Tesco fricking Club Card / two tier pricing

I guess it’s a choice people make.

I have a Clubcard and it’s always in my purse. I choose to do that so that I pay less than someone without a card.

And how many cards should you carry every day?
I go out sometimes with just my debit card. If I take my large purse I have loads of cards. I refuse to have apps for them all as it eats up the data and memory.

Surely you just leave it in your bag/purse/wallet?

I understand re the prices, just meant cheaper than you would be charged without the card. Why would anyone choose to pay the higher price? I’m sure I am missing something here!!

Easy to forget.
But the price with the club card is the going price. So people are being charged above the going rate for refusing to give them their data.

I don't understand, I may have misunderstood what happens.

You get to the till, and in order to get cheaper prices, you have to pass them your clubcard or scan it yourself, that's right yes?

What is difficult or a big palaver about this? Surely you just take it from your purse/wallet/bag and use it?

I have a TESCO club card but have stopped shopping at Tesco since they started doing this.

Sainsbury's have really ramped up this behaviour (charging as much as £6 more for some meat I was looking at if you don't have a Nectar card). It has really put me off and I'll go elsewhere.

I am really glad to see this inquiry/investigation is happening (soon!) Supermarkets forcing/bullying people into having a 'loyalty card' is shitty behaviour. And people are being forced into it, because if they don't have it, they have to pay much more - sometimes double.

It's a con. Especially as people who have a clubcard are not paying less. They are just paying a normal price! (The ones without a clubcard are just being charged a lot more!) Having said this, I don't, because I refuse to use the stores who have a clubcard, and charge much more to the people who don't have one.

Amazon provides good customer service, it's easy to avoid signing up for PRIME and it provides a marketplace for lots of small businesses.

And it does pay tax in the UK - think of the employer NI just to name one tax it pays.

I can't comment on the treatment of its workforce, I know some were on strike last week.

But it doesn't really solve the issue of two tier pricing in supermarkets. I wouldn't buy my food shop from Amazon.

Yes I noticed this too. This is the CMA press release: https://www.gov.uk/government/news/cma-sets-out-autumn-update-in-review-of-competition-in-groceries-sector

With the rise in some supermarkets making cheaper prices only available for loyalty card members, the CMA plans to begin a review of the use of loyalty scheme pricing by supermarkets in early 2024. The CMA’s work will consider how the growth in loyalty scheme pricing is affecting consumers and competition in the groceries sector.

Yes, I was pleased to see this too.

Looks like this supermarket loyalty card scam is being investigated soon. About time!

It's such a con, telling people they are saving money by having a clubcard, when all they are doing is ramping up the prices for people who don't have a clubcard, and charging a normal price to the people who have one.

I actually can't believe some people still fall for it! They really believe having a clubcard makes everything cheaper for them. hint; it doesn't!

Watchdog to investigate price cuts for UK supermarket loyalty cardholders | Supermarkets | The Guardian

Just get a card and use it.

I guess the introduction of the nectar card discounts must have also impacted the price of peppers in Aldi, given that they are 52p each...

Or maybe that's down to inflation

No. Standard pricing. Sweet peppers for example (I happen to remember the prices for these 😂). The price crept up with the cost of living rises from 50p to 60p and then back to 55p. Nectar was 35p recently.

Probably because they've always done money off deals - the only difference is how you access them.

It just puts me off shopping there TBH.

The simple answer is don't then. They've set a business model that works for them. They'd soon change it if it was losing them customers.

For those commenting about not being able to open apps on their phones, I've had this problem in Sainsburys - where you have to save their Sainsburys offers in the Nectar app to take advantage of their personalised offers.
Whilst they aren't discounts, they are bonus nectar points which soon add up for more money off vouchers. Quite often it's 60 nectar points for a loaf of bread (DH particularly likes their Taste the Difference multiseed loaf so I pop in every other week to get some for the freezer), or even 200 for a pack of sausages. I couldn't get the app to open one day so went into settings and connected to the store wifi. Problem solved. Might be worth seeing if it works for you.

Exactly!

I can't understand why so many are acting as if Tesco alone are out there being money-grabbing bastards - of course they are! Like the rest of them

But within that context it is still possible to benefit from a small, measurable discount, at an individual level.

I don't think the iron is the best example. For any household purchase, I'd check a few local retailers, and would never choose Tesco (as I've better options locally)

The value is really in a selection of every day items that have a reduction available. Some times this works well for me; other times the Clubcard offers are f relevant / aren't going to be the products I plan on buying. So, it's helpful sometimes, not always.

It's not that complicated!

@GreenAppleCrumble

We've a similar shopping approach 😀

It works fine for me 99% of the time, occasionally though I’ll pop in without my keys or my phone battery has died and I don’t have a clubcard. That happened to me the other day and the price difference was so awful I didn’t complete my shop and got the rest at aldi. So I guess they’ve missed out there.

All supermarkets are the same, even Aldi and Lidl have some items dearer than in other places, they compete against each other to get customers through their doors. This has always been the case with loss leaders placed in strategic places for impulse buys.

They base this tactic on the assumption that most people do not have the time or inclination to traipse around different supermarkets for their weekly shop. I use Tescos because I’m familiar with their products having lived near to large stores for over 40 years and now that I cannot physically get to the shops, I prefer their online system to other supermarkets and their after sales service for returns or complaints is brilliant. They are happy to refund damaged produce if I find something after the driver has left without question.

But I’m not stupid, I know some items will be more expensive there than other supermarkets especially if they are running promotions but I reckon it’s swings and roundabouts over time.

With Sainsbury's, the non-nectar prices are what I was paying before they introduced them.

They do - it's the extra 10% discount off two big shops a month. I think they're offering a month's free trial for anyone who joins at the moment.

I manage to take full advantage by stocking up in those shops and just doing top up shops for milk, fruit and veg in between.

Sometimes I manage to stack offers - the wine we like on Clubcard price; buy any six save 25%, then a further 10% off.

I think most offers are genuine as I do compare prices for things I buy regularly. If the offer is particularly good (often on some branded coffee, marmalade and chocolate that I buy) I will buy a few.

If I need something in particular and don't like the price I will look online to see if anyone else has a better deal and call in if I'm passing. MIL stocked me up with teabags from Ocado in the summer, saving about £3.50 a box on the RRP. I can only get them from Waitrose as neither Tesco nor Sainsburys stock them any longer!

DSis likes Maltesers and I need a small gift for her birthday. I checked online last night. Asda don't sell the large box; Sainsburys have them for £4.50; Tesco normal price is £4, but £3.60 with Clubcard and then I can save another 36p. Why wouldn't I take advantage?