Furniture sales have historically been a major area of consumer complaints. Luckily, there are a number of reasons why buying furniture online may be safer than offline. No Fast-Talking Salesmen Many complaints say the furniture salesperson made promises that were not kept. In reality, furniture salespeople don’t always know what they’re talking about. The actual fulfillment of furniture orders is often handled by a different department, or even a different company. Not having salespeople hanging around makes online furniture shopping lower-pressure. It’s All in Writing By their very nature, online furniture stores have to put a lot of information in writing. The written policies regarding shipping, warranties (if any), and customer service will almost always be easy to access. (Hint: look for links to written policies at the bottom of each web page.) The fact that everything is written down gives the online furniture store much less wiggle room to change the terms of the deal. Tips: • Save or print out the web pages that describe the furniture you have ordered and the web pages for important policies and guarantees (which may change after you order), along with any confirmation pages or emails. That way, if you ever have a dispute, you have a firm basis to make your case. • If the web page describing the product does not have a model name or product number, make sure you get those at checkout or at some other point before paying. Make absolutely sure you are ordering the furniture you want to order. As with an offline furniture store, you will have to pay to return any merchandise you ordered by mistake. • If you do speak with a salesperson on the phone, don’t undermine the paper trail by accepting promises over the phone. Ask the web address for the written policy, or for a follow-up email outlining any promises made. Photographic Evidence Almost as good as online furniture stores’ paper trail is their photograph trail. A common consumer furniture complaint against offline stores is that the furniture that was delivered did not look like the model in the showroom. With online furniture stores, you are buying based on a photograph. You can save the picture onto your computer in case the delivered furniture does not meet expectations. If you make sure the model name or number is included on the order form at checkout, you can also double-check what the model looks like by going to the manufacturer’s website. Bedroom Furniture – Something New Coming from the Old, Dining Furniture Sets – The White Ring Pattern, Bedroom Furniture Relying on Traditional – Whatever it is that you want, you can definitely find it online.