Supermarket shopping online or by phone for over 70’s during Covid-19 period

kah22

I’m 72, live alone and don’t drive.

About every 10 to 12 weeks I’ll do an online shop in the main to get bulky items (dare I say it toilet paper 😁 ) and heavier goods like minerals, potatoes and the like.  On Thursday last I placed an order amounting to £61.32, from my normal online retailer, and the earliest time slot available was this Thursday. When I looked at the order this evening, with the amount of goods unavailable, the cost of the order fell to £32.61, almost half!
I spent quite a bit of time this evening trying to find substitutes for the missing items and was able to find a substitute for most but not all goods.

Now my concern is this. In about two or three weeks those of us in our seventies are going to be asked (perhaps made) to stay Indoors and for those of us with no family backup the only way we will be able to shop will be online (that’s assuming we know how to do it) but by the time they come to pick and pack our goods a large number of them may not be available.

Some concession has to be made for us if we are made stay at home but I hear no word of that.  In addition if we are forced to buy from one retailer then our costs will probably increase. Will we receive any sort of allowance to help cover this, but I’ll concede that in current circumstances that’s a minor issue.

Id like your views on this

Kevin. 

Yorkshire_Pud

Not everyone uses the internet but may be self isolating soon due to coronavirus. Are there any supermarkets that take phone orders for home delivery and payment on delivery?
I believe Sainsbury’s do?
I thought it would be useful to start this thread as a resource to pass on /print info to those that may need it as a practical step and to alleviate anxiety about getting supplies.
I realise there are workarounds like phoning a neighbour who can do it but that isn’t always possible.
Whilst the Supermarkets May be inundated at the moment I believe this will level out soon as there’s only so much stuff you can stockpile hopefully and this may then become a practical option for some people.
Any further info on minimum spend and delivery costs would be useful too!
Thank you.

A._Badger

I can confirm that Sainsbury's does. I believe there is an extra charge for the service, though. 

suki1964

@kah22, Im wondering whereabouts you are in NI?

I know around here we are all looking out for each other, be it immediate neighbours or the Church/local community group stepping in

I also tried a click and collect order today. Well I started as a home delivery then thought Id pop out and see if I could get most of it locally so lost my slot. I then added it to click and collect and the basket halved for Tuesday pick up but when I added it to a Thursday pick up, the basket was full

Our local Supervalu is taking orders for home delivery. They seem to have everything "needed" ( including loo roll ), perhaps you have a Supervalu or Spar near that are also doing home delivery?

Rosa_Damascena

Sorry but your self-isolation is likely to be called upon sooner than 2-3 weeks.

Now is not the time for pride. Without family to hand you must consider reconnecting with acquaintances within your vicinity in preparation for the worst. You are not the only one in this position and you will find people are very willing to help, but set communication systems up now.

KC135

We (both over 70 and one disabled) do most of our shopping at Tesco, sometimes in person, but now regularly online.  We're now having to wait 10+ days for a delivery slot!  Our two nearest stores are each about 10 miles away.  Although we have good neighbours and a brilliant Community Care facility, we can't expect them to do a 20-mile round trip for our shopping.  Many over-70s can't afford to book two or three deliveries in advance and pay for their orders up-front.  Surely Tesco (and other supermarkets) can devise a scheme that a) reserves slots for over-70s, soon to be in compulsory self-isolation; b) allows click and collect orders to be delivered to a nearby Express/Local store (we have one on a nearby main road), where others could collect on behalf of over-70s, without the over-70s imposing unduly on the kindness of neighbours.  Supermarkets don't need to make this emergency click and collect available at all small local outlets, just those where there isn't a main store within (say) a 3-mile or 5-mile radius.  We need to lobby for sensible solutions for those in compulsory self-isolation, who are often the most vulnerable.

kah22

suki1964 said:

@kah22, Im wondering whereabouts you are in NI?

I know around here we are all looking out for each other, be it immediate neighbours or the Church/local community group stepping in

Thanks for the reply. Yes I am 72, live alone and don’t drive but I do have relatives living close who are able to help

I suppose the main point of my post was to raise the point that not everyone in the 70 plus age group will have backup and the major supermarkets should be doing something to ensure we get a fair crack of the whip

I am in agreement with KC135

suki1964

kah22 said:

suki1964 said:

@kah22, Im wondering whereabouts you are in NI?

I know around here we are all looking out for each other, be it immediate neighbours or the Church/local community group stepping in

Thanks for the reply. Yes I am 72, live alone and don’t drive but I do have relatives living close who are able to help

I suppose the main point of my post was to raise the point that not everyone in the 70 plus age group will have backup and the major supermarkets should be doing something to ensure we get a fair crack of the whip

I am in agreement with KC135

Yet more and more people are stepping up to help those in their communities

We cant rely on the big players, although some are already signing on to opening for elders only early mornings. You have to reach out to the community. 

My local bar restaurant for example has seen their trade decimated, even more so from this evening. They aren't sitting back, they want to keep their staff employed and money coming in, so they are now doing home deliveries of hot cooked food and are linking with community meals on wheels so as their perishables don't go to waste

Bacman

Bearing in mind the government are trying to delay the level of infected people the strategy seems like keep the older people at home and let everyone else get it so there is a herd immunity to protect the older people getting it later.
I would estimate over 70's will be ordered to stay home, like in other countries, probably by the weekend.
As you live alone, no car and presumably no friends you can use; best scenario would be to use a taxi to go to a supermarket; get whatever you can from the shelves in your trolley, then get a taxi to take you home - yes it will be expensive however what viable choice is there?
As to allowances, of course not - why should the taxpayer have to burden further for that - people are panic buying as they had plenty of notice of what was coming so ordered a lot online and are now clearing out the stores. Whilst that isn't good or social behaviour, it's called planning ahead and actually, being responsible.

mac.d

Bacman said:

people are panic buying as they had plenty of notice of what was coming so ordered a lot online and are now clearing out the stores. Whilst that isn't good or social behaviour, it's called planning ahead and actually, being responsible.

Even in Italy with a lockdown people are still able to go out to buy groceries, and we are being told by the supermarkets that there is no shortage so stop panic buying. If you buy as normal, stock will be normal too. So clearing out stores is not only not good behaviour, it is irresponsible and not good planning. It might be good for the individual concerned, but it's not good for the community as a whole. And as this is a worldwide pandemic, the selfish looking after yourself immaterial of the effect on others should be called out for exactly what it is. Wrong. It's why there will be people trying to buy groceries they actually need right now and won't be able to get them.

badmemory

If you have ring & ride locally that would be a better option than a taxi.  After all one driver will be employed the other will not be & the only way he can keep a roof over his family's head is by working, no sick pay for him!