Please do not take supermarket delivery slots unless NEEDED

[Chester1980]

This is a plea to anyone who is not vulnerable - please do not take delivery slots from supermarkets. My elderly father lives hundreds of miles away and I cannot get him a slot because they’re all unavailable. This is despite him having an NHS shielding letter. We can’t even get through to any customer services for help.

If you can get to a supermarket and you’re not vulnerable, please think of others who cannot get out and release your delivery slot.

www.wiltshirefarmfoods.com/ready-meals/lamb try this

Where in the country is he?
I am sure that someone will be local and can help?

Smaller stores near us like Co-Op are also doing deliveries and slots around here are much more readily available than the big supermarkets. Worth a try.

My mum is 80 and has self isolated for the last 3 weeks. She lives alone hundreds of miles away from me. I gave up on the big supermarkets but found the following. Rural Somerset.
Bakers will deliver for free, anything from one sliced loaf. Butchers will do all meat, veg, milk, cheese and deli items. Local Spar will take phone orders from people recommended by the local support group. Said local support group sorted out her prescription (one of them works at the doctors) and delivered to her door. They also call her every few days to check she is ok. I have sent her loo rolls via an office supplier and wine from drinksupermarket.
It took me a little digging to find out this but now she is sorted. Anything else she can't get (e.g. decaf tea bags I am going to buy here and post).

It seems to me that everyone needs to stop beings so judgemental lately. We're all doing the best we can in difficult circumstances after all. I've had to point out to my own parents, who were slagging off the 'young, healthy people' in their street for getting shopping delivered that, actually, they don't know these people or anything about their health or circumstances. My Mother (mid 60s) is enraged that she can't get a delivery slot but thinks nothing of 'popping' to the local shops near enough every day for frivolous things. Previous to the current health crisis she slagged me off regularly about getting my shopping delivered weekly, despite the fact I work full time and have 2 small children. But now she wants a slot! Go figure. I just smile and nod. I can't get a slot either - mu husband now has a cough and I'm in an awkward position where we should all be self0isolating for the next 14 days. But I'm obviously not going to let my kids starve either so currently doing everything the OP is doing in order to try to get a delivery of some kind, including reaching out to people who may be able to help as well as sitting here hitting refresh on supermarket websites. We are in this together folks, lets start acting like it!

My local co-op is on deliveroo with a wide range fo basic foods (and cigarettes and alcohol)

You book your slot, fill up your virtual trolley then pay and check out. The slot is only held for a limited time, as soon as you check out they know how many items you have.

I’m sorry your dad is having trouble getting his shopping done op, I was only trying to point out a something those lucky enough with delivery slots could do to help others. I hope you get something sorted, you have had some good advice on here with regards to local deliveries etc.

I have to do online because I can’t do a shop for 10 days-2 weeks with my young baby in tow. We live rurally, long way from small supermarkets that close at 10pm. DH works until late (contact centre) so can’t go very often.
I’m not giving up my Ocado slot now, we have always shopped online because we need to. I’m an hour away from a Waitrose or a decent Tesco.

I have shielding neighbours and my order contains their shopping as well as ours as they can’t. If I give mine up (anytime Smartpass) I leave them in the shit as they don’t have any online access.

Op this is what I did for my elderly father -

• went on Facebook and joined local groups in his area. Very careful not to advertise the fact that he is elderly and vulnerable! I found a few places offering farm box delivery / fruit and veg and cheese delivery/ butchers delivery.
• went online every night at 11.55, eventually got him a slot for April 18th (got this over a week ago!) it took about a week

Just stay positive, keep looking, researching, and reassuring him. Persistence prevails in this situation.

Good luck, I know how frustrating it is but he is lucky to have you, some people have nobody x

Are you sure about Morrisons? Maybe its because we are only 7 miles from Bradford, Morries home city, but i booked a box for mum on Sunday and it came today. It was fine for urgent essentials. I could make that feed two for a week with a decent larder cupboard of spices to fall back on.

If you are prepared to give a vague location someone will know of the right Facebook group\ local shop who deliver. I live rurally but clan think of about 5 ways I could get shopping locally if vulnerable.

Go directly to the Morrison’s food boxes site - www.morrisons.com/food-boxes/boxes - you don’t need to queue on their main page. There is availability right now; just ordered for my parents.

You book your slot, fill up your virtual trolley then pay and check out. The slot is only held for a limited time, as soon as you check out they know how many items you have.

Yes, I’ve done online shopping for many years. What I’m saying is, there’s a certain number of slots per hour. These get booked. All of the people could but 20 items each or 150 items each. When the supermarket puts the slots online they don’t know how many items each customer will but. Presumably they cope with whether each customer buys 20 items or 150, I’ve never had a delivery cancelled.

OP I was in a similar position trying to source for an elderly relative. All known supermarkets had no availability. I ended up calling greengrocers around their area and found some doing the equivalent of the Morrisson Box (veg, fruit, milk, bread) and they delivered it at a charge. You may find it easier to find a local business to deliver. The top names (Aldi, Iceland, Sainsburys, Tesco, Waitrose, etc) had no slots at all.

But not but

Buy !

But you can add stuff to your shop until the night before? So they can’t sell the slots based on the size of the shops people do? I add stuff to mine all the tine, in fact they text you to encourage you to add stuff! Yes you’re asking someone to go around the shop and get it for you, that’s why you pay for a delivery!

@roadrunnermeepmeep this doesn't make sense as you have until the night before to amend the order - adding as many items as you want.

My hubby is vulnerable but can’t get slots for 3 weeks either even though he has priority. They release slots once a day

people take slots for various reasons supermarkets overwhelmed. Councils are doing food parcels get on face book on local group sure someone would drop him box of cereal or some like that for breakfast . Loads of pubs and cafes are doing contactless food deliveries for hot meals.
go on local Facebook page loads of small corner shop near use are doing home deliveries they need the business more than supermarkets . TBH i'd look for alternatives to the big supermarkets.
There people on our local Facebook group offering to shop for vulnerable people .

@ChickLitLover If the all the slots get filled but each customer only orders 20 items, they can then rerelease that time slot. If each customer orders 150, they can’t.

RoadrunnerMeepMeep

But I can change my order until a few hours before it’s delivered so that makes no sense at all. 🤷🏻‍♀️

I can get you a slot if you're desperate.
I'd need delivery address and an email address of yours to reserve it though otherwise it won't go through as reserved . You can then change the account password so only you'd have access , amend the order etc although you have to checkout within about an hour.
I've got three over the past few weeks and have figured out how/when to get them, I got one for my parents. We don't drive and have kids with allergies and are self isolating.

RoadrunnerMeepMeep

In fact quite often I just put the minimum order of £40 through and then change it right at the last minute and spent £200.

Keep trying Tesco on an afternoon. I went on to check a product out and out of curiosity looked at delivery slots and there was 3 random slots for the next day, but no others. I didn’t take one as live on my own and I’m not vulnerable, so I go to the shop itself.