Tesco short dates on home delivery

[Goldengirl123]

Does anyone on here work for Tesco and does the shopping for on line grocery orders?

it just seems at the moment that if I order a big shop, it has such short use by dates that my weeks planning goes out of the window as I need to use stuff before it goes out of date. I was wondering if this is what the staff are told to do

That's annoying. I think that you can.specify on your order (in comment text box for item) a minimum use by/best before date.

Not helpful to you, but this is why I don't tend to get home delivery.
If you ever see the online shoppers in store they grab the first item on the shelf, which is no doubt what they're told to do as it's quicker and ensures stock rotation.

Staff don't have much time to pick an order and will usually pick the first item on the shelf, which if it's been rotated properly, will have the shortest date. I dont think it's deliberate, they are timed on their pick rate so dont have time to check all the dates unless you specify it.

I often write “please make sure dated till X” in the notes box, or send it back if the date isn’t long enough for me. Annoying to have to go to the shops but I don’t often want to eat a tub of taramasalata, six scotch eggs and an egg custard tart in one sitting so as not to waste it with the dates! (… although …. 🤔)

Do they refund them? Sainsburys do. If something comes with a stupidly short date I go online and select that as an option and they refund with no quibble. It still doesn't solve the problem...but I feel better about it!

Just check the dates whilst you're unpacking the order and hand back anything too short to the driver who'll do an immediate refund. If you don't notice something short dated, phone the call centre and they'll process an immediate refund. We've had the same problem many times with short dated goods and never had a problem getting a refund - often the driver lets you keep the item as well as refunding you.

We always get a notification when our online shopping order is out for delivery,it lists anything with a short sell by date,when the delivery driver arrives and we say we dont want such and such item,they take it back and refund (on some occasions they tell us to keep the items ,and they still refund).

Family members works there. They are timed and it's not much time either so they grab the first items and never check dates.

FFS is there anything companies won't shittify if they get the chance?
We live quite a long way from the nearest supermarket so online shopping is brilliant for us - but on every single shop I decline at least one from dented tins, manky looking fruit/veg/meat etc.

This is why I shop in person. Pick my own best before dates. If something's not in stock I pick an alternative myself and I don't have to wait in half a day when it dosent show up on time. Try it, it actually works

I agree. I refuse to get any food shopping delivered now but for the people that need to use the service it's unfair for it to be done the way it is.

When this happens they always let me keep the item but refund it

I wish I could but I have a very painful disease

We use Tesco and only occasionally get something with a short date, which is marked on the receipt and you can obviously hand it back at the door if it’s not suitable. Everything else is fine, as in, it says on each product online 1week +, and they’re usually dated well over that. Maybe your store has some issues at the moment? Ours seems fine as always though.

Yes, we’ve had that before.

💐 for you. Some people really don’t think others may have different circumstances to them.

Do you have another supermarket you could try? We occasionally use a Morrisons and they’ve been fine.

This is exactly what I was going to say.
The online shopping staff are not invested one iota in picking good dates. They don't even look at the goods when they have taken them off the shelf.

I'm not an enthusiastic shopper but I make sure I pick the best dated products and undamaged items. And I don't use online shopping for this reason although I realise for many people shopping in person is just not an option.

It’s an almost weekly occurrence that I get shortdated items on my Tesco delivery. I always message on Twitter and get a refund, if it’s not something I’m going to use before that date then it can usually go in the freezer.

In 7 years of online shopping I’ve only been notified twice on the receipt of a shortdated item!

Tesco are also good with giving refunds for fresh fruit and veg too now that they don't have use by/best before dates, whether you pick yourself or get home delivery. I tend to go into store for fruit and veg and despite trying my best to pick the freshest looking items, sometimes they're soft/mouldy within a couple of days of purchase. We always take them back and never had a problem getting a full refund even if we've already used some of them. I assume the returns staff are under instruction not to argue about short dated/mouldy foods.

Picker here. I am invested in picking good dates and I do look at the goods, please don't tar everybody with the same brush. We are told daily to pick the best dates and quality we can.

I don't pick anything I wouldn't buy myself.

We have a pick rate we have to achieve, about 200 items per hour, give or take, which includes walking to the item (pushing a heavy trolley), finding it, checking the date and putting it in the trolley. If we help a customer, that affects our pick rate. It's hard physical work, starting early in the morning. By the end of a shift, every bone in my body aches, but I do my best for my customers.

Unfortunately, as with every job, not everybody can be bothered.

To the OP, no we are not told to pick the worst dates, we are told to pick the best. If you are getting short dates, please complain.

Tescos used to be good, now the short dated stuff is so bad and almost every week I am getting refunds of £10-15. I complain every time and they say they raise it with the store, but nothing changes. I have tried different day and times for delivery and its still always bad.

I only check dates on yogurts for length as I just freeze meat and fish.

Vegetables and fruit go in my fridge and best before dates don't seem to really matter.

I think it depends on the store / warehouse as well. I never have an issue but my sister has started having so many issues over the last few months. As the OP says, it completely throws any planning out the window. She writes on the notes and asks for long dates but still doesn’t get them. Things like milk out of date the next day and they are never flagged. So frustrating

Morrisons (and Ocado? who share depots) get their home delivery from a warehouse. The dates are generally longer.
I do have some buns to use up today that were delivered yesterday but they were on the last page of the checkout as 'sell off' and they were cheap.

I'm sorry if I've offended you.

I can only speak by my experiences in the 2 Sainsbury's supermarkets which I am a frequent customer in. Where tbh it's not just the home delivery pickers which fail to impress.

But you are totally right to point out I was wrong to assume everyone who does the job is the same.