People living in the capital are more likely to indulge in shopping online on a regular basis, according to a study carried out by Censuwide earlier this month.

Internet Retailing reports that around a third of British consumers describe themselves as having an e-commerce addiction, with 39 per cent of London residents self-identifying as falling into this category.

The West Midlands is the second most addicted region of the country, with 37 per cent of local respondents claiming that they have a perhaps unhealthy relationship with safe shopping online.

Taking the UK as a whole, 35 per cent of those questioned said that one of the biggest motivators in terms of getting them to complete a purchase was the one-click payment option offered by sites like Amazon.

While under a tenth of consumers say that they buy online on a daily basis, it is interesting to see just how prevalent and pervasive this habit has become.

Forty two per cent said that they were aware that they made too many purchases with a handful of mainstream retailers, meaning that they often overlook the other options that are available to them in the process and do not necessarily get the best deal.

While last month saw muted growth in online shopping, the results of this survey indicate that retailers need not worry about the British consumer appetite for this kind of activity.

The claims of being ‘addicted’ to online shopping may be hyperbole in many cases, but it is certainly interesting to see just how many consumers are happy to put themselves in this camp. It suggests that rather than there being any stigma attached to this term, it is in fact something of a badge of pride, adopted by those who want to demonstrate their forward-thinking shopping habits.