the appropriate authorities notified of the issue.