Ocado and Waitrose have become the first supermarkets to let customers book Christmas delivery slots, with others expected to follow in the coming months.
Some Ocado Smart Pass customers are already able to book grocery delivery slots for Christmas, after the online supermarket opened them up on 30 September.
Slots were in high demand, as some shoppers took to social media to share frustrations that the slots they want have already been booked up. Ocado responded saying not all slots have been released and more will be available in the future.
Waitrose has also opened its Christmas slots to all customers, with a note on the supermarket’s website saying ‘Christmas slots disappearing fast’.
Here, we round up what you need to know about securing a supermarket delivery slot this Christmas.
Which supermarkets have released Christmas delivery slots?
At the moment, Ocado and Waitrose are the only supermarkets to allow customers to book Christmas slots.
If you shop with Ocado, you can book a slot if you pay for the supermarket’s Smart Pass membership. If you’re not already a Smart Pass customer, it’s too late to access Christmas slots if you sign up now. Ocado says it will send text messages to customers inviting them to book slots when they’re available.
Waitrose’s Christmas slots are open to all customers. When we checked slots for an address in southeast London, many already appeared fully booked, though there was still plenty of availability earlier in the week leading up to Christmas Day.
To book a Waitrose Christmas slot, switch to the ‘Christmas slots’ tab when you’re booking a delivery. This will display availability from 20 to 24 December.
- Find out more: which is the cheapest supermarket?
When will other supermarkets release their Christmas delivery slots?
Not all supermarkets have released their slots yet, but we’ll update this story with more details as we learn more.
With demand for Christmas delivery slots likely to be high this year, most supermarkets are expected to release their availability either later this month or in November.
Aldi doesn’t offer a grocery home delivery service, but it does offer click and collect at some stores. Last year it also offered Christmas hampers for home delivery.
Supermarkets with premium delivery memberships, like Ocado’s Smart Pass or Tesco’s Delivery Saver scheme, usually release slots early for these customers. But don’t sign up for them unless you’ll use the service anyway, since there’s no guarantee this will be the case this year.
- Find out more: which online supermarket delivers the freshest groceries?
Will your Christmas food shop cost more this year?
You’ll likely pay more for your festive food favourites this year, thanks to soaring food prices.
Grocery price inflation was 12.4% in the four weeks to 4 September, according to market analysts Kantar - the highest level since it started tracking prices in 2008. It's estimated that will add an extra £571 a year to the average annual grocery bill.
Which? has launched a cost of living campaign calling on supermarkets to do more to help families battling against rising prices.
We want supermarkets to:
- ensure their pricing is more transparent, making unit pricing much more prominent, legible and consistent – and displaying it for promotional offers – so that people can easily work out what is the best deal.
- ensure a range of budget lines for affordable essential items are available across their stores, and particularly in locations where people most need support.
- use their marketing budgets and promotions to tailor support to those who are struggling – including offers, vouchers and loyalty card benefits focused on the places and households where people are most in need.
If you're looking for ways to cut the cost of your food shop this year we have 14 tips in our guide on how to spend less at the supermarket and each month we track which supermarket is cheapest for a big and small shop so you know where to go to find savings.
- Find out more: all our cost of living news and advice
source https://www.which.co.uk/news/article/supermarkets-launch-christmas-delivery-slots-when-can-you-book-yours-a3ORJ1p2PBh4