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Original poster

Ocado Christmas delivery slots - what a waste of time and money!

130 replies

redglobox · 20/12/2021 20:29

Why do they offer Christmas delivery slots if they don't have the stock to fulfil them? I had to pay £8 for a slot (in the late evening). Booked one thinking it would save me from going into the shop. Finalised the order on Friday and they are so low on stock there's little choice in any category and some items are completely out of stock (puff pastry, frozen desserts...). Ended up having to go into our local Sainsbury's anyway and it couldn't have been more different: fully stocked shelves, loads of choice, interesting options.

I called Ocado about it and the guy apologised but said he wasn't allowed to refund the delivery fee or offer vouchers to cover the cost.
Happy Christmas to you too Ocado!

Are they all this crap? I don't think I've ever had it before that there's little choice and you're supposed to cheerily hand over your £8 and be glad that you got anything at all.

OP posts:
GrannytoaUnicorn · 23/12/2021 02:50

@CoffeeRunner That's incorrect. If you finalise your shop weeks in advance it reserves stock. I know this for a fact. I've even had texts from them telling me as much

GrannytoaUnicorn · 23/12/2021 02:52

@Thisbastardcomputer

My Saturday order last week was cancelled by Ocado about 4,30 pm Friday, I'm bloody furious, no proper explanation.

I've got the Christmas one coming 23rd and expecting half the stuff to be missing.

I'm cancelling my regular Saturday order and smart pass subscription.

I'm changing to Waitrose in the new year.

Sounds like the payment failed for some reason. They will just cancel without any further communication
YukoandHiro · 23/12/2021 02:53

My order arrived today and no substitutions or missing items... don't know if being in London makes a difference

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MilitantFaucet · 23/12/2021 04:03

I didn’t book a Christmas slot initially as we were meant to be away this week. After we cancelled our holiday I got an email offering a free Christmas week delivery and managed to get a slot for today. The receipt is showing no subs, no missing items and decent use by dates Grin

I’ve been adding non perishable stuff for the last few weeks and get meat delivered separately so we’d have been ok. However a few weeks ago more than half my order was missing which was just ridiculous.

No Waitrose here sadly so that’s not an option.

AgnesNaismith · 23/12/2021 08:35

Where do I find my receipt? My shop is coming tonight between 9-10 and I want to go and replace any subs before it arrives. Particularly worried about the chocolate log!!

MilitantFaucet · 23/12/2021 08:40

In the app it appears a while before you get the text/email. Might not be there yet for tonight though.

AgnesNaismith · 23/12/2021 08:48

Thanks @MilitantFaucet will keep my eye on the app - not there yet!

Plantsandpuddlesuits · 23/12/2021 09:49

Ours always appears in our email before the app, order was due 10 -11 today although its already here and email came at 6am

Ours isn't a huge shop as we have got our Christmas food from butcher baker and farm shop so its a basic ocado shop buy everything was there except a seafood platter which isn't a problem

AgnesNaismith · 23/12/2021 10:29

Same here, meat from the butcher and veg from ocado…it’s just the chocolate log i’m twitching about!! Still no receipt.

Onceuponatimethen · 23/12/2021 10:32

I didn’t have a single missing item op in mind op. I think the trick is to book on the day the slots come out and fill with all Xmas items immediately. We got turkeys, mince pies etc etc. I amended it a bit a few days before and some things were out of stock but mostly we could get what we wanted.

I’m still annoyed they switched to M&S and we won’t stay with them long term, but it’s not been bad this Xmas

Onceuponatimethen · 23/12/2021 10:32

Single missing item in mine, op

sparklytriceratops · 23/12/2021 10:36

Nothing missing in our ocado shop. Booked it weeks ago and made sure to put all the Christmas food in my basket at the time.

It's hardly Ocado's fault if people leave it to the last minute to the to order food! They'd have huge amounts of wastage if they kept loads of stock back 'just in case' more people tried to order it.

summertimerolls · 23/12/2021 10:49

Definitely gone downhill, I've been a smart pass member for years and when the Christmas slots opened for me the latest one I could get was 29 December which is ridiculous. It was the last straw so I cancelled the membership.

I have had multiple bad subs for the Christmas shop in recent years despite finalising order in early November. Most memorably a missing turkey, casually mentioned on the day of deliver on 23 December....

summertimerolls · 23/12/2021 10:49

@summertimerolls

Definitely gone downhill, I've been a smart pass member for years and when the Christmas slots opened for me the latest one I could get was 29 December which is ridiculous. It was the last straw so I cancelled the membership.

I have had multiple bad subs for the Christmas shop in recent years despite finalising order in early November. Most memorably a missing turkey, casually mentioned on the day of deliver on 23 December....

20 December not 29th!!
natrew · 23/12/2021 10:53

I got my Ocado delivery yesterday. 1 sun which was a different flavour of crisp. I find Ocado much better at Christmas than others, though you do have to fill your basket early to avoid things being sold out.
I used to get Tesco but it used to have loads of substitutions, most terrible (instead of baking powder I got birthday candles!)

Covidclaire · 23/12/2021 11:02

It's hardly Ocado's fault if people leave it to the last minute to the to order food! They'd have huge amounts of wastage if they kept loads of stock back 'just in case' more people tried to order it.

It kind of is their fault. Their systems and data should be sophisticated enough to predict required stock levels to a fairly high degree of accuracy.

I mean, shock horror, lots of people want to order sprouts at Christmas!

AgnesNaismith · 23/12/2021 15:48

My receipt still isn’t in Confused chocolate log still unaccounted for

AgnesNaismith · 23/12/2021 15:54

It’s in, it’s in!! Chocolate log is being delivered, my only sub is potatoes which is easily remedied!

Justajot · 23/12/2021 15:56

I think they used to be able to predict Christmas sales a few years ago, but the uncertainty around Christmas with covid must be absolutely messing with their ability to predict and order.

Brusca · 23/12/2021 15:58

I've been really disappointed this year, for years Ocado has been near perfect, and at most a couple of subs at Christmas. This year, despite booking and adding nearly everything as soon as the slots came out, I had 12 subs and one missing item.

And not Christmas related, but they keep de-listing M&S products which is bloody annoying, especially the products that were subs for our old Waitrose favourites, and their gluten feee range. I find a better M&S GF offering at the concessions in motorway services these days

OompaLumpaLabrador · 23/12/2021 16:01

We switched to Waitrose when Ocado switched to M and S. Waitrose service is excellent. I had a huge Christmas order delivered today and only one substitution (muffins for crumpets, we’ll live). I also d we need up editing my Waitrose shop yesterday lunchtime to add several items our neighbours hadn’t been able to get in their Ocado shop.

Switch to Waitrose, it’s great.

MilitantFaucet · 23/12/2021 16:04

Switch to Waitrose, it’s great.
But only if it’s an option, no Waitrose shops or delivery here

TenoringBehind · 23/12/2021 16:29

How great Waitrose is depends on your local store, I think.

Ours comes from 2 possible stores, and we never know which until the day. One is great, one shockingly bad.

AuntieStella · 24/12/2021 07:49

Mine's here - six substitutions (only two acceptabke, unfortunately) plus one missing item

Technical difficult at the warehouse, they said. What a dreadful day to be having them !

ProfessorRapson · 24/12/2021 08:01

Three missing items: two aren't important but one is our Boxing Day dessert so DH has gone to M&S.
Seven substitutions most of which we'll return because they're useless, e.g. our whole cloves have been substituted with ground cloves and we need whole cloves for our Christmas Day lunch. The DC will be disappointed that the Christmas tree crumpets are normal crumpets. I'm not looking forward to rooting through the bags to return things!