Bad AI encounters have put £8.6 billion of online sales in the UK at risk over the past year, new research commissioned by Trustpilot suggests.

An estimated £4.9 billion stems from immediate lost transactions, while an £3.7 billion reflects reputational damage as dissatisfied customers share their experiences with other potential customers.

The analysis, carried out by the Centre for Economics and Business Research and based on a survey of 1,000 UK participants, suggests that roughly six per cent of the total market of online spending has been put at risk.

The research indicates that on average each poor AI encounter is shared with two other people, while two thirds said that they reduced use of a business after a bad AI experience.

Chatbots were the biggest culprits, with 40 per cent of users reporting bad experiences.

According to Trustpilot, more advanced AI tools like shopping assistants and automated checkouts are "driving higher satisfaction and trust."

The review website also conducted further analysis of more than 330 million reviews on its platform, which it said support the findings.

Reviews mentioning AI average just 1.7 stars, compared with 3.7 stars for reviews without AI mentions.

The company said that the main frustration is AI replacing or delaying access to human help.

However, its research shows that AI summaries (62 per cent) and AI product recommendations (57 per cent) are also widely used but well-liked, with fewer than 16 per cent reporting problems.

More advanced agentic AI applications, such as automatic checkout agents, shopping assistants and fraud detection, show high satisfaction of more than 90 per cent.

“AI tools are making it easier than ever for consumers to discover, research and buy new products and services," said Carrie Ryan, chief strategy officer, Trustpilot. "But as our research shows, they can just as easily turn people away.

"In an AI-powered world, trust is the currency that powers every transaction. It’s vital that businesses invest the time and energy now in getting AI experiences right, using quality data sources and thoughtful design to build trust and reliability in the entire shopping experience.”

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