Internet food shopping virgin, on the "shielding" register - help please.

maddiemay

I have never food shopped via internet, luckily not been necessary, now I need to.  Very basic questions - In some cases I have registered with SM and set up a basket, (not many deliver here) Tesco advise booking a slot first, when/if I eventually get a slot, I presume I go to checkout, do I then insert my payment details and the deed is done?
Eventually I should be accepted by the SMs as a vulnerable person utilising the government supplied information to them, this is taking time and I understand the difficulties.   I am 70 and OH nearer 80, he is shopping for us ATM and we live in a rural area so risk lower than for many (with all adequate precautions), I am worried for him and he is terrified of bringing the virus back to me.  I have good food stocks for several weeks of all but fresh foods so I am very much looking for supplies for the latter part of the 12 weeks total isolation, sort of expect this to be extended though.
Thank you for reading.

Browntoa

Yes , wander around the online store , add your goods to your basket as you go and then when finished click on your basket. It will then confirm your delivery address and then ask for payment  

There is normally a tick box for " no substitutions " , if you only like Heinz ketchup for example then they won't replace it with an own brand .

The drivers will drop your items off at the front door observing safe distancing at all times

Nelski

Hi maddiemay and welcome to the mad world of sm ordering. Im afraid the advice to book a slot first is probably the right one as slots are few and far between. Keep checking though as they are adding them day by day Sorry about this but I find the best times are about 12am-5am but if you can't do that just keep on checking through the day sometimes people cancel slots they had booked so you can grab it.Hopefully you have more than one choice of sm ...register with them all then keep checking its a full time job!! Let me know if you you struggle happy to help 

GaleSF63

I eventually got a Tesco slot by trying a few minutes before midnight. (Put in a queue.)

You can put things in your trolley any time before you book a slot - some may disappear as things become unavailable, but it gives you a start time-wise. I think you can reserve a Tesco slot for 2 hours so if you think you'll be slow, maybe give yourself a start by having some things already in.  They can sit there till you get a slot - I have things sitting in my trolley for 2 weeks sometimes. 

When it comes to checkout/payment there are clear boxes to click and at the end you'll get an email confirmation. 

maddiemay

Thank you all, that will be a great help.  
Nelski - I see you on the daily thread, I don't post now, but read every day, you have done so well!

nannywindow

MaddieM I've just got a slot on Iceland for Sunday afternoon and they seem to have a lot for later in the week in my area. They do have a big banner to click for vunerable people too. Heard about it from Candygirl on the covid thread, so trying to pass the info on HTH

nan xx

maddiemay

Thank you nan, pleased that you and others have got a delivery slot, I have just checked, out of area for deliveries, makes sense we are a long way from any of their stores.     I will get sorted eventually, OH is geared up for a 7a.m. foray tomorrow, then we should be set for another couple of weeks for F&V and dairy.  I may be able to get on board for a local farm shop (ultra ultra expensive) or an organic fruit veg box, again expensive but small local business.

badger09

I only have experience of online shopping with Tesco but here are some tips for when you hopefully manage to get a delivery slot.
Once you've chosen a slot, you get about 2 hours to complete your checkout, which confirms the slot. Don't worry though, once you've put the basics in your basket, go to Checkout & enter your payment details. They will only reserve £1. Then you can go back as many times as you want, and add things. Always remember to Checkout at the end though, otherwise you lose the slot. You can do this right up until just before midnight on the day before your scheduled delivery. 

Its a good idea to accept substitutions, unless there's something you particularly don't like. I've never had anything weird substituted and if the substituted is dearer, they don't charge you. You can always reject a substitution.

Good luck with getting a slot. We're both over 70 with underlying health problems, though not on the vulnerable list. On 13th March I managed to book a slot for 23rd March but haven't managed to find one since. Even tried at 3.15 this morning as I couldn't sleep, so we ventured out to local Co-op. Only the 2nd time we've left the house since 23rd but managed to get fresh food.

maddiemay

badger09, thank you. You and the other posters have really helped me to get my head around it.
Just after midnight last night I thought I would get a slot as they were being offered for 23rd April, but my click on one didn't go anywhere.     I always have had a couple of weeks food in as I buy all regular staples when on special offer, then I decided to add more in case Brexit interrupted the supply chain.  When it became obvious that this pandemic would hit GB I added even more as I knew I was vulnerable.  Ideally a delivery end of April/early May would suit quite well.
Hoping that you all can stay safe and well and find all that you need.  

maddiemay

Good morning all, who would have thought that two old souls would have been grinning with happiness at gone midnight, just because of successfully obtaining a Tesco delivery slot!!
I could hardly believe my eyes when Sat 25th April became available, so all done and dusted, except checking for out of stocks and things we use up in the interim.
Once again a huge thank you to all who replied to my OP.
MM 

Nelski

Well done maddiemay you are no longer a virgin 
Fill your boots or far better fill your trolley xx