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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

Several items on long ago booked leading Supermarket home delivery now unavailable!

229 replies

DancingDonkey · 21/12/2014 13:19

I booked an Xmas delivery slot with one of the leading supermarkets in late November. I'd carefully planned the menu etc.

I've just logged back in today to add some more items to this delivery, when I noticed that several of the items I've asked for are listed as 'No longer available'. I wouldn't mind if it was the odd thing here or there but these Christmas staples, such as chestnuts, breadcrumbs etc. All but one of the ingredients I needed for my pudding are also now unavailable.

I'm now going to have to do an additional shop I didn't want to do, as well as totally reconsider my pudding.

I'm pretty hacked off to be honest as I had booked this specifically because it's hard for me to get to the shops at the best of times. I particularly wanted to avoid it at this time of year.

I thought the whole point of them releasing delivery slots early was so that you could ensure you got a delivery and all your hard to get items! I appreciate they can't guarantee items the rest of the year, but I would have thought they would have made more of an effort at Christmas.

Anyway I posted this as a warning really, if you have a Christmas delivery booked you might want to have a double check in your basket to make sure your items are all available.

OP posts:
SistersOfPercy · 21/12/2014 14:02

Mine comes from Ocado tomorrow. I usually leave a couple of days to allow for OOS or error but (touches wood) in all the years I've used them I've never had an issue.
Just checked mine again (forgot the squirty cream for hot chocolate and the dog nearly had no dinner Blush) and everything is still in my basket, but as someone else said items are OOS on the general site. My basket has been there since 28th October though and I added all the essentials first, I've just been going back to add bits now.

LadySybilLikesSloeGin · 21/12/2014 14:07

I'm trusting Ocado to bring all of my items on Christmas Eve. I've been using them for the last 6 or 7 years and (touch wood) all has been OK so far. I used Twatsco before and I'd end up throwing ? of the delivery away as it was so short dated it was shocking. I've been tweaking my basket for the past week Blush

JennyBlueWren · 21/12/2014 14:11

Don't update your shopping! Then they'll have to substitute. The problem is that they only pick up your food on the day it goes out (well you wouldn't want them picking fruit and veg weeks before) and if it's not in the shop then that's it.
The problem is if you "update/add to" your shop a few days/the night before then it tells you if things aren't in stock THEN and deletes them -even if they might have been in stock the morning of your delivery.

trixymalixy · 21/12/2014 14:14

It's well known that items you order sometimes aren't in stock and sometimes you get substitutes. This happens all through the year, do I'm not sure why you think it'd be any different just before Xmas.

It's exactly why I don't do my Xmas food shop online.

SistersOfPercy · 21/12/2014 14:23

I remember using Asda one year and we had the last delivery of the night. The driver handed me a bag of all sorts of assorted goodies, he said they were refused subs and would only go to waste as he wasn't going back to the depot, it was great! Never happened again though.

We nipped into Tesco one Christmas Eve as well about half an hour before it closed, it was deserted but as you left staff were giving out bags of veg. We've been a few times now just before it closes and there are some great bargains to be had.

ThrowAChickenInTheAir · 21/12/2014 14:27

Well this'll be my last online Christmas food shop. I only did it because I thought it would cut out some stress but it's added to it.

I see about it being a slot not an order but Tesco have referred to it right through as my 'order'. But it seems to be diminishing every time I look at it. So it's an order with ever changing goalposts ie completely unreliable.

YouTheCat · 21/12/2014 14:32

I spread the cost by buying non-perishables over the few months before Christmas. Bought a huge piece of half priced beef a month ago. So I just need some bits of veg and beer.

I only occasionally do an online shop anyway though. I think I did one at Christmas once with Asda, that was cancelled because of a small amount of snow and the buggers didn't even bother ringing to tell me.

Mousefinkle · 21/12/2014 14:34

There should be some kind of way to reserve your basket. They should think "right, those custoo

BackOnlyBriefly · 21/12/2014 14:36

I know it's a pain, but you are not really pre-ordering. When the day comes your order is processed.

They might want to make that clearer around Christmas time, but it is the normal way. After all you can take it out of your basket the night before too and not be charged.

Mousefinkle · 21/12/2014 14:38

That was a mistake, obviously Xmas Wink.

"Right, those customers want that so adjust the stock accordingly" and keep them aside then when there's none left put it as out of stock even though there are some in the warehouse, they're just reserved ones. If that makes sense.

Had my ocado shop Thursday, thankfully only two unavailable items that weren't the end of the world. Couldn't do the fresh shop online though, I'd be panicking that loads of stuff would be unavailable or incorrectly substituted and then we'd have to dash around the shops looking for it. Plus supermarkets aren't great at choosing the freshest fruit and veg for you IME, I'd rather pick it myself even if it is a bit more stressful...

BackOnlyBriefly · 21/12/2014 14:38

Oh and in the case of Tesco some of the items marked on my xmas order as unavailable when I checked last week are now available again as more have come in.

Like others I do several orders close together near xmas and the last one is just things that really can't be ordered earlier.

googoodolly · 21/12/2014 14:39

You're only reserving the slot in advance, not the food. The pickers can only take what's available on the day, so if someone else gets there first, tough.

fairgame · 21/12/2014 14:40

I've had this with Tesco in 2012. I booked an xmas delivery and went to amend the order and loads of stuff was marked unavailable. It wouldn't let me checkout until i removed the items. I rang customer service and she advised me not to update the order so that they will substitute the unavailable items instead.
This year i am not amending the order at all just in case. If i have ordered the items then they will either find them or find a substitute whereas if i amend then i'm left with nothing iyswim. It's coming tomorrow so at least i've a few days to find anything that is missing.

Pipbin · 21/12/2014 14:42

I guess the problem is that there is nothing and supermarket can do to stop walk in customers from buying all the chestnuts or whatever on the shelf.
Although you ordered it ages in advance it is no more reserved than if you just wrote it on your shopping list.

As said above, Ocado can mange this kind of situation as everything is coming from a warehouse. I get my shopping from them every week and I don't remember the last time something wasn't delivered.

Crinkle77 · 21/12/2014 14:42

Annoying but hardly a disaster. It's not like they messed up your turkey order. You can make your own breadcrumbs and so what if there are no chestnuts? I don't know why people panic over what is essentially just a glorified christmas dinner. What is important is being with family and friends and having a nice time together. None of the other trappings matter.

AppleAndBlackberry · 21/12/2014 14:44

As others have said, they don't reserve the food for you, they just go round the store on the day and pick up the items as they find them (or not!). If you want to make sure you are getting exactly what you ordered you either need to do it much further in advance or do something like a Waitrose or M&S entertaining order.

SecretSquirrels · 21/12/2014 14:48

I had the opposite problem. Pre booked my slot with a token trolley load. Put a Turkey in when you could order them.
I went on today to add a million things finalise the order and delete the turkay because I have decided to buy one from my local butcher and it won't let me delete it Grin

BrieAndChilli · 21/12/2014 14:48

I pick up things from October onwards with each shop for the pantry and freezer then I go 6am Xmas eve to the big sainsburys as soon as it opens (so has been restocked overnight) and get all the fresh stuff and stuff I still need. I beat the crowd (it normally opens 7am so lots of people don't realise it opens earlier) as either get everything I need or on the odd thing that's out of stock I can find a suitable alternative . Home by 8 as everyone is getting up/breakfast to enjoy Xmas

Chocolatefudgebrownieicecream · 21/12/2014 14:54

I've had it with tesco today. Most if the mince pies are now unavailable.... I think it's ridiculous that they haven't sorted their stock levels. I bwill be switching to ocado in the new year.

SistersOfPercy · 21/12/2014 14:54

Actually, Ocado do reserve the food for you. This is from their Facebook from someone querying a Turkey:

as long as you do not edit the quantities of the items in any way then they will be reserved for you. The out of stock items just relate to new orders, as we have reached the maximum orders for the stock we are expecting to receive. If you added the turkey into your trolley a little while ago (and checked the order out) then this will be reserved for you.

Eastpoint · 21/12/2014 14:56

I had an online order one year with the food coming on Christmas Eve. Complete nightmare as lots of things were missing & I then had to go & look for them. I'm not willing to pay an inflated delivery charge for the risk of that happening again.

SecretSquirrels · 21/12/2014 14:56

I think they all do that with Turkey Sisters. That's why they won't let me take the Turkey out of the basket.

SistersOfPercy · 21/12/2014 14:58

They do it will everything that goes into your basket secret

SecretSquirrels · 21/12/2014 14:58

As far as delivery charges go they nearly do it for nothing these days.
I pay £6 a month for as many deliveries as I want. It would cost me that in petrol for just 1 or 2 trips to the supermarket.

werenotreallyhere · 21/12/2014 15:02

Once ocado turned up with no dairy (not xmas!), I think their fridges broke. I stopped using ocado once they started having too many subs. I'm another that doesn't trust xmas online groceries

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