Contractors and others who decide to start their own business online have very few obstacles stopping them from doing so, according to one expert.

Richard Dodd of the British Retail Consortium said that setting up a business online is relatively financially easy because of the lack of start-up costs.

"In order to grow an online retailing business you do have to spend on marketing. Obviously other sorts of costs, like distribution and staff, will inevitably grow if the business is going to expand," he added.

This comes after research from Kelkoo found that UK online retail sales had risen by 16 per cent year-on-year to £44 billion, which is the highest in Europe.

It was also found that online shoppers in the UK spent an average of £1,284 each on 41 items - a lot more than the European average of £908 on 25 purchases.

In addition, UK online sales are to increase by 13 per cent this year, from £44 billion to £50 billion.