Carrier Bags For Online Shopping In Wales

alanq

How have supermarkets responded to the 5p per "single use" carrier bag charge in Wales? Do they just deliver as before with lots of carrier bags and charge for them (expensive?) / unload from crates at the doorstep (time consuming?) / deliver in reusable bags and refund the fee when you return the bags (administrative hassle?) / something else?

7roland8

I always have the Tesco shop come in bags as its easier to unload - otherwise its loose in the crates.

Currently I have to ask for bags and they add on a flat fee of 35p I think it is - I usually have loads more bags delivered than that but you wouldn't get a refund even if you returned them.

alanq

Thanks. I was looking at the pile of carrier bags that I just got with my deliveries (in England) and wondered what the future implications would be. I imagined that mandatory bag purchases could add a significant amount to bills especially for large low value items and thus encourage people to go back to shopping in store where there is the option of using ones own bags.

I realise that the plans for England may not follow the Welsh model.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-26048425

"The EAC said that exempting paper bags was also misguided as it would weaken the message that consumers should recycle their plastic."
Interesting as my local council used to accept thin carrier bags with its recycling collection but recently has changed to telling us to put them in with general refuse. Luckily Ocado takes back its bags for recycling and most of the others I get are reused as bin liners.

7roland8

We can give our bags back to driver for recycling if we want but I usually keep them for rubbish or to give to a friend for her dog walks.

movingon

You can elect to have your shopping delivered without carrier bags from Tesco and Asda, and so do not charge you anything. They bring it in crates and stand and stare at you whilst they unload it........If they have to substitute something, or bring frozen or fragile stuff, they put that in labelled carrier bags, but don't charge you.
However, Sainsbury charge for carrier bags, without giving you a choice. Last time, it was 45p, and since I didn't want them, I was not very pleased.