Every day we get feedback from our users and, as a lot of you have the same type of queries, we've put together answers to some of your most frequently asked questions.

If you cannot find the answer to your question then click here to email Bargain Pages Customer Services.


LEGAL

SCAMS & ILLEGAL ADS

STOLEN GOODS

SAFETY TIPS

REGISTRATION

HOW DO I CHOOSE A SECURE PASSWORD?

USER AGREEMENT

SAVED ADVERTS

ADVERTS

CONTACT DETAILS

MAPS

OLD ADVERTS

PLACING ADVERTS

LEGAL

SCAMS & ILLEGAL ADS

Common scams

There are several different scams which we are aware of currently but all are principally to do with overpayment for your goods.

One scam works when you are contacted by someone offering to pay for your item in full. They will say that they are living in a different country but that someone in England owes them money. They will offer to send you a cheque for far more money than the actual price and then ask you to send the difference with the goods. Another such scam works when the person who has agreed to buy your goods claims a mistake has been made and instead of £100 the cheque has been made out for £1,000 and would you cash the cheque and send back the difference.

Find out more information on the most common scams and what to look out for.

How do I report a scam?

We are always eager to hear of unscrupulous traders/advertisers. If you have any information you feel would be important, please fax the Editorial department on: 020 8900 4138 or contact customer services on 0871 222 5000. Please be assured that your confidentiality would be guaranteed by law under the Data Protection Act (1988).

How do I report an advert which may be illegal or abusive?

All adverts online have a Report This Advert link which allows you to highlight adverts which may be abusive or illegal. The link can be found on the right hand side, above the advert copy. The information you provide will help our customer services team decide the legality of the advert.

Can you remove an advert for an illegal item?

As and when we can establish the illegality of an advert appearing either online or within our publications, we will remove the advert and put steps in place to ensure that it doesn't appear again.

STOLEN GOODS

I think these goods may be stolen.

If you have reason to believe that items purchased through Bargain Pages were stolen, please contact your local Police Station. You'll find contact details for your area in the local phone book and the Police will be able to advise you on the correct course of action.

An item stolen from me has appeared in Bargain Pages.

If you have reason to believe that items stolen from you have appeared in Bargain Pages, please contact your local Police Station. You'll find contact details for your area in the local phone book and the Police will be able to advise you on the correct course of action to employ. Can you please also call us on 0871 222 5000, please be assured that your confidentiality would be guaranteed by law under the Data Protection Act (1988).

SAFETY TIPS

Be careful when meeting buyers at home

Most private advertisers sell their goods from home. For personal ease and safety, always ensure that there is a friend with you before you allow someone into your home.

Valuable items

When selling valuable items - such as a car - you could ask for a personal cheque to be cleared before you part with your goods, and offer a receipt as proof of purchase. In the case of bankers' drafts, it is wise to go to the bank together and watch it being drawn up.

Accepting money

For items that are worth only a few pounds, it's easier and more convenient to pay in cash. To be safe, when you go to visit the person selling the item you are interested in, don’t take more money than you are planning on spending.

We recommend that buyers NEVER send goods before receiving money.

In both cases, the cheque will clear into your bank, only to be stopped/refused weeks later. At this point, the Banks/Building Societies will take the full cheque amount back out of your account. Not only will you have lost the goods, you will be out of pocket for the amount of their original cheque (£1,000) and the amount you passed on as the difference (£900).

If you suspect you could be being targeted by either of these scams then please contact your local police and Trading Standards Officer.

I've sent the advertiser my money but he has not sent the goods.

Unfortunately, we are unable to interfere in the private transactions between a buyer and a seller. However, if you can provide us with a letter of complaint, we will keep this on permanent file under the advertiser's records.

You may wish to contact your local citizen’s advice bureau, who will be able to advise you on the best course of action to take. The number for your local office can be found in the phone book.

The advertiser wants me to send cash up front - what should I do?

Don't do it. We recommend that buyers NEVER send cash or cheques through the post, or place money directly into a seller's bank account, in advance of receiving goods.

Buyer beware!

Once you have bought an item from a private seller, you have no legal comeback if it turns out to be faulty. Therefore, check the goods thoroughly before handing over the money. If the seller still has the receipts, or a warranty, so much the better.

Be careful when meeting sellers at their home

Most private advertisers sell their goods from home. For personal ease and safety, always ensure you take someone with you.

If you're answering a home service ad, ask the advertiser to produce identity and proof of qualification before inviting them into your home.

Keep records

If travel is involved in the transaction, always remember to write down the contact details of the people you are visiting, or the people who are visiting you. If, for whatever reason, you are unable to make the appointment, notify them in advance.

REGISTRATION

How do I register?

Select the Register link in the header at the top right hand section of your screen.

You'll be taken straight to our Registration page where there are five sections to complete:

  • Your first name
  • Your surname
  • Your email address
  • Your password
  • Confirmation of Loot's user agreement

Once the fields in these sections have been filled in correctly, click on the red 'Register' button. You will be sent an email which will confirm your details and your successful registration.

What are the benefits of registering?

  • Renew or stop your adverts
  • View your purchasing history
  • Update registration details and privacy permissions

How can I change my registered details?

All your personal details are stored within the Myloot section of bargainpages.co.uk. In order to access MyLoot simply login to bargainpages.co.uk and you should be automatically redirected to this section. If you are already logged in then simply click the down arrow next to your name at the top of the screen, and select MyLoot from the options.

Your personal details can be found on the Profile tab. Simply enter your new details along with your current password and click on the red ‘Save Changes’ button.

HOW DO I CHOOSE A SECURE PASSWORD?

Choosing a secure password is one of the most important parts of setting up your account. The following is some advice on choosing your password.

What NOT to Do

The following things should not be used as your password, or even as a part of it:

  • Your username.
  • Your real name.
  • Any name at all.
  • Your birthday, phone number or address.
  • Any dictionary word, in any language.
  • Dictionary words with common number/letter substitutions, such as zeros for the letter O, ones for the letter L, 3's for E, etc.
  • Any of the sample passwords you find on the internet.

Some Good Suggestions

These are some ideas that will help you create a good password and keep it safe:

  • Make your password at least 8 characters long. The longer it is, the more secure it will be.
  • Choose an interesting phrase, a line from a poem, or a section of song lyrics. Then use the first letter from each word to construct your password. Make sure you don't accidentally create dictionary words this way!
  • Go to a busy street or parking lot and write down the first three or four license plates you see. Remove the duplicate letters and numbers and make your password from the remaining ones.
  • Find other ways of getting random letters and numbers, such as opening books and taking the third letter from the first ten nouns you see. Be creative!

Keeping Your Password Safe

  • Never tell anyone your password.
  • Never write your password down. Even though your password will look random to others, you should have a way to easily remember it yourself so that you do not have to write it down.
  • Change your password every few months.

USER AGREEMENT

The User Agreement is a method of making all our registered users aware of our terms and conditions and privacy policy. In order to make it as simple as possible we have combined these notices into our User Agreement, which we ask all our users to make themselves aware of before registering with bargainpages.co.uk.

Why is the Register button not clickable?

All Our users must agree to the User Agreement before we can register your details. Please read the relevant points of the user agreement thoroughly before ticking the ‘Yes - I agree to Loot's user agreement.’ option. This will allow you to register by clicking on the red ‘Register’ button.

Do I have to agree to receive relevant offers from Loot and other carefully selected companies?

By registering all users will automatically be included to receive offers from Loot Ltd and other carefully selected companies. We do this to ensure you are kept up to date with all relevant Loot offers and to allow us to keep in touch with you. At Loot Ltd we take your privacy very seriously and will safeguard your information at all times. However, we recognise that some users will prefer to not receive any communications from Loot Ltd or other carefully selected companies. To change your preferences at any time simply take the following steps:

  1. Log in to bargainpages.co.uk.
  2. Click on myloot by clicking on the down arrow next to your name at the top of the page. From the options you are given select myloot.
  3. Click on the Profile tab.
  4. Scroll down to Notification Preferences and alter your preferences as to what communications you would like to receive.

For more information please see our privacy policy.

SAVED ADVERTS

What are saved adverts?

Saved adverts are a means of you keeping track of all adverts which you are interested in without you having to find them again every time you want to review the advert. All you saved adverts will sit within your myloot.

How do I save an advert?

In order to save an advert you must be logged in, so begin by clicking on either register (if you haven’t registered with bargainpages.co.uk before) or login (if you have already registered with bargainpages.co.uk) and entering in your details in order to login.

Once you have logged in you will be able to save adverts that interest you. There are two ways to do this. You can either save the advert directly from the search results or from the advert view page.

When searching for adverts online, search results are presented as a list of adverts in the middle of the page. To the right of the search information is a grey column called Save. In this column there will be a white star next to each advert. Simply click on the stars to turn the star red. All adverts with red stars are saved.

On advert view pages, the save star is found underneath the price information on the top right hand side of the advert. As with search results clicking on the star will turn it red and save the advert.

How many adverts can I save?

There is no limit to the number of adverts you can save?

How can I view my saved adverts?

All saved adverts are stored on your myloot section. To access myloot simply follow the instructions below:

  • Log in to bargainpages.co.uk.
  • Click on myloot by clicking on the down area next to your name at the top of the page. From the options you are given select myloot.

When logged into myloot, all saved adverts can be found in the Ads section underneath the Your Ads list.

ADVERTS

My Personal Details are being used by someone else

If your details are appearing in an advert you haven't placed, please contact Customer Services on 0871 222 5000. We'll be able to remove the insertion from our publications and investigate the submission on your behalf.

Calls cost 10 pence per minute from a BT Landline. Calls from other networks and mobiles may vary.

CONTACT DETAILS

Can you send me more contact details for an ad?

Although we encourage advertisers to include as much information as possible with their ads, ultimately we can only publish the contact details provided. As an alternative, you might like to place a free wanted ad for the item you're looking for.

MAPS

How can I see where an advertiser is based?

All adverts have a map which will show the rough location of the advertiser. To see the map simply click on any advert listing from the search results page. The map is on the right hand side of the advert view page underneath any photos.

The location arrow only points to the middle of a suburb

For privacy reasons, maps do not show the exact location of the advertiser. Ads that include a map show the rough physical location of the item offered, Use the '+' and '-' buttons to zoom and see more or less detail.

OLD ADVERTS

Can I view back issues of the paper?

While we do retain back issues of the paper for internal use, Loot Ltd do not make these copies available to members of the public. However, some local libraries keep back issues of Loot and Bargain Pages for reference purposes and the British Library (020 7412 7000) keeps copies of the London and Machester papers dating back to February 2001.

Can you send me the details of an ad I saw recently?

Unfortunately, We are unable to send out individual ad details. While we do retain back issues of papers for internal use, Loot Ltd do not make these copies available to members of the public.

How can I find an ad from several weeks (or months) ago?

Unfortunately, we have no way of finding old ad details electronically unless the advert has been resubmitted by the original advertiser. Local libraries keep back issues of Loot for reference purposes and the British Library (020 7412 7000) keeps copies of the London and Machester papers dating back to February 2001. Alternatively, you could try placing an ad yourself for free describing the particular item you're looking for.

PLACING ADVERTS

Which Category should I choose?

Select the category and subcategory that best describes the item you are selling. Simply click on the most relevant and your ad will be placed in this classification. If you believe your advert doesn’t fit in any section in the category finder, or if you are unsure which category to choose, then our customer services team can help you with placing an advert on 0871 222 5000.

Calls cost 10 pence per minute from a BT Landline. Calls from other networks and mobiles may vary.

What makes a good title for an advert?

The title of your advert should summarise in no more than four words the item you are selling. You want someone to see the title of your advert and be able to tell what it is you are selling, without it being too complicated. Remember: the simpler, the better.

Please note:

  • Car adverts should start with the make and model of the car (e.g. Ford Fiesta)
  • Property adverts should start with the name and/or first two digits of post code of the area the property is located (e.g. Finsbury Park, N4)

Why do I need to enter a postcode for my item?

No matter what sort of item a customer is searching for online, the customer inevitably searches for items as close to them as possible. As a result we ask all our advertisers to include a postcode of their item to allow our customers to find their advert quickly and easily.

Are you going to publish my postcode?

Loot Ltd takes our customer’s privacy very seriously and will only publish a map of the rough area of the postcode you have entered. This map is to help to give our customers an idea of where the item is being sold from. At no point should a map show the exact location of where the item is kept.

How do I choose which publication to choose?

The first page of ad placement asks you to put in the postcode of where your item can be found. When the postcode is entered you will be informed which publication is your local publication. There is a map which shows the distribution areas of each paper. In order to go into more publications simply select extra publications on either page 1 or page 3 of ad placement.

Print advert styles

There are three advert styles for publication within our print titles. They are:

  • Linage adverts: titles appear in bold and the body text appears in normal font. These adverts have no border or photo so will not stand out as strongly as other print advert styles.
  • Power adverts: These adverts have a bold and upper case title, along with a black border and a yellow highlight. These look great in our print publications and can be a great way of catching customer’s attention.
  • Photo adverts: The text in these adverts is centred in the middle of a black bordered box and the title is in bold. The best thing about these adverts is the photo which is a great way to sell your item.

Payment Options

We currently accept Visa, Mastercard, Barclays Connect, Electron, Solo, Delta, JCB and Maestro/Switch for credit / debit card payments. If placing an advert online we also accept payment by Paypal account.

Once your transaction is completed, Loot ltd does not keep a record of your credit card number. The only record we keep is the authorisation number received from the bank. This is to ensure against the use of stolen cards.

Is buying online secure?

Loot Ltd adopts several procedures to protect your online transactions. To find out more about our security measures, call our customer services team on 0871 222 5000.

Pricing my item

In order to get an idea as to what sort of price you should sell your item at, the best thing to do is to research what other similar items are priced at. You want a price which is competitive but which you are also happy with. Remember if there are other items which are similar to yours at a lower cost you are unlikely to get a lot of interest.

If you have no specific price in mind and just want to see how much money you can get for an item then why not place the advert and leave the price as simply Offers. This will mean customers can contact you and put a price forward that they would be happy to pay. A word of warning on this, however, as it can put some people off who imagine the item would be too expensive for them, or it can encourage customers who are only prepared to pay a small amount.

Why has my item been rejected?

All adverts are subject to Loot Ltd’s advertising policy, which offers guidance on which items we will and will not publish.

If your advert has been rejected you will be contacted by a member of our customer service team at the first available opportunity. Alternatively if you wish to contact our customer services team, please call 08713 303030.

Calls cost 10 pence per minute from a BT Landline. Calls from other networks and mobiles may vary.