Tesco dumped my shopping and ran!

melancholly

i've had deliveries from tesco and they have always rung to let me know if the time will change (and once just to give me 10mins notice!).

hearing a baby means nothing - you could be in the shower and not hear the doorbell. i think the aggressive comments at the OP are just mean! if they a system to book a time slot, then they should keep to the time slot.

although turning up early might not be the end of the world, i think unloading shopping before anyone has answered the door is not on - even if you think someone's in, they might be busy (e.g. the shower) or in the garden and not be able to hear the doorbell and they won't be listening out as it's not the right time. this isn't a book, it's fresh/frozen goods.

Al_Mac

The guy will have limits, one of which will be to deliver withing the specified delivery slot, if this is not going to happen, to inform the customer, he didn't do this.

We don't answer the phone or watch TV at meal times, does that make us wrong?

carolt

Wow, there must be lots of people up at this time....;)

I don't disagree with catz1ct:

Maybe he thought theres someone in but they aren't answering the door so what shall I do? I'll just leave it outside for them then because they don't want to answer.

Could be a whole number of reasons tbh.

Not suggesting the guy did it out of deliberate maliciousness or something, but it is irresponsible - I have in the past twice had really bad food poisoning from food delivered by Tesco deliveries - once it was ice cream that had just that moment been delivered, so definitely not caused by us, and another time (when pregnant) a fresh soup that I ate straightaway that was about 10 days out of date! So I am very careful about these things - with 3 small kids you have to be. Anyone who saw on the telly or read about that expose of supermarkets (including Tesco's) a week or two ago about selling food far from fresh, not putting away frozen/chilled stuff quickly enough etc will know what I mean.

And anyone who's had 3 small kids still up long after they should have been and baby woken just as he's getting off to sleep by unexpected knock at the door will know where I was coming from tonight too. Like I said, if it was just a one off, of course I would have opened the door, rather than keeping the poor guy hanging around just for the sake of it. But it wasn't. Out of my last 8 weekly shops probably about 5 of them have been early - one of them an hour and a half so! I've complained before and been told each time they were sorry and would phone if they were going to be early. But they never do. Compare this to Ocado, which on one occasion when I used them and they came outside their (1 hour) slot, gave me a voucher for £25 quid in compensation - at least they could see it mattered to customers. I don't even have the option of booking a later slot to ensure it doesn't coincide with kids' bedtimes - there isn't one.

Also, please be aware - my gripe isn't primarily that he was early (half an hour - NOT 15 minutes as explained ad nauseam) but that he left my shopping sitting on the doorstep and for some of that time, as far as I know, unattended.

Anyway, you must all be very bored now - never planned to discuss it at such length, but felt required to defend myself......

Al_Mac

Never felt like ignoring the door/phone when the Mrs is wandering around scantily clad?

RibAd

geez, I'm surprised at the reaction towards OP. Thought there would have been support.

I think OP has every right to vent on this - imagine if it had been the case that OP was returning from someplace and would be back just before 9 to accept the shopping?

OP did nothing wrong IMO. Not answering the door at 8.30 in the evening while you have a houseful of kids that you need to get to sleep when you're not expecting anything until 9? Where's the problem in that?

If it's Tesco's own policy to ring if there's a time change, then the delivery guy should have followed it. As for the driver leaving early, sure, maybe he (assume he) wanted to be home early for his kids. But then again, maybe he didnt have a family and just went to the pub. who knows?

Someone mentioned what if the person awaiting the delivery was disabled and had chosen 9pm cos their carer was there - that's a valid point.

Even if it looks like someone is there, it shouldn't be assumed so - they could have been called on an emergency, had an accident, even in the loo!

The only question I have is that if the driver needed a signature, why was the signature given before getting an explanation why the driver was early? Or is that out of bounds? I think it would have been appropriate as OP had problems with this in the past.

isayoldchap

No contest!
Was the customer contacted for an earlier than arranged delivery?
Did the driver get a signature?Who signed then?
The driver clearly follows their own procedure and not that of Tesco's.Maybe 4 out of 5 customers would accept an earlier delivery,however this customer was not given any choice.
Put it down to the driver ignoring what the customer wants.
May sure you complain hard about this to Tesco.Rules have been broken.

carolt

My husband who got back from work early took in the delivery and signed for it - he didn't know driver was there early etc. As soon as he pulled up in his car, delivery driver thrust piece of paper for signature at him and scarpered! Hence original title of thread. If husband hadn't got back early, I would have opened door at 9 as arranged and signed for it. And had I realised that shopping was sitting there I would have told the driver - rather than this thread - exactly what I thought of it.

But can all please note title and point of original post - I was angry at my shopping being left on the doorstep by driver who couldn't be bothered to wait till agreed time to do so, to save himself a few minutes, thereby potentially putting my family's health at risk. NOT at driver just getting there early and trying his luck - as explained above, this has happened loads of times before and I've never felt in the slightest bit inclined to post on here about it; it might be inconvenient (like time he came an hour and a half early and I was just giving kids their tea) - but it's hardly a shooting offence, is it? But this is the first and only time someone's thought to unpack my shopping early anyway - had husband not come home unexpectedly early, it WOULD have been there for full half hour. THAT'S what I was cross about - the being early is only a precondition for this, not the main point.

viktory

Personally, I would have answered the door and taken the food in rather than risk it being pinched or defrosting. I would also have complained to Tesco (again, by the sounds of it) about the early delivery and voted with my feet.

I do think that not answering the door and making the driver wait until 9pm is childish. Oh and yes, I have had children and they did scream and cry on more than one occasion. However, I also knew that I could put that child in his/her cot for 5 minutes and s/he would have been perfectly safe.

Dave_Brooker

carolt wrote: »

But can all please note title and point of original post - I was angry at my shopping being left on the doorstep by driver who couldn't be bothered to wait till agreed time to do so, to save himself a few minutes, thereby potentially putting my family's health at risk.

Leaving it on the doorstep for half and hour is hardly going put anyone health at risk, and don't forget it only sat there becuse you didn't answer the door...

Al_Mac

Dave_Brooker wrote: »

Leaving it on the doorstep for half and hour is hardly going put anyone health at risk

Had a telling off from 12 year old son about hygiene and frozen food the other day, so yes it is a health risk, although on this point I don't totally disagree.

Dave_Brooker wrote: »

don't forget it only sat there becuse you didn't answer the door...

If the OP had been in the shower, assuming she had another half hour, would that be OK?

If you were inviting people around for a meal, would it be OK for them to turn up half an hour early, or a little off?

PS Not having a go at you, just discussing.