Online supermarket shopping

[Bears1969]

As situation is and like many others been forced into online supermarket shopping.

I've just managed to prove and confront a large supermarket on this.

So ordered shopping week ago delivery date arrives arrange someone to collect as I can't drive. Due to time and illness (not Covid) I could not go through email and ring friend to reject sub'd items. Some I don't mind if reasonable.

Once shopping home went through it all - suspicious at some of items that had been swapped. Like on offer cheese swapped for non offer, cheap store brand jam replaced with top range, washing liquid that was £3.50 swapped for £8 one. Lots more items.
So another friend who was visiting said supermarket for when it opened checked for me if the store had said items sure enough majority of items they had and nor looked like it just been totally restocked and certain items not those that are sell outs.

So my shopping collected at 08:30 and store opens 10:00 friend goes in as it opens.

So feeling confident we have enough evidence that not all of items were genuinely required subs - supermarket contacted.
They don't price match sub'd items so you get charged more, they first refused to take items as they been in my house 'Covid'.
Discussion that all items could be wiped down and how many people in store as to someone shielding etc finally agreed all items could be wiped down. Agreed to refund if I took items back so agreed to ask friend to do within couple days. Nope they wanted that day.
I then questioned fraud that if items in stock why send subs. No denial or defending of statement put to them. Then said about discrimination which they questioned why it would be discrimination explanation given to them no further comments.
They then said they would refund before call finished they refunded £17.36
I asked that the allegations of the fraud and discrimination to those who can't or choose not to shop in store investigated so that it stops. I will follow up as I feel this will not be done.
But please check and challenge because if they do £20 per customer or see it as way to shift items not selling it is not appropriate.
That money could be the electric for someone, a child's lunches, money to pay a debt. What if this is someone who is confused or has someone order shopping for them.
I've not named as yet as I'm sure they are not only the only ones.
I stopped with one supermarket as they kept sending close to use by/eat by dated food.

Thankfully I use local smallbusinesses for meat, veg and milk/eggs.

Supermarkets have done very well during this awful time they don't need these tactics to increase profit.

This is not a dig at any staff - staff in supermarkets have worked to hard and put themselves in high risk situations. I doubt they see increased profits in wages!
Thank you.

Managers and CEO's of supermarkets you are responsible - lo

ok after your staff and customers.

Which supermarket? The ones I use either sub with no extra cost or give a voucher for the difference off the next shop.

Well I put no substitutes on mine. Also the supermarket I use doesn't charge the extra charge for people who do agree to substitutions.

Just put 'no subs' next time, it will save you a huge lot of typing

Jeepers this is mad. Allegations of fraud?!

You can check your home delivery at the time it’s delivered. If you don’t want the substitutions then return them then and there.

Most supermarkets to home delivery from the warehouse not a local store.

Tesco don’t charge extra for subs that are a higher value or vice versa , I thought they were all the same .

Wow...

Sainsburys refund you the difference a few days later (by voucher) if your sub costs more. They also don't pick at every store, mine comes from a larger one 10 miles away, because of this I have rejected subs just after my store has opened, gone in and found them in stock there.

£8 for washing up liquid? I smell BS

Morrisons charges the difference for subs.

We use Tesco now and they don't charge for subs if they're more expensive.

We usually turn off subs for anything that we wouldn't want subbing.

How odd, I always get better substitutions with Tesco and they don't charge the difference.

@SlippersForFlippers

Morrisons charges the difference for subs.

We use Tesco now and they don't charge for subs if they're more expensive.

We usually turn off subs for anything that we wouldn't want subbing.

Isn't Morrisons run by Ocado, thus from dedicated warehouses = less likely to run out of stuff that's ordered? Or did I imagine this?

Waitrose have been brilliant with substitutions. Every time the substitute item has been better and/or more expensive than the item I've ordered.

It's got to the point where DH and check the pre-delivery email hoping there might be substitutes!

We've had better wine, a more expensive ready meal and a tomato puree that I'd never have splashed out on but had made all the difference to some dishes.

PS And you can say if you don't want the substitute if you check the pre-delivery email so that it - and the cost - are removed.

So far we've been pleased with the alternatives.

We've been doing all shopping online for almost a year to avoid covid risk.

We have a regular weekly delivery to the door, ordered online from Tesco; and occasionally a smaller " click and collect at the smkt carpark" online order for fresh milk and odds and ends.

We rarely have any subs; when we do they are charged at either, a lower price (if that's their cost) or, the price of what we ordered ( if the sub costs more.),We've never received poor quality goods (and I'm fussy about freshness and dates). The delivery printed accounts are always correct (I check). The delivery drivers are always within the agreed time slot, and invariably efficient, polite and very friendly. We just can't fault them and I absolutely applaud Tesco for this very high standard of service.

You are hard work.

I find Ocado awful with subs, always more expensive and they charge you for it. They also routinely deliver much higher weight products at more cost than what you ordered. And the amount of bashed about food or clearly verging on rotten that arrives is shocking. I can sympathise OP with it feeling like fraud. One of the many many things I am looking forward to at the end of this pandemic is getting rid of them.

Never heard of a supermarket charging more for subs.

Tesco if an item is subbed you pay original price, so cost never goes up.

Maybe just click no subs, or specify only same of lesser value subs

Morrison’s doesn’t allow you to say no substitutes, and if they give you a more expensive substitute they charge you full price. That’s one of the reasons I don’t do my full shop at Morrison’s and I always reject all substitutes. Tesco is much better, you can tick the items you don’t want substituted and if they give you a more expensive item you still pay the original price.

Tesco don't charge the difference, try using them. Or put no subs

Asda doesn’t charge extra for subs either, just for your future reference op 🙂

Sainsbury's give a voucher, but they also pick early, so sometimes certain deliveries haven't arrived, like my bread. They never have my bread.

1. Your online order might not come from your local store, it could be warehouse or a larger capacity store (I know Asda is my local one, but Tesco & Sainsbury's use one further away)
2. Where the hell do you shop that washing up liquid is £8? I know I'm frugal but that genuinely seems batshit unless your local supermarket is Harrods
3. That's superb paranoia, I'm impressed

Frankly I've been really disappointed that the goods being prioritised for manufacture are the premium ones during lockdown. It's driven up the cost of our average shop substantially and offers are now few and far between. Whilst I believe the supermarkets are going to make choices that maximise their profits in this way, I really can't see any of them getting away with re-programming their shopping software to automatically look at low sale mobility of items and swap them out on the pickers list...because the shop floor workers would absolutely not be making these decisions on a whim, I doubt any of them have the high level data required to maliciously do this to customers either.

You are hard work.

Yup!!

You’re a whole different level of paranoid!

Just put that you don’t want substitutes.