Supermarkets discussion

[davehsug]

Morrisons have started selling potatoes in non "see through" bags. You can't tell what the potatoes are like inside. I've just had to chuck about a 3rd of a bag away which were unusable. Sneaky move again to sell crap as good.

 

[AM9]

Morrisons have started selling potatoes in non "see through" bags. You can't tell what the potatoes are like inside. I've just had to chuck about a 3rd of a bag away which were unusable. Sneaky move again to sell crap as good.

Although inconvenient for some, the quickest way to fix that is to return them as not fit for purpose. They will soon get fed up with enough customers doing that and the associated bad publicity.

 

[PeterC]

I don't recall seeing the option to choose your delivery day anymore (beyond selecting your 'Amazon day') and I found that useful for ordering things when away, so it could be delivered when you got home. Now I have to keep the item in my basket and hope it's still the same price, and in stock, as well as remember to process the order before I head home.

I've been with Amazon for over 20 years (since they just did books) and I'm strongly considering ditching Prime, which by doing so will almost certainly mean I'll stop buying anywhere near as much as I do now (which is already way down on last year). I've stopped using subscribe and save (which keeps this on topic with supermarket discussion perhaps, as I used that for bulk orders of items I now just get from a supermarket again - like coffee, toilet paper, cleaning products etc) because the pricing started to fluctuate too much (conveniently switching price/supplier just before the order was taken, so I paid lots more) or after taking the money apologising that there was a delay and after a few weeks refunding me because they didn't have stock.

Frankly, Amazon has got a LOT worse - and that's before my other moan that despite having a safe place, 75% of deliveries are just dumped on my doorstep. No attempt to ring the doorbell (I have a Blink doorbell camera), just approach, dump, run off. I'm amazed nothing has been taken given I'm on a main road, but perhaps the camera serves as a deterrent against thieves! I downrate the delivery and Amazon does. not. care. one. bit.

I do feel for the drivers a little though. They seem to be jogging a lot more between drops, so I guess they've got ridiculous targets to meet to get paid.

It's not just the driver who delivers to me who is allergic to doorbells then. Sometimes they just tap on the door frame but won't touch the bell.

On Wednesday I had two items due for delivery. There was no ring on the bell and I heard no knock. I checked my phone and found that the items had supposedly been handed to me. One item on the doorstep was mine the other was for a house half a mile away.

 

[gg1]

Morrisons have started selling potatoes in non "see through" bags. You can't tell what the potatoes are like inside. I've just had to chuck about a 3rd of a bag away which were unusable. Sneaky move again to sell crap as good.

Another reason not to shop at Morrisons, they really have gone downhill the past couple of years, more so than their competitors.

On a related note, I've noticed that the freshness of pre-packed veg has dropped notably since supermarkets have moved to no longer including best before dates, not at all unusual to find bags where some of the contents are mouldy.

 

[Darandio]

Morrisons have started selling potatoes in non "see through" bags. You can't tell what the potatoes are like inside. I've just had to chuck about a 3rd of a bag away which were unusable. Sneaky move again to sell crap as good.

Supermarkets and grocers have been doing that for years. They were called 'sacks'.

 

[ChrisC]

My local store are extremely good at covering to original barcode with a strip of waste sticker, and then locating the discount sticker separately. Unfortunately they almost invariably put the big sticker over the calorie info, the weight or both, which can be a chore.

It’s even more annoying when they put a discount sticker, which won’t peel off, over the top of of cooking instructions.

 

[Gloster]

It’s even more annoying when they put a discount sticker, which won’t peel off, over the top of of cooking instructions.

Or if they put the sticker over part of the product description on the front. As someone who can’t eat chicken it is thoroughly annoying to pick up something not realising it is a Cheese ‘n Chicken pasty because the ‘n Chicken has been covered over. Yes, I do watch out for that problem, but every now and again your guard is down and you pick it up without fully checking.

 

[david1212]

One morning last week I quickly stopped at ASDA. I only bought two items total under £2 as others on my list of of stock.

I went to a Cash or Card basket self-service checkout. I put in a £2 coin however returned with only card, voucher and whatever else is on the screen. I used my card so another receipt to file and bank statement entry to check.

I don't know if just that one checkout or all not taking cash and I wasn't wasting time to find out.

 

[davehsug]

Another reason not to shop at Morrisons, they really have gone downhill the past couple of years, more so than their competitors.

On a related note, I've noticed that the freshness of pre-packed veg has dropped notably since supermarkets have moved to no longer including best before dates, not at all unusual to find bags where some of the contents are mouldy.

Yes, I spent a couple of minutes searching for a lettuce that was not frost damaged on Friday. On many of them, the edges of the leaves at the opening were still frozen solid. I assume they're not actully stored frozen, but are touching the side of a fridge which can sometimes freeze.

 

[Jon_jpwh]

It’s even more annoying when they put a discount sticker, which won’t peel off, over the top of of cooking instructions.

I think that you should be able to find the cooking instructions by searching for the product online.

 

[hexagon789]

I think that you should be able to find the cooking instructions by searching for the product online.

Don't all the supermarkets put ingredients, allergen, nutrition and, if applicable, cooking instructions for their products on their own websites?

 

[stuartl]

Supermarkets and grocers have been doing that for years. They were called 'sacks'.

Also might stop them going green due to action of bright light ?

 

[Acey]

Recieved this packet of Paxo stuffing mix in my recent Sainsburys order ,this is the best before date, just a tad out !

 

[Busaholic]

Recieved this packet of Paxo stuffing mix in my recent Sainsburys order ,this is the best before date, just a tad out !

A friend of mine ordered two packs of 4xA4 batteries from Morrison's recently, six of the eight were corroded. When she took them back to the local store she eventually found two more packs but, before accepting them in exchange, asked to open them, and guess what?... She got a cash refund at Customer Services in the end.

 

[MasterSpenny]

Purchasing yellow sticker items at Tesco might give you a higher price than what is excepted, if you don’t get the discount scanned by staff. It only seems to be the case at GetGo stores though.

Tesco warn customers they may be overcharged for yellow sticker items — Metro

If you shop for yellow sticker discounts, you'll want to be careful of this.

apple.news

Tesco warn customers they may be overcharged for yellow sticker items
If you shop yellow sticker items, you’ll want to be careful of this.


Tesco is warning its customers that when shopping at its GetGo stores, there’s a risk yellow sticker discount items won’t register.


GetGo stores are ‘checkout-free’, meaning you can grab your items and go without needing to scan them.


The Tesco app then sorts your payment, as scanners and cameras monitor customer movement, items held, and weight sensors.


When shopping this way, you might be overcharged for yellow sticker items, as the reduced cost won’t be picked up by the monitors.


The Grocer Magazine found as the prices of these items can change multiple times a day, it’s easy for discounts to be missed.


Instead, Tesco has recommended shoppers ‘wait in a blue circle’ or find a member of staff who will scan the discounted items.


There are currently four Tesco GetGo stores in the UK, with three in London: Chiswell Street, High Holborn, and Fulham Reach. The fourth is at Aston University in Birmingham.


Trigo, the technology behind the GetGo stores, said systems do support reduced to clear products ‘as well as other unique and specific use cases that are an important part of the supermarket environment like promotion stands, produce and deli products by weight’.
A spokesperson for Trigo told The Grocer: ‘The decision to implement any of these use cases is with each of Trigo’s retail partners, depending on need and their desired shopping experience. As a growing number of retailers continue to deploy Trigo’s technology proposition, it is the case that, depending on the company, the timing at which certain elements of that overall offering are made available to customers will naturally vary.’


Meanwhile, Tesco is looking into ways to omit this problem for shoppers, so they can pay for yellow sticker items just like others.


The news comes after Aldi shoppers issued a similar warning to anyone who uses their self-service check-outs.


According to savvy shoppers online, Aldi’s self-checkout machines don’t automatically apply promotions to your purchase, meaning you need to ask a member of staff to manually do so.


Aldi confirmed that discounts on all tills required manual input from in-store employees, but claimed feedback around its self-checkouts (first introduced in 2019) was ‘overwhelmingly positive’.


A spokesperson also encouraged those who believe they’ve been wrongly charged to contact its customer services department.


Going forward, however, do flag down a team member before paying to make sure you get the prices you expect at the self-checkout. Alternatively, just brave the queue and kick it old-school.

 

[takno]

Purchasing yellow sticker items at Tesco might give you a higher price than what is excepted, if you don’t get the discount scanned by staff. It only seems to be the case at GetGo stores though.

Tesco warn customers they may be overcharged for yellow sticker items — Metro

If you shop for yellow sticker discounts, you'll want to be careful of this.

apple.news

Definitely a GetGo problem for Tesco, who generally seem take this kind of thing fairly seriously. The Aldi thing sounds more problematic, although tbh I don't think I've ever seen a yellow-sticker item at an Aldi, so possibly less of an issue than it might be.

Personally I'd take the self-checkout every time, since then you can put the shopping through at your own pace and check whether you actually get the discounts as you go. No telling what mistakes the staff on the tills are going to make.

 

[hexagon789]

The Aldi thing sounds more problematic, although tbh I don't think I've ever seen a yellow-sticker item at an Aldi, so possibly less of an issue than it might be.

Possibly because they are red?

But in all seriousness, my local frequently reduces items to 30%, sometimes 70% if they have a lot; I see reduced items pretty much everything we go in, which is usually weekly.

Tends to be chilled meals and baked goods mostly.

 

[takno]

Possibly because they are red?

But in all seriousness, my local frequently reduces items to 30%, sometimes 70% if they have a lot; I see reduced items pretty much everything we go in, which is usually weekly.

Tends to be chilled meals and baked goods mostly.

I'm clearly picking the wrong times. Mind you, if you go to my local Aldi in the evening you'll be hard pushed to find any staff anywhere near the tills, so not much chance of having anything other than an automated scan.

 

[hexagon789]

I'm clearly picking the wrong times. Mind you, if you go to my local Aldi in the evening you'll be hard pushed to find any staff anywhere near the tills, so not much chance of having anything other than an automated scan.

Usually about 10am-10.30am in our case.

 

[dgl]

One interesting thing about Tesco in regards to yellow stickers is that any multisave offers still apply, once brought two very cheap things if meat and still got the £1 off. If I hadn't brought anything else I could have got money back!

 

[JamesT]

One interesting thing about Tesco in regards to yellow stickers is that any multisave offers still apply, once brought two very cheap things if meat and still got the £1 off. If I hadn't brought anything else I could have got money back!

Most of the multibuy offers I see in Tesco are N for £X, so already discounted items don’t get any additional discount.

 

[hexagon789]

One interesting thing about Tesco in regards to yellow stickers is that any multisave offers still apply, once brought two very cheap things if meat and still got the £1 off. If I hadn't brought anything else I could have got money back!

Not sure about that, but what they don't do is take into account Clubcard offers, so sometimes an item might be say £5.50/£4.50 Clubcard but reduced to say £4.70. So with a Clubcard you end up paying more for an item going out of date than a fresh one!

 

[jon0844]

Quick question; I know Tesco will charge different prices in its Metro, Express or Extra locations - but do they charge different prices in the same type of store but at a different location?

I know an offer could have ended, but last week I bought some food at a Tesco Extra in Cheshunt and liked it so much, I went to the Hatfield/WGC Extra store the next day - and the price was totally different. I didn't keep the receipts and bought other items, so can't remember what the original price was - but I believe it was about 50p less the day before at the other store.

Perhaps prices are adjusted daily, or maybe they try different pricing at different stores to test things.. it was a Tesco made food item (southern fried chicken).

 

[hexagon789]

Quick question; I know Tesco will charge different prices in its Metro, Express or Extra locations - but do they charge different prices in the same type of store but at a different location?

I know an offer could have ended, but last week I bought some food at a Tesco Extra in Cheshunt and liked it so much, I went to the Hatfield/WGC Extra store the next day - and the price was totally different. I didn't keep the receipts and bought other items, so can't remember what the original price was - but I believe it was about 50p less the day before at the other store.

Perhaps prices are adjusted daily, or maybe they try different pricing at different stores to test things.. it was a Tesco made food item (southern fried chicken).

Obviously not helpful after the event, but it's easy to check at Tesco when an offer ends on a product from the Shelf Edge Label.

 

[SuspectUsual]

Tesco say they don’t operate price flexing across stores of the same type, other than (i) where it’s driven by the law, eg minimum alcohol pricing in Scotland, and (ii) on fuel.

I’d be surprised if they changed prices on ambient and frozen products more frequently than the normal promotional cycle (not sure what that is in Tesco these days, but 2 or 3 weekly I’d imagine), not least because of the cost of updating systems and SETs. Fresh and ultra fresh could be a different matter though

 

[takno]

One interesting thing about Tesco in regards to yellow stickers is that any multisave offers still apply, once brought two very cheap things if meat and still got the £1 off. If I hadn't brought anything else I could have got money back!

This hasn't been the case in my local Tesco for at least 10 years, and probably closer to 20. It was doable in Sainsburys for a good bit longer, but they've sorted it as well now. The fact that it's always the full non-clubcard-non-multibuy price which is discounted means that you often have to go through the second round of reductions now before the yellow sticker gets you any money off at all.

 

[zero]

Not sure about that, but what they don't do is take into account Clubcard offers, so sometimes an item might be say £5.50/£4.50 Clubcard but reduced to say £4.70. So with a Clubcard you end up paying more for an item going out of date than a fresh one!

It should still get reduced to £4.50 when you add the club card - but I wouldn't choose the expiring one in the first place unless I really wanted it and it was the only one left

 

[Baxenden Bank]

It should still get reduced to £4.50 when you add the club card - but I wouldn't choose the expiring one in the first place unless I really wanted it and it was the only one left

Yes, why buy the reduced item when you can have a fresh one at the same price? I'd be looking for a similar x% reduction: full price to reduced price, clubcard price to reduced clubcard price.

 

[davews]

Some items I have bought in Tesco have little stickers on them which look like contactless/NFC labels like this, which is on a water filter jug. I assumed at first that they were security tags but near field won't work with the scanners at the door. Is it just for stock control or similar or is it indeed to do with security?

 

[jon81uk]

Some items I have bought in Tesco have little stickers on them which look like contactless/NFC labels like this, which is on a water filter jug. I assumed at first that they were security tags but near field won't work with the scanners at the door. Is it just for stock control or similar or is it indeed to do with security?
View attachment 145780

Secruitiy, they set off the alarms at the door if active.