Tesco - damaged goods, do they let you keep them?

[Onequestiononetime]

I've had Tesco deliveries for years. If something is damaged or a short shelf life they have always refunded the price but we still keep the product
With damaged goods, they can't resell them anyway.

I don't take advantage of their generosity and only mention it if something is pretty obviously damaged or eat by the same day etc. More often they point it out to me when we unpack. I've had deliveries for about 15 years most weeks and this has happened fairly frequently.

Anyway, I had a delivery on holiday (in the UK) recently, and some cream meringues had got squished by products being put on top. So obviously squished, caved in meringues, which I pointed out. The driver gave me the refund but then went to take the cakes away.

I queried this and was told that I could keep the item but then I would be charged full price for it, all get a refund and forfeit it, with the squished product presumably being thrown away (or scoffed in the van...). Firstly he said he couldn't for high value items - they were about £1.50 and then that we are only allowed to keep it if It is an essential item such as milk and bread.

I later got it refunded by the Tesco WhatsApp customer service.

Is he right and I've just always had unusually generous drivers? Is he interpreting the rules overly strictly because he's relatively new (he was.very young, I'm thinking 18-19). Or am I just cheeky and should be happy going without desert as long as we have a refund? Am I being cheeky expecting to eat mangled damaged goods and still get a refund? I'd happily pay a reduced price for them btw, but not an option.

This has to be the most privileged middle class thread of August, that has now revived in September. I'd send you some meringues if I could OP, just to quell your ongoing angst 😁

The ones I work with do - because out of date means jack all. 'Use by' is different. Also of course they take dented cans, plenty of people buy dented cans in Tescos specifically to put in their own donation bins! I mean I only work with 24 food banks across Wales... maybe all of the other food banks are different, but I highly doubt it.

Genuinely what does Tesco gain from taking back the goods to then throw them away? It's no loss to them, but shows good customer service.

Are you dense? It stops people receiving perfectly good meringues, subtly smashing them, and asking for a refund, while keeping them and the song them for the intended purpose of Eton Mess. Basically, weeds out a whole lot of CF’ers and a small proportion of honest people just get caught up in the wake.

Absolutely, but computer algorithms should be capable of picking up on any suspicious patterns.

This is probably exactly what’s happened. You’ve had a significant number of deliveries where you’ve claimed that damaged products were delivered.

You’ve obviously been identified as a cheeky fucker who’s trying it on. They’re trying to nip it in the bud, by offering you a refund if you do not accept the item and it’s returned to the store. Alternatively when you’re told you can’t have your cake and eat it too, you suddenly realise that actually I will accept the item 🙄

Um no... Normal service has been resumed here. I've not been 'identified' as anything, I've since had refunds and kept the products.

If there was some black mark against my name, then their online service wouldn't have immediately given me a refund for those meringues would they 😉.

I am absolutely not a "cheeky fucker who’s trying it on" - at least half the time, the short shelf life/damaged goods have been picked up on my the drivers, not me, and they've suggested a refund and they keep it. The ones I point out only where it's blatantly damaged to the extent they wouldn't be selling them. I have accepted without quibble dented cans, flowers with some of the heads ripped off, damaged packaging etc.

My question arose because of a change in how they operated when I was on holiday. If a company does x 99% of the time and they go to a new location and there they do y, then obviously I'm going to wonder why.

So they don't trust their drivers? The delivery driver saw the condition they were in whilst still in the tray. Are you suggesting I time travelled or snuck into the van before it arrived to damage my products? How do you suggest I smash them right in front of the driver without them noticing?

Ok. Trussel trusts doesn't (I checked their policy) and they operate around 1500 good banks, representing about 2/3rds of food banks in the UK.

It might be an idea to change to another supermarket as Tesco don’t seem to be able to reliably deliver your goods in a decent condition without requiring a refund. I’ve had Morrisons for at least 10 years and I can only think of two items damaged in that time.

Yes, in my opinion you definitely were being cheeky , if driver had offered you to keep them then that’s fine but to query it makes it look like you’re trying it on .
I’ve had quite a few freebies over the years ( Waitrose being the most generous , occasionally when they substituted I have said I don’t want the sub & they say to just keep without charge ) but I’d never expect that nor would I query it .
I do however think the driver should have an option to reduce and let you buy the item cheaper , credit your next order , that would work well as probably saves the faff of them taking it back to the store too.

They're not profiting, you got a refund.

But you expecting the refund and to keep the item is one of the most entitled things I've read today.

If the driver is allowed to scoff them, good on him, he deserves them more than the customer.

Because they were squashed and no one would pay full price for them? Would you?

I've had some awful experiences with Morrisons. Never again!

They cancelled by Christmas slot the week before Christmas.

I then used them on holiday a couple of years ago and they first told me that the unavailable products in my shop (not substituted) included a children's birthday cake and candles.

So my husband went to the shop to buy emergency birthday cake etc, but at least we'd get everything else right...

Then it didn't turn up, and they kept saying it was delayed, further and further, and never turned up in the end.

My husband ended ended up in Asda at 11.30pm.

Awful.

I'll stick with Tesco, because my local drivers are great.

Why does he? Isn’t the customer disadvantaged by having to make arrangements to replace the item that was unsalable? I mean, driving to shop etc? Tescos are not going to send out a can with a replacement.

*van

OP, you’ve been lucky in the past and have kept damaged items and got a refund. But it should not be an expectation that it is the case. The driver was happy to give you a refund and take away the squashed packet, or to let you keep them and pay for them. Your choice. What Tesco’s or the driver decide to do with the bashed packet is none of your concern - either pay up or hand them back for a refund.

So pay full price for damaged goods?

The customer is aware of the policy when they sign up and make purchases.

Supermarkets don't even make much money on doing home deliveries, it's the people who shop in store who subsidise the home deliveries. So no, the customer isn't more deserving.

The policy that says what?

The Morrisons app allows you to return unfit goods for at least 24/48 hours, never had the delivery driver to return to collect the damaged meringues two days later!

So after I’ve checked my shopping and sell by dates, I’ll decide what is acceptable or not!

I’m sorry if it’s not cost effective then change it, but up until then if they damage my goods or give me same day food, I’ll return via the app and use them! I’ll freeze the same day chicken, but I won’t pay for it! Sort their service out!

Loads of pp saying this, just picked one at random to quote
i don’t agree though, if I went shopping myself I wouldn’t pick the mangled ones. And I’d be annoyed at myself if I broke them on my way home. I don’t shop with Tesco but everywhere I’ve shopped you pay delivery and often a service charge and some places you pay for bags too, even though if I went shopping myself I’d take my own. So there’s already quite a premium on getting food delivered, I don’t think you should then have to accept broken or subpar items just because they’re still edible. I also don’t think supermarkets should be taking them back and wasting food.
maybe if stuff comes clearly damaged there could be an option to pay say 25% of the price or send it back. Or maybe supermarkets who make massive profits anyway, could give their workers a bit more training and a bit more time to do the job carefully. I imagine it’s cheaper for them to lose the odd £1.50 though.