Comet beset with e-commerce problems

A technical glitch has hit hundreds of online shoppers at electrical retailer Comet following a major technical upgrade to the store's e-commerce Web site.

The technical problem last week resulted in customers believing their online order had been confirmed with a delivery date and payment taken when in fact the transaction had not been processed.

Around 300 customers were affected by the technical glitch, though many of them will have been unaware that their order failed to go through. Others have been forced to reorder their goods using Comet's telephone sales service.

One Comet customer was only alerted to a potential problem because the order reference number was presented as "null" and no email confirmation was received within the stated 24 hours, despite a delivery date sometime the following week being confirmed for the goods.

The Comet telephone sales representative told the reader that "major" computer problems had been affecting online orders all week but a spokeswoman for the store said there were only "minor problems caused by a major technical upgrade to the site".

"The eComet team handles thousands of orders every week and there were around 300 orders affected as a result of this technical matter. The issues have been resolved and all customers have been or are being contacted personally," she said.