Greedy Supermarket Charges

Shielding continues in Wales until the middle of August, so I should make a note of that.

I think if anyone who has not needed to shield has been paying £4 for delivery, then it is a price rise of 12.5%.
If people don't need to shield any longer there is no need to offer a preferential delivery price.

Can you find another supermarket which does not charge and try them?

Sashabel

Sorry Callistemon, but they have put the price of their priority slots for "shielders" up to £4.50 as well!!

Oh!

Well it was still £2 for next week, so far, when I booked a slot. (Tesco).

I haven't heard anything different yet, Sashabel.

Apologies I didn’t mean to patronise anybody.
However Tesco have clearly been cheaper than many for some time and sadly, everything will be going up post-pandemic.
Practical suggestions might be to try to stretch the period between deliveries, perhaps to 10 / 12 days do that you do no more than three a month instead of 4.
Or look at the cheaper services such as Iceland.
Ocado has various Smart Pass schemes, I am sure mine at £9.99 a month (for unlimited deliveries minimum spend £40) is not the cheapest and they price match with Tesco, so don’t believe anybody who says they are expensive.

Sorry MawB, but you seem to have misunderstood the reason for my post. I know that shielding is ending and I don't expect supermarkets to offer reduced prices for their deliveries. I have been using this service of over 5 years and have always chosen a slot at around £2. What I am objecting to is a price hike of 125%!!
I also don't need to be patronised by having the terms of the end of shielding explained. I am full aware of the advice and new rules, but with my underlying health condition I will definitely not be going into ANY shops

I am shielding and was offered a weekly slot by Asda and they have not charged me for delivery. The drivers are friendly and the food usually has a good date.

Sashabel

Sorry Callistemon, but they have put the price of their priority slots for "shielders" up to £4.50 as well!!

Shielding “ends’ on 31 July though doesn’t it that’s just next week.
From 1 August, you’ll be advised you could go out to more places and see more people, for example, the advice is
you can go to work, as long as the workplace is COVID-secure – but carry on working from home if you can
children who are clinically extremely vulnerable can go back to school (when the rest of their class goes back)
you can go outside to buy food, to places of worship and for exercise – keeping 2 metres away wherever possible

So there really is no obligation on supermarkets to provide a free or reduced price delivery service.
If you find the delivery charge extortionate you will either have to shop or find a friend or neighbour to help you out.

I think we should also remember that this is an optional service. If anyone thinks it is 'greedy' to charge for it, they can easily opt out and do their own shopping, just as they can clean their own windows instead of paying the window cleaner, or cut their own hair etc.

Since lockdown, there seems to be an assumption that supermarkets should provide deliveries as a matter of course, and that they should be organised for the convenience of people who never used them before.

Of course I understand that there will always be a cutoff point at which people will have to decide whether or not the service is something they want to buy, and where it sits on their priority list (for me, it is somewhere near the top!), but all the same, it is not an obligation that supermarkets are morally obliged to provide.

Sorry Callistemon, but they have put the price of their priority slots for "shielders" up to £4.50 as well!!

Despite the fact that there are many in this country who cannot afford even the basics, our food is relatively cheap as a proportion of median income.
On the list of percentage of household expenditure spent on food worldwide, the UK comes third, after the USA which spends the least and Singapore second.

Why does anyone think businesses should pay their staff (pickers, packers, drivers, cleaners etc. and fuel and
vehicle maintenance costs to save you paying out to go to the actual shop!

Everywhere will be upping prices to recoup what they've lost over the months. I was fully prepared for this to happen.

We used to go to Waitrose (half an hour away) but they have been so unhelpful during lockdown we're reluctant to give them our business again.

Nor me Callistemon. We live an hour away from our nearest Sainsbury’s at Swansea. They have been truly excellent right from the beginning of lockdown. Regular slots, thoughtful substitutes, reliable time keeping and very pleasant drivers. I shop every 10 days so usually over £100, so delivery is free

Sashabel if you let Tesco know that you are shielding then all slots will cost just £2. Message them on FB or contact them via the website. I found them more helpful than any of the others.

It costs us more than that in petrol to get to a supermarket.

I've been having Tesco delivery once a month for almost 4 years now and always choose a cheaper delivery slot. My last one was midweek, 9-10pm, and cost £2. I am disgusted that they are going to start charging £4.50 regardless of time. I bet they will lose a lot of customers over it, - me for one!

I have been having online deliveries from Sainsbury’s once a fortnight. No problems in getting a slot within a few days. Over £100 spend the delivery is free but if you choose a green spot like a Tuesday afternoon it is only 50p. If you order something and accept a substitute you don’t pay any extra if it costs more and you get a voucher off your next order for the difference. Guess I’ll stick with Sainsbury’s. I like their products and delivery has been brilliant.

I have used sainsbury's for over 4 years and I buy a yearly pass for £60 and that's for as many deliveries you need. They also do an off peak pass for £40 which I think covers Monday Tuesday Wednesday and Thursday. When I first started home delivery I used asda a few times but awful customer service made me try sainsbury's. I've been able to access delivery slots throughout lockdown, when there have been substitutions they have been sensible and really I would not do my shopping any other way

I have used home delivery for about 20 years (since it became available, anyway) and I think it is worth every penny. I pay a cover charge every 6 months, can choose my slots, and had no problem with getting deliveries after the first couple of weeks of lockdown.

If I did my own shopping it would mean dragging my husband along (I don’t drive), or only buying what I could carry. It would mean taking a chunk out of my day, found the shopping itself (boring), paying bus or taxi fares, packing all the groceries and carting it to the house. £4.50 is a small price to pay for all that.

The number of people who only wanted home delivery in lockdown, expected to be given slots that had previously been used by regular customers, then moaned about absolutely everything has been shocking IMO.

I fully appreciate the convenience of having my food picked, packed and delivered as I am disabled and in the "shielding" group, so cannot do my own shopping.
What I find annoying is that Tesco have put a blanket delivery charge on all time slots that is 125% more expensive than what I used to pay. I don't want to sign up to their delivery saver because I will feel I can't shop anywhere else (which is exactly what Tesco wants), and the lockdown has shown me that being signed up with at least one other supermarket was extremely beneficial when delivery slots were so tight.
Supermarkets have increased their profits during the pandemic following panic buying and increased deliveries.
If I wanted a delivery at the back end of the week then I would expect to pay more, but I always have my groceries delivered at the beginning of the week and was able to choose the slot at £2.
There must be many people like me who rely on this service, are on fixed incomes and don't want to commit to just one food supplier

Agree with you allium.

We are having a Tesco delivery after the 3 rd August and as we have been paying Up to £7 assume we get it reduced to £4.50. Hooray.
Waitrose may be free but as dh just said, their food costs a lot more, zIceland is free delivery but the clue is in the name, most of their goods are frozen so horses fir courses I suppose.
Tesco isn’t perfect but it’s taken weeks to understand their online order system, we can’t face starting again with another so will have to stick by until we are brave enough to do our own shopping, which stupidly am really missing.
For instance I check use/eat by dates and purchase later dates and do not buy already ripe bananas ( which go brown and soft within days) but though things aren’t perfect in the scheme of things given they have to pick our goods, pack and deliver them to our door I don’t think its too much to pay for that service in these covid times.

I don't think the delivery charges are very much considering all the shopping is picked packed and delivered to the door, beats having to go to a supermarket and negotiate a rammed car park and shop unless you go late at night.

I managed to get a Sainsburys delivery a week ago, I was pleased because they were a supermarket I went to on a weekly basis before the lockdown unlike Tesco where I didn't shop. I was disappointed with Sainsbury as far as their sell by dates were concerned, the bread had a sell by date of that very day and it was an evening delivery never mind because it was my favourite bread, Jacksons, so I shoved it in the Freezer. Also salad items didn't have as long a date as those supplied by Tesco. I also think that Tesco have a better website, in that they allow their users to add a brief note as to substitutions and specifications about the product. It should be said that all our delivery drivers from both Tesco and Sainsbury have been excellent.

I use Sainsburys. It is free Mon to Thurs after 2 PM if you spend £100. I shop every 7 - 9 days. If my shopping doesn't come to £100 I top up on tea bags, loo roll , stamps, shampoo etc so the delivery is always free. There are 3 of us at home. I think it is an excellent service. Friendly drivers and always punctual.

What is greedy about charging for a service?
My nearest supermarket is about 5 miles away and a shopping trip rarely takes less than an hour. There’s the petrol for a round trip of 10 miles, , car wear and tear to take into account too.
Yes, in the days when I could factor in a coffee with a friend or just a newspaper it was hardly onerous, but even £4.50 for the convenience of having it brought to my doorstep is hardly greedy.
It’s a commercial world out there, nothing is free!