Know your consumer rights online

WEB LOG: Many of us will have already begun our Christmas shopping, which includes making online purchases, especially with …

WEB LOG:Many of us will have already begun our Christmas shopping, which includes making online purchases, especially with the Black Friday sales just past.

With purchasing and delivery made not just from Irish sites but from other countries, it’s good to be aware of consumer rights online.

Goods bought from outside the EU may be liable for VAT or customs duty, and if you’re ordering alcohol within the EU this could involve VAT and excise duty from that country.

Good Food, festive recipes

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There are more than 180 Christmas recipes along the lines of cider-roast turkey and Christmas pudding trifle on the BBC Good Food iPhone app, which costs €2.69. Having just made my mincemeat for the first time I’ll be relying on this app over the festive season.

Features include a shopping list, turkey timer and video tutorials for novices on making shortcrust pastry and roasting potatoes. If this is your first year handling Christmas dinner get this app!

More facebook friends means more stress

A report from Edinburgh University Business School (it’s actually just a survey of 300 people) has found that more Facebook friends leads to more stress.

They say it is taxing to ensure your status updates meet with the approval of all of your friends. But it does show that “friend” is a strange label in this context: 81 per cent of respondents were friends with extended family, 65 per cent had befriended colleagues and, as teens will be painfully aware, 55 per cent of parents have friended their kids.