The rising use of AI by fashion retailers contributed to Citizens Advice receiving almost 18,000 complaints from customers last year – a surge of 21% on a year earlier, it has reported.

The advisory service said it was helping a consumer with a fashion purchase every seven minutes, finding that the ever-increasing use of AI “makes it easier for scammers to trick people into buying items that look nothing like the images advertised”.

According to the charity’s consumer service, 82% of complaints about clothes, shoes and accessories related to online orders (14,487), while 14% were bought in-store (2,569).

Women’s clothing caused the most headaches, making up almost half (48%) of all complaints (8,508), while men’s clothing made up 20% (3,523).

The most common five issues suffered by fashion buyers last year were faulty goods, making up 18% of all complaints, delivery failures or delays (13%), trouble returning unwanted goods (12%), breach of contract (9%) and poor customer service (6%).

Of last year’s complaints, one in 13 involved scams, including shoppers thinking they were buying items from UK-based companies, due to their advertising.

Instead, consumers had received poor quality items that were not as pictured, and, when they tried to return them, were asked to pay expensive fees to send them to an address overseas.

One consumer, Hannah, a mother in her 30s from the East Midlands who did not want her surname published, told Citizens Advice she was Christmas shopping online when she saw a jacket she liked advertised at half price.

The company selling the jacket claimed it was based in London’s Covent Garden, and Hannah bought it for £35 using a debit card.

Hannah said: “The jacket took a few weeks to come and when it did, it was a totally different material and colour, and not as premium as it was pictured. The pockets were different and it had massive plastic buttons, but the one in the photograph had nice metal ones. It even smelled cheap.”

Hannah emailed the company to complain and request a refund.

She said: “The service felt very different to any other clothing company I’d dealt with. They asked for pictures of the jacket I’d received and I thought ‘this company sent the item to me, surely they should know what it looks like’. They also emailed me on Boxing Day.

“They said I could return the jacket if I sent it to China at my own expense, it left me fuming. I looked up the cost of shipping and it was about £15. The website clearly stated it was a UK business, which was deceptive.”

Hannah reported the incident to the Citizens Advice Consumer Service, and was able to get a full refund through her bank, which covered the cost. Eventually, the company did issue a refund itself.

Jane Parsons, consumer spokeswoman at Citizens Advice, said: “Shopping should be simple and stress-free, but every year we hear from thousands of frustrated people who have a tough time trying to resolve issues with retailers and sellers.

“Consumers face all kinds of problems from receiving faulty items, to waiting weeks for deliveries and poor customer service. Plus, the ever-increasing use of AI makes it easier for scammers to trick people into buying items that look nothing like the images advertised.

“It’s important consumers know what steps to take before they part with their cash or after there’s an issue. It can make all the difference in avoiding a trap or getting a refund.”

Mike Andrews, national coordinator of the National Trading Standards eCrime Team, said: “Online retail scams leave shoppers out of pocket and understandably frustrated.

“What appears to be a genuine retailer can turn out to be a fake website, a misleading advert or goods that never arrive.

“Criminals are increasingly using professional-looking sites and convincing promotions to exploit people’s confidence in well-known brands.

“We would encourage consumers to pause before buying online – check the retailer using a URL checker from a reputable website like Get Safe Online, be cautious of offers that seem too good to be true, avoid buying directly through social media adverts and always pay by card or a secure payment platform.”

UK consumer laws are difficult to enforce when sellers turn out to be based overseas.

Citizens Advice suggests the following before buying from an unfamiliar company:

– Check reviews on search engines and third party websites– Watch out for heavily discounted, ‘too good to be true’ prices and huge closing down sales– Be mindful of the targeted shopping adverts in your social media feeds – this is often how customers are drawn in– Consider whether images used to advertise an item were created by AI. This can be difficult, but look for overly airbrushed images, inconsistent textures or distortions on the face and body– Check the company’s website delivery information. Overseas stores offer shipping to the UK in a much longer timeframe than a genuine UK brand would– If you’ve been caught out by this type of scam and you paid by debit or credit card, you may be able to use a ‘chargeback scheme’ or a ‘section 75’ claim to get a refund.