Ocado Anytime Smart Pass holders - have you received priority access yet?

[Milky77]

Email sent to anytime pass holders (at least) on Thursday

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We have experienced such extraordinary levels of demand in recent days that despite our best efforts, we simply have not had enough capacity to serve all our customers.
To put it into context, practically every Ocado customer, no matter how infrequently they may have shopped previously, is now looking to place an order every week. At the same time, with families at home, the average size of orders has almost doubled. This means there is an unceasing level of demand several times our current delivery capacity.
We’ve already taken decisive steps to manage this demand, closing our doors to new customers, and limiting customers to one delivery slot every seven days. However, despite these measures, we can see that not all Smart Pass customers have been able to book a delivery.
As an Anytime Smart Pass member, we consider you to be one of our best customers, so we’ve set up a temporary priority queue to enable you to book a delivery slot each week.
How you will get access:
We have divided all paying Anytime Smart Pass members who joined before 2020 into a number of equal-sized, randomised groups. You will be placed in one of these groups.
At spaced intervals, we will give each group access to the priority queue, enabling them to quickly get in and choose a slot for their weekly delivery. We will do this by sending each group an email and text message between the hours of 9am and 5pm, starting tomorrow.
Once you get your email, you’ll have the rest of the day to place and check out your order. Please wait for your message, as you won’t be able to access the priority queue at other times.
Please be aware that there is still high demand for slots, and you may not see full availability for all time slots. But, because we can now prioritise the customers we let on to the website, and each customer can only have one slot, you can be confident that there are enough slots – and groceries – to go around.
Our developers continue to work on a better solution which will allow us to manage this in a simpler way but, for now, this fix at least helps us to prioritise you in the short-term. It makes access fair, and helps to keep traffic to our website at manageable levels, ensuring you the best possible shopping experience in the circumstances.
Please note: our usually all-knowing Customer Service team can’t set-up or change this temporary process, so they won’t be able to tell you which group you are in, or when you will get your email.
Thank you for your continued understanding and patience. We all understand the huge responsibility placed on us, and we are working tirelessly to help feed the nation at this challenging time.
Your Ocado team
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Whilst in place, these measures override the relevant provisions of our Terms & Conditions.
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Will be v glad to have a slot confirmed. I would have cancelled my Ocado subscription otherwise. As a customer who orders weekly and should also be screened, I was getting quite concerned what the next few months would be like.

Anyone had their priority access yet?

Really important to use the calendar view and look at highlighted days - that’s the only way dates appear for me

Still radio silence here, nothing from them at all. I’m out. Let’s hope no one in this house gets it in the next two weeks as my dm will starve 😔

@Onceuponatimethen those of us struggling have used the check calendar function. Still nothing.

My next one in the 3 week cycle is due May 1st. Could not see that this morning but it's opened up now.

Right weirdly this thread opted me to check yet again and I now have been able to book a slot - we are on most loyal, 7 day

Just like when we were being texted to say we could get in the Q that day. Only way I ever got in was by randomly trying in the morning. The email would arrive HOURS later when the queue was closed

I’ve just seen that the CEO got a £50 million bonus 🙄 and of you look at the current management team they all at one point worked at M&S.

The whole thing makes me feel quite unpleasant 🤢

I’m baffled.

Im not most loyal, but was getting priority access every 7 days. Booked a a lot yesterday (they had lots of availability eventually - after a day of the grey calendar of doom - but only for the next 5 days. Booked a slot for Sunday.

Today I got the 14 day email. I wish they’d make their minds up!

slot

Really disappointed in ocado. Online shopping is their WHOLE business model, not just a small part of it. They have been totally all over the place. I had a delivery earlier this week, but only because I managed to book it three weeks ago at 3am when I couldn't sleep one night.

I’m another who gets emails that say one thing, but actual real life turns out differently.

I am getting a delivery today - my last reserved delivery, despite being told reserved was stopped weeks ago.

I am a semi-loyal customer (according to Ocado - I’ve actually had weekly deliveries from them for 14 years), and am being allocated a delivery every 10 days. Apparently, slots will open up after today’s delivery, and I will be able to book a slot for 10 days time.

Except, I was able to book a slot earlier today, for 9 days time.

The whole thing is a mess.

I'm very grateful to them. I've had a bit of inconvenience with the Reserve options not running and, of course, substitutions are a lot higher. Nothing serious, though.
They've also coped with my bigger orders, thanks to isolating neighbours that I'm also shopping for.

Given the circumstances, I've no complaints. I also have elderly relatives in London who've managed to stay in isolation, thanks to their regular delivery slot.

I do know lots of people know about the calendar thing - just wanted to mention in case anyone didn’t know! Baffled about why that’s the only thing that works!!

Although for days nothing has shown for me anyway, calendar or not. The book delivery button was missing

For everyone on here winging about not getting a slot- there must an awful lot of customers who are getting deliveries because Ocado are obviously working to their full capacity. I don't know how they can be expected to deliver to every person who has ever shopped there all of a sudden. It's not going to be possible.

I think their communication is confusing, but I suspect they're trying to please everyone and not admit they haven't the ability to fulfil the level of demand there is!

I have been told I can book every 7 days. At the moment my last slot is booked for the 25th and only today have I been able to click the calendar to may- but as yet it's still greyed out.

I do think Ocado are doing as good a job as can be expected getting as many deliveries out they can.

I can not fault their deliveries - I have managed so far to have my regular slot each week, and from now on might get one every 10 days. That’s not bad going.

Their communications, however, have been woeful. There are no clear dates from when new systems may be starting, and no clear reasoning as to how and why they have chosen which customers get 7 day slots, or 10 day slots etc.

The day one thing and do another is beginning to wear very thin - all most reasonable customers want to know is when they can expect a delivery. If that is every 2 weeks, then so be it - although obviously most shoppers would adjust their orders accordingly (as far as is possible), which would impact on the amount of deliveries Ocado could make, due to space on the vans.

I can’t complain with my 10 day slot - I’ll manage (although cannot fathom how they’ve worked out who gets 7 days or 10 days, or 2 weeks - as I said above I’ve been having full weekly shop deliveries from them for 14 years, you can’t get much more loyal than that!), but I do wish that they would be clearer in their communications, and I do think their initial responses were woeful.

I've avoided attempting to order from ocado while this has all been happening apart from one attempt where I gave up. Managed to log on last night when I was working (been pulling nighters as the kids are at home) and got a slot for Monday. I got the 14 day slot and am a midweek pass holder, also got a refund on march's smart pass.

I tend to buy one huge shop a month (well huge for us) and I was able to do most of my usual shop apart from flour/caster sugar/tinned tomatoes but I'm happy with that. Used our slot to top up the herb and spices and get a lot of staples. Nappies have shot ups though. Wondering if what you've bought in the past (so for us a lot of nappies, wipes, small kids stuff) has had an effect on this. I also added my dads address as well so I can do a shop for them as they're shielded.

I have an order next Saturday. Can see the May calendar but obviously can't book. I am really worried there won't be any slots left.

Finally got the email , I am on the one shop every 10 days, not too sure how to make that work, but never mind! I have one for the 20th so hoping I can get enough to last and another on the 30th

I don't understand when it will be open to book though.

Still not able to log on and any time of day or night, everyone else seems to get regular email communication from them yet nothing since being told 15 days ago to wait for a further email and I will be able to order every 7 days. Apart from telling how wonderfully low their prices are.

It’s the inconsistency and poor message. There is very little praise for them on social media.

One good message is all that’s needed. A full cancellation/hold and refund of all anytime/midweek/reserved passes. Priority for all NHS vulnerable. Free for all and payment for delivery for everyone else. That is what every other delivery service is doing and they are doing it well. It is frustrating to not get a slot for delivery on any site but it has worked as a fairer method. Instead they are taking everyone’s money, charging extra to some, nothing to others, leaving out the vulnerable list/ignoring it, over charging in orders or not charging at all. If everyone wasn’t so desperate to stay at home and this happened whilst not on the midst of a pandemic; but perhaps at Easter/Xmas/BH they’d have no customers left.

In many cases the insults on SM and other places from people who are getting regular slots to those who are being completely ignored is depressing - moaners, whingers etc - nope dissatisfied long term customers who are paying monthly/yearly for a service, have been blocked out and have not found it easy to cancel their payment. But the “I’m alright jack” crew have been very unpleasant in some cases.

I’m very pleased some people are having a great service, genuinely, I just wish that those vulnerable, who deserve a great service could get it too. And for the rest of us, a bit of consideration and no bullshit emails that lie to us.

Everyone has been lied to in some way - they jumped the gun offering a 7 day service, then a 10 day, then a 14 day - will be interesting to see how many more customers they alienate in the weeks coming.

I've been lucky. Not a star reviewer. Midweek pass. Spend about £450 a month. In Hertfordshire so not too far from one of their depots I guess. 'one delivery every seven days'. When I've looked there have been lots of slots and I have them booked up to April 30th now.

Ocado have been amazing for me for some reason. I've been able to get a delivery every week and have a regular slot booked for the next three weeks. Literally the only supermarket I've had any success with, I've been adding my parents shop as well as my dad is on the extremely vulnerable list but he's had no joy with deliveries for any of the other supermarkets.

Just logged in on a whim and can suddenly now see slots from now until 21st April 😯

I went on at about 3am, and suddenly there were slots available, so now have shopping coming on Monday. Am so relieved, as could even add meds to it.

Have had the email today to say I can shop every 14 days, and saying I can get a refund on my March smart pass (when I did have deliveries). Bit random, but I can hopefully work with that.

Looking at their FB post last night, there were an awful lot of people in a similar position to myself - unable to physically go out and do the shopping due to disability, and rely on Ocado for this normally, and have been totally abandoned by them presumably because they're not the most lucrative customers. My emails have gone unanswered.

I don't think complaining about that is "whinging" @FreakStar

I’ve been able to place an order now, exactly 14 days after my last one which is better than nothing.