Inappropriate Tesco substitute! WIBU to complain?

[tigerlady14]

tw: mention of alcoholism

100% fine with being told I’m being very silly and overreacting which I think might be likely due to the emotional circumstances surrounding this, but I need some clearheaded opinions as my knee jerk reaction tells me this is really inappropriate.
For background I am a recovering alcoholic and looking forwards to celebrating 2.5 years of sobriety this week. For a treat I decided to add a pretty expensive “premium” alcohol-free beverage to my weekly Tesco order. I drink alcohol-free drinks quite often but this one was a particularly special one to mark the significant occasion for me (this is why I think I may be BU as I might be particularly sensitive due to the nature of the purchase.)
I was therefore really surprised to see that they had substituted this with the original, alcohol equivalent when my order arrived! I of course refused the substitution and they took it away with no problems so happy to be told that I should accept this as the end of it, but I can’t help but feeling a sense that this substitution is really quite inappropriate.
I am aware that when placing the order you can select if you want substitutions or not, in this case I chose to allow substitutions as I expected to receive something similarly alcohol-free if they didn’t have the item in stock. It didn’t cross my mind that they might substitute it with alcohol, particularly as I live in Scotland and there is a clear pop up on the website indicating that alcohol cannot be purchased on orders being delivered prior to 10am (the slot was 8-9am) due to licensing laws.
Therefore I am wondering WIBU to complain about this substitution, both due to the inappropriate nature of it as well as the violation of licensing laws? I can’t imagine any situation where someone would have ordered an alcohol free drink and would be happy to receive one with alcohol, it just seems wholly unsuitable. However as I say this is obviously quite emotional for me so happy to be told I am being silly.

YANBU: complain to make them aware of the issue and so that they might take it into consideration in future
YABU: you are overreacting, no harm was done as the substitution was removed and refunded

I would let them know. I don't think it's a reasonable substitution - a different alcohol free option would have been appropriate. It's reasonable to assume that had a customer wanted something with alcohol in it, they would have ordered it. While it's up to the customer to accept or refuse a substitution, it's a pain in the arse if it's something completely unreasonable, as this is. I ordered a vegan pie for DD when she was home and they replaced it with a steak pie. Pickers should apply some common sense.

Can’t believe anyone voted YABU, of course you should complain, it absolutely shouldn’t have happened.
This is something that needs fixing in their systems.

They've not breached licensing laws for two reasons. One, you didn't order alcohol to be ordered early, and two, your refusal of the alcohol means they didn't deliver alcohol early.

'Not breaching licensing laws' is a low baseline for responsible behaviour though. They could impose a 'don't substitute alcohol for alcohol-free' policy.

Tescoes don't know you are a recovering alcoholic - you could buy 0% 'alcohol' for lots of reasons. And the pickers work to a tight schedule and are (afaik) paid by how many orders they fill. If you say an item can be substituted they will pick up the nearest similar item, not hunt the shelves for an exact facsimile. I got fillet steak for rump steak once (kept it) and lemon wipes for lemon juice on another occasion (also kept it - quite useful). Say 'no substitutes' if it's going to be a problem. You've no reason to complain, IMO, because Tescoes did what you asked.

A delivery man once told me that although a computer will tell the picker what to substitute something with, the picker can over ride it to select a different item. The drivers at his depot have a weekly competition to see what the silliest substitution is!

Agree. Or worse doesn’t spot that it’s a substitution.

OP congratulations on your milestone!

I think the opposite.

I don't think substituting alcohol when someone has ordered something non-alcoholic is reasonable at all. To me, that's the opposite of using common sense.

How? The pickers are working to a schedule. Mind, I don't know how they picked an alcoholic drink or why, since usually the 0% are all together. Maybe they need a policy not to substitute non-alcoholic drinks for alcoholic ones but it's a bit itsy because 0% alcohol e.g. gin is not usually a go-to for recovering alcoholics, more likely to be someone on a diet, so the assumption of the picker, who probably just picked the nearest likely bottle being on a schedule, was that the person ordering was ok with alcohol, since they obv. like the taste of alcohol (e.g. 0% Gordon's gin tastes the same).

Id definitely feed it back to them, most people would presume leaving subs on would mean a sub for another non alcoholic drink surely? Congratulations by the way for sending it back, thats no small feat.

When I was a picker we had parameters on the scanner, doesnt seem like it'd be wild to build it in.

You are NOT being unreasonable OP, and well done for resisting - someone else in the same position may have fallen off the wagon, so I think they need to be told.

its not an appropriate substitute at all. I maybe wouldn't "complain" but would certainly point out that replacing something non alcoholic with alcohol isn't appropriate and also that supplying alcohol before 10am is breaking licensing laws.

it's likely someone just hasn't thought through what they are doing, but it does need looked at

well done on your sobriety

I think it's a fair complaint. Firstly because of the reasons you state, which are serious but also surely some common sense should be applied. As an example, someone doesn't want normal bread instead of gluten free, as you'd assume they're ordering gluten free for a reason. Well done on your sobriety.

They can, but they also have a target to reach .. it’s very strict and often leaves no time for decisions and browsing.

They were in the wrong. Congratulations by the way, 2 and a half years is fantastic. Keep choosing life x

I don't think it is reasonable to substitute non-alcoholic products for ones containing alcohol, though. There are all kinds of medical and cultural reasons why someone would choose a non-alcoholic version.

I would make them aware, I feel like it’s an inappropriate sub also. And for some products there’s a good reason you choose what you do. If they sub plum toms for toms it’s a tomato. I order dairy free philly for my severely allergic daughter. They send normal when they could sub for violife or own brand vegan cream cheese. Surely that would make more sense!

you could buy 0% 'alcohol' for lots of reasons.

Indeed - all of them because you want 0% alcohol; and for most people who actively choose 0% alcohol, alcohol would not be in any way acceptable.

Offering fillet steak instead of rump steak is a perfectly reasonable substitution; offering booze to somebody who has specifically ordered a no-booze option is ridiculously incompetent.

In that case, if they aren't given enough time to do a reasonable job, they should just ignore that item and not send a ridiculous 'substitute'.

They are not paid by how many orders they pick but they do work to a tight schedule. As we all have the opportunity to refuse substitutions at the door, I think YABU. Do you think tesco would be responsible if you cracked and accepted (and drank) the alcohol? I've had some ridiculous substitutions and I just refuse them.

YANBU

Even if they don't care about the 'alcohol' for 'non alcoholic' substitution as such, they should be fully aware of and following the licensing laws of Scotland. Remind them they can be fined.

A friend of mine used to do this job, it is brutal re time allowed.

I think OP should make the store aware and they should thank her, the manager could lose their alcohol licence and the store could be fined.
It is a breach of licencing laws to supply alcohol before 10am, the fact OP refused the item doesn't change the fact they tried to supply it, which is the breach.
They shouldn't offer alcohol as a substitute for a non alcoholic product. Its a no brainer.

Congratulations on the 2.5 years.

I would certainly make them aware of the issue, it is something they should be mindful of non alcohol should not be substituted with alcohol.

I’d make them aware.

congratulations on your longevity of sobriety and also for being able to send it back.

The next person may not be so able and so you highlighting it could save the next person.