Sold out of date Clarityn antihistamines from Sainsburys

Wadiuxanne

Hi, not sure if I'm posting in the right place but I had bought Clarityn antihistamines from Sainsburys earlier this week and luckily I noticed the expiry date was February 2016! Not really sure of Sainsburys policies but what the best course of action with this? Have e-mailed Sainsburys to advise to ensure no one else ends up taking these but I am really shocked they had these for sale!

redfox

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wealdroam

Wadiuxanne wrote: »

Hi, not sure if I'm posting in the right place but I had bought Clarityn antihistamines from Sainsburys earlier this week and luckily I noticed the expiry date was February 2016! Not really sure of Sainsburys policies but what the best course of action with this? Have e-mailed Sainsburys to advise to ensure no one else ends up taking these but I am really shocked they had these for sale!

Take them back.
I'm sure they'll either replace them with correctly dated stock or give you a full refund.

peachyprice

Just take them back and exchange them for a new pack. No drama.

unholyangel

Wadiuxanne wrote: »

Hi, not sure if I'm posting in the right place but I had bought Clarityn antihistamines from Sainsburys earlier this week and luckily I noticed the expiry date was February 2016! Not really sure of Sainsburys policies but what the best course of action with this? Have e-mailed Sainsburys to advise to ensure no one else ends up taking these but I am really shocked they had these for sale!

Dates aren't the be all and end all. Think about it, even salt has a best before date and salt is a preservative itself and doesnt expire.

Although this mentions studies conducted in the US, our chemical formulas for medication are the same, just laws controlling them etc are different:
http://www.health.harvard.edu/staying-healthy/drug-expiration-dates-do-they-mean-anything

What they found from the study is 90% of more than 100 drugs, both prescription and over-the-counter, were perfectly good to use even 15 years after the expiration date.
...
It's true the effectiveness of a drug may decrease over time, but much of the original potency still remains even a decade after the expiration date. Excluding nitroglycerin, insulin, and liquid antibiotics, most medications are as long-lasting as the ones tested by the military.

Its lazy/bad stock rotation, no doubt they'll offer a refund & possibly a goodwill gesture too.

[Deleted User]

Wadiuxanne wrote: »

I had bought Clarityn antihistamines from Sainsburys earlier this week and luckily I noticed the expiry date was February 2016! Not really sure of Sainsburys policies but what the best course of action with this?

I do hope you are motivated by genuine concern rather than simply compensation chasing?

The simple solution is to take the items back to the shop, making sure that someone in authority is made aware of the mistake. They'll very like be profusely apologetic and issue a refund and/or replacement.

If you had taken the drugs, all that would have happened in those few months would be that they would have lost (some) of their effectiveness. You wouldn't have been poisoned.

Expiry dates on drugs are simply a guide for the consumer and help to ensure unscrupulous retailers don't sell old stock as new. In your case, a product has slipped through the stock rotation safety net.

Silver-Surfer_2

Were any children at risk from taking them?

NotRichAtAll

options other than trying to claim compo for a near death experience

1. take em back ask for some in date ones or a refund
2. flush them down the bog and live happily ever after
3. pop one in your mouth and be snot free

[Deleted User]

NotRichAtAll wrote: »

. flush them down the bog

I realise the sarcasm, but that is most definitely not the way to dispose of unwanted drugs. Any local chemist will safely dispose of such items.

Wadiuxanne

Wow thrilled everyone assumes this is about compensation. Not the fact Sainsbury is selling medicine this far out of date. Would you be happy giving these to kids or your grandparents? It's surely more a case of safety and peace of mind. I wouldn't expect to buy medicine so far out of date from such a large supermarket and find it that extremelly worrying. Was more looking to find out the best place to report it. And to dispose of it I will be returning directly to the source for a refund and they can then find a way to dispose of them, let's hope it's not back in the stock rotation eh.

soolin

Wadiuxanne wrote: »

Wow thrilled everyone assumes this is about compensation. Not the fact Sainsbury is selling medicine this far out of date. Would you be happy giving these to kids or your grandparents? It's surely more a case of safety and peace of mind. I wouldn't expect to buy medicine so far out of date from such a large supermarket and find it that extremelly worrying. Was more looking to find out the best place to report it. And to dispose of it I will be returning directly to the source for a refund and they can then find a way to dispose of them, let's hope it's not back in the stock rotation eh.

I certainly would not panic if I had given these to older people or younger people (assuming I had followed the age and dosage requirements). They don't turn poisonous after their best before date if you are worried about that, as above they might just lose some of the active benefit, although even that is doubtful. I would go as far as note that I have several out of date packets in my cupboard still being used- the idea that on a given date they suddenly become dangerous is absurd.

I am always surprised that you think Sainsbury's might just put these back out on display- that is quite a serious accusation to make and I can't see what you think they would gain by it.

Just do as advised, take them back and get replacements- end of story.