Britons the biggest internet buyers of clothing

More than four out of five British adults have bought items from the internet, compared to just over half of adults across the European Union as a whole.

Shoppers in Denmark, Luxembourg and Germany were the next most likely to buy online, while those in Bulgaria, Cyprus and Italy were the least likely.

Figures from the EU statistics agency Eurostat showed Britons were the biggest internet buyers of clothes, with three quarters of online shoppers in this country having bought them in the last year. British shoppers were also the most likely to buy household goods and toys, while Danish shoppers were most likely to buy holidays and event tickets.

Older people in Britain were the most likely to have shopped online and the UK was one of just six EU countries where more than half of internet users aged 65 to 74 had bought goods online.

Among EU internet users who made no online purchases this year, three quarters said it was because they preferred to shop in person, while one in four were concerned about payment security and privacy.

Most e-buyers in the EU seemed satisfied with their online purchases and seven out of ten encountered no problems buying online. The most popular items bought over internet were clothes and sports goods, which were ordered by 60 per cent of e-buyers, followed by travel and holiday accommodation, and household goods and toys.