A safe space to confess whether you panic bought toilet roll

[Peaceshout]

It’s been several years since the pandemic, lockdown, and those early months when the toilet roll disappeared from the shelves in bulk.

Yet despite it all being bought, I’ve never met anyone who panic bought toilet roll. Instead, most people are critical of the toilet roll panic buying. Someone is lying.

Given the time that’s elapsed, now is the time for the panic buyers of toilet roll to come out, admit it, and tell us whether they still have any left in the shed. No judgment, no criticism, just a safe space to unburden yourselves.

AIBU?

No, DH works in a grocery store so was about to be on the front line of a pandemic for minimum wage. At least one of the bonuses was to be able to select our groceries from deliveries straight away on a daily basis rather than run the supermarket gauntlet so shortages didn’t affect us so no need to stockpile.

Well, of course. Two adult children in the household - separate and all get limited items in everyone's own transaction. The limits were often designed for a family of four in mind. I had double that, so it felt justified.

Not really.
I kinda thought worse case i can use a flannel or have a quick shower

I did have more hand soap than needed though

Ive always had loads of toilet roll in the house so 'panic buying' it was already my norm, and still is.

Really?
During Covid and you were worrying about a man buying flour for himself and his mother.
Christ !!!!

I didn’t panic buy anything however I did have to buy 3 times as much of everything whenever I went to the shops as I was working frontline nhs on the Covid wards and a. Wasn’t exactly replete with shopping time, and b. Didn’t want to risk exposing people more often than I had to in the event I was incubating Covid.

Isn't this the 3rd thread in about 24 hours on toilet paper, people use it and people buy it i have no idea how much toilet paper I bought 5 years ago

I didn't need to - I always buy a big pack and there is just me in the house, so I had plenty to last until supplies were normal again.

But I suspect most of the people that panic bought don't really realise they were part of the problem because they probably only bought two packs instead of one. The problem is that supermarkets work on a 'just in time' model for stock replenishment, so didn't have extra coming in to make up for the extras bought - it doesn't take a large percentage of people stocking up to create a supply issue.

My uncles wife once heard there was going to be a shortage of salt. As a result she bought, iirc, 5kg of salt. I would understand if she ran a restaurant, but she just cooked for her and my uncle. I'm not sure if she ever used it all up before she died... That's way dafter than an extra pack of loo roll!

That's not panic buying, if it's your normal way of buying.

Panic buying is buying extra in addition to normal.

I wonder if it wasn’t panic buying, but people were just generally buying more because everyone was working from home? If you think about if you are work or kids at school everyday you use the loo at least once or twice, and that’s now happening at home - it’s no wonder we all needed more loo roll than usual!

We didn't panic buy toilet rolls.

At one point, we had two toilet rolls left and our toddler put one of them in the run bath and was reaching for the second one when I ran in after him.

I knew it was being part of the problem. However, I've experienced that 'doing the right thing' so often leads to everyone else getting what they need, and I miss out. So I decided to be selfish for once.

No but I do remember buying two packs from the corner shop which is something I’d never normally do because of cost. Tesco was out and I thought I should buy it when I saw it.
I also ordered a bulk pack of basics tissue boxes from Amazon. In bright yellow value packaging. They lasted us YEARS.

No, but for some reason my husband did buy two fray bentos pies to put in the cupboard ‘just in case’. Despite none of us liking nor eating Fray Bentos pies.

I read that people were panic buying the toilet rolls for hygiene reasons ( probably someone paid someone else money to come up with this one)
I remember the supermarkets seemed to be stripped bare of a lot of things like pasta and flour too.
It was an odd time.

Never got the opportunity. We were still working outside of the home in non nhs roles so had no priority. Once we got to the shops after work there was nothing left from any deliveries.

My most embarrassing moment of the pandemic was when I ordered something innocuous on eBay and the seller packed it in a box labelled "2x5 litre hand sanitiser". The courier left in in full view in the porch at "clapping on doorsteps" time (how was that a thing?) during the week when every news bulletin had a bit about how the health and care sector couldn't get the hand sanitiser they needed and every artisanal gin distillery around was switching production over. 😳

Oh, and while I didn't exactly panic buy loo roll, I did probably restock a little earlier than usual to avoid needing to buy in a panic....

I didn't need to as I already had 2 packs of 45 from a previous offer on Amazon

No, but I did buy about two months of night nappies. Our son promptly decided to train himself virtually overnight so they were a bit of a waste and a more expensive brand than usual. Went to a friend do not wasted.

I didn't panic buy in terms of taking multiple packs. I was still working full time (WFH) during the pandemic so could only shop on Saturdays. I used to get up at the crack of dawn so I could be in the mandatory queue outside the supermarket before it opened. People would start queuing anything up to an hour before opening, so I was there early too. This was because I'd witnessed others taking multiple packs of toilet rolls/pasta/yeast etc, even when there would have been plenty to go round. I did pick up a pack 12 each week to build up a little stash, but only ever one pack each week. Often I'd go in and the shelves were bare because they were still awaiting a delivery. Worst was watching some people shoving 3 or 4 big multipacks in their trolley and trying to excuse it with "these are for my sister, and these are for my daughter..." I did see some fights break out, which was dreadful.

Nope.

I thought at the time that it was one of the dumbest acts of group think that I've ever seen.

Of all the things to worry about running out of, toilet roll would be so easy to replace with a flannel that you wash regularly, rags, soap and water, newspaper etc.

The queuing up at the shops did bring out all the jobsworths ! One woman in my town loved her loud hailer , because of you didn’t queue up properly near the arrows the corona virus would know about it.
I sometimes see a faded arrow sticker. I doubt anyone would listen to loud hailer person if we ever had another pandemic.

I also already had a good supply because I bulk order from Amazon.

I always had a lot in anyway but i admit i bought an extra pack than i would have and i had plenty

I did not, and when I ran out I had to try four different shops before I could find a four pack of some nightmare product infused with Shea oil which then gave me thrush.

I do now have a toilet roll delivery subscription!