Tesco shoppers to pay up to £2.50 extra for delivery as it scraps cheaper fees for slots
TESCO is scrapping its cheap delivery slots as part of a massive shake-up of its online shopping fees.
The supermarket chain is to charge £4.50 from August for all its delivery slots.
At the moment, it charges between £2 and £7, depending on the time and day of the week you choose.
It means some shoppers who usually go for the cheaper slots will face paying up to £2.50 extra for their delivery.
But customers who choose prime-time slots will save the same amount.
Supermarket home deliveries
HERE'S what other supermarkets charge for their home delivery services.
- Asda delivery charges range between £3 and £5.50. There's a £40 minimum spend on home delivery orders and a £25 minimum spend for click and collect.
- Iceland offers free home delivery, but you have to spend a minimum of £35 to place an order.
- Morrisons delivery slots cost between £1.70 and £6.90. There's a £40 minimum spend on home deliveries.
- Waitrose doesn't charge for delivery, but you need to spend a minimum of £60.
- Sainsbury's charges between 50p and £7 for delivery. There's a £25 minimum spend.
Before coronavirus hit Tesco, along with other supermarkets, sold "delivery passes" to give cheaper deliveries to regular online shoppers.
It suspended passes being sold or used in March after a surge in online orders led to limited availability of slots.
Customers with existing passes were allowed to re-start using them on June 29.
But The Sun has found the supermarket has stopped selling its cheaper mid-week Delivery Saver passes, which means customers can only buy a more expensive anytime delivery pass costing £7.99 a month for six months.
A spokesperson from the supermarket was unable to say when the midweek passes, which cost from £3.49 a month, will come back.
Tesco still charges a minimum spend of £25 on all orders, as well as limit of 95 items per customer for online deliveries.
It added that the fee shake-up has been made due to demand for slots being high during all days of the week.
How to cut the cost of your grocery shop
SAVING on your shop can make a big difference to your wallet.
Here are some tips from Hannah Maundrell, editor of Money.co.uk, about how you can cut the cost of your shopping bills:
- Write yourself a list – Only buy items that you need. If it isn’t on your list, don’t put it in the trolley
- Create a budget – Work out a weekly budget for your food shopping
- Never shop hungry – you are far more likely to buy more food if your tummy is rumbling
- Don’t buy pre-chopped veggies or fruit – The extra they’ll charge for chopping can be eye watering
- Use social media – follow your favourite retailers to find out about the latest deals
- Be disloyal – You may want to go to different stores to find the best bargains
- Check the small print – It’s always worth checking the price per kg/lb/litre when comparing offers so you’re making a like for like decision as a bigger box won’t necessarily mean you get more
- Use your loyalty cards – Don’t be afraid to sign up to them all. They all work slightly differently – work out what bonus suits you better and remember to trade in your points for additional rewards
A spokesperson for Tesco said: “Demand for slots remains extremely high at all times of the week, so we are moving to a simpler pricing structure with a flat rate that better reflects the cost of picking, packing and delivering orders.
“This structure is fairer for everyone and means no customers will have to pay the highest slot price as a result of demand.
“Customers who have signed up for our Delivery Saver subscription service will continue to benefit from free deliveries and collections as part of their plan.”
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Tesco recently scrapped its one-way systems and increased the number of people allowed inside stores as it begins to ease its coronavirus restrictions.
Some supermarkets have also started getting rid of their dedicated NHS and vulnerable shopper hours, including Iceland.
We've rounded up all the rules and limits that you have to follow at supermarkets including Tesco, Aldi and Lidl.