Tesco misprice policy discussion area

ampersand

Moneysaver seanparkin made a personal comment concerning another moneysaver, which I perhaps should have replied to here, rather than on misprice thread.
'Personal opinion expressed unnecessarily

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Quote:
Originally Posted by seanparkin
I wouldnt have the courage either - to be honest theres money saving, and theres completely fleecing the stores. Guess which one you are!


Sorry this is discussion and will also go there , but relates to misprice thread entry -
Hello Sean,
Please don't express a needless personal view as in your last sentence. Aside from that, think how many people have overpaid for these items!
Why not suggest that Mr T produce a poster inviting all overcharged people to return to store with these CD's and receipt for refund in line with Stated Policy? '

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That's that one - altough sensible rejoinder is probably that this already exists in the Tesco policy we all know, use and love!
How about -
'We, at Tesco, top all that's hot in the Charts. We show NEW Reduced Prices EVERY WEEK on our Weekly Charts while still charging you the Old Higher Price. If you haven't noticed this, just bring back all your purchases, with receipt, and we'll Honour our Tesco Price Policy.'

Just a suggestion.

Next, I was asked on Monday in Newmarket How I knew which prices were wrong. I said I now check all bills, prices and receipts very carefully, wherever I am - everybody should do the same. CDs refunded that morning. In the afternoon(after voluntary day)bought The Times and a new bag of apples for car;was eating last one of previous bag on way in. Checkout girl three times challenged me re:apple being eaten, to point where I returned from car with empty bag and receipt for said apples. No apology, just resumption of challenge by another checkout lady alongside, who said(again three times)I was silly to eat in the store. She proceeded to detail categorically how I would have picked up one variety of apple bag(Braeburns)then gone to loose Gala's and taken one.
I expressed astonishment that they considered this was how customers should be treated. Older one said honest people don't go around Tesco's eating anything!
Yesterday, at Fulbourn, was treated to covenly whispers from grouped CS ladies as they processed my refund. One commented I'd been in on Saturday.
So....?
I was asked for name and address details - think I've read something about legality of this and have asked for advice on misprice thread earlier - sorry, but it arose from there. Will be checking Bank a/c to ensure refund goes back, but am now wondering if this is prelude to possible ban?
For what it's worth, went to CS Nmkt last Tuesday because I been undercharged, only one bag of reduced price potatoes,rather than two. Also, yesterday took sample of elderbery gin in for nice CS lady at Nmkt Road-Cambridge, store, who replaced gin(not my tipple, making it for pressies) when bottom of bottle dropped out. They could have said 'tough'(I was startled to smell the stuff in the car, bottle in double bag carefully placed in passenger well)but Anne was excellent.
Will now have Tesco HO no. in phone, ready.
Had to have two new tyres fitted yesterday - left rip-off quote from Kwik-fit, found better at National Tyres(and very likable atmosphere/service@Cambridge)and was delighted to be asked if I had a Tesco Clubcard.
Thankyou Mr T for another 70 points!
Isn't the Indian summer lovely?

seanparkin

You know for a fact thats not what I'm saying.

I'm not disagreeing with people taking items back for their refund as I agree they should check their prices, and they shouldn't be overcharging in the first place. But, it is way OTT when people are spending all day driving round several stores just buying multiple copies of all of the mispriced cd's for example, just for the sake of it.

I think people should keep it roughly in perspective. If you abuse the policy excessively they will just remove the policy - which will lead to everybody losing out. I for one remember several similar arguements across the MSE site in the past, and all have ended after the store has pulled the applicable policy after people started abusing it too much.

tommyj_2

Given the nature of some of the responses, and the attitudes of Tesco, I'm considering a little game on Saturday morning, when it's very busy. There are several Tesco's close by, so I may visit a new one, and ONLY buy overcharged product. A significant shop, totally refunded, would be a corker. How much do people reckon I can get away with?

Dick_Dastardly_3

MattOsprey wrote:

Just so you know. My mother has started calling me the Tesco 1.
This emoticon is me at the customer services desk of Tesco

Nobody expects that Spanish Mr T's CS Inquisition, we rely on fear and suprise, fear, suprise, nice red costumes and an almost fanactical devotion to the attempt to get out of giving customers refunds when they are overcharged, even if it means banning them and having them put in stocks outside the store and pelted with our alledged 'finest' produce, only the reduced stuff or that which we know to be overpriced, so need to get rid of a few, so that the balance of the correct priced items and wrong prices within the shelf remains acceptable (ish).

seanparkin

I dread to think! Couple of hundred? If you could find that many overpriced items? I'm sure you'll be needing that HQ number though.

You should certainly get somebody to secretly film it, as I have a feeling it would prove very entertaining.

ampersand

seanparkin wrote:

You know for a fact thats not what I'm saying.

Hello again seanparkin-
I'm afraid all we know for a fact is what you write!
So, which stores have altered a refund policy since you joined last month?
Were you merely visiting the site before?
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In view of recent experience I am reading both Tesco threads through.
Within the first few pages, there are excellent posts WHICH SHOULD BE REQUIRED READING.
Please do look at them - here are three which bear reposting, from ben500, robin 7667 and whirly(thanks yet again to them): Sorry if there's any intellectual copyright infringing going on here...
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First from ben500
Whilst I'm sure at the moment Tesco would like to pull the policy altogether, that is not a very commercially aware decision to make in view of the publicity it would attract and the obvious implication that Tesco cannot guarantee price integrity, whilst all of the other supermarkets are prone to just as many instances they are highlighted at Tesco by the policy and the effect of this thread, so it would be a press feeding frenzy in my opinion and I am sure they are wary of this, the smart thing to do is to revise policy and limit refund and replace to an individual item but still offer refund for any multiple over one unit, that way they could maintain the moral high ground (they have thus far failed to cash in on by the way) the policy affords them but at the same time mitigating the cost of the policy. If they are smart they will learn from the process and ensure refund and replace reaps benefits for them by its correct use and operate it as an early warning sign especially if it was opened up to underpriced items again because in cases like the recent NIVEA offer had someone reported that in order to save themselves a further £2 in a very short time head office would have become aware and alerted all stores and ensured the massive loss they obviously took was reduced to a minimum. Refund and replace policy could and should benefit both the customer and Tesco as the retailer it is only Tesco's own failure to ensure implimentation that it has turned out so much in our favour!
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Next from robin7667:
Just one word of advice to you and to everyone else:

Dont ever ever ever lose your temper, become aggresive or even start to raise your voice.....this is the easiest way for them to have a get out clause ie. The customer became aggresive thats why I didnt give the refund.

I always greet the manager when he comes over, smile and make sure my actions are kept to a bare minimum (cctv), as the conversation continues I always start lowering my voice instead of heating up....
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and from whirly:
Hmm, from personal experience every other supermarket is NOT as prone to pricing errors as Tesco.

As long as 8 years ago I stopped shopping at Tesco's regularly simply because I was overcharged on EVERY visit and got heartily sick of spending 20 minutes at CS after every shop.

I have, for 10+ years checked my receipt carefully after leaving each store. My experience of overcharging is this:

Tecos's 100% (overcharged on at least 1 item on every substantial visit)
Sainsbury's 2-3% (Almost exclusively on items where the special offer sign has been put out too early by staff and the computers are not set to give the discount)
Asda 1-2% (Only ever had it on items that have been reduced (going out of date) but have gone through the till at the wrong price)
Morrison's 0% (I don't shop there often nowadays but I've never been overcharged.)

One of the most damning things about Tesco's mis-pricing (IMO) is that every time I've shoped there I have been OVERcharged, never undercharged. And usually by at least 50p (usually £1+). Now correct me if I'm wrong but if these were genuine mistakes then surely they should be 50% Over and 50% under. But no, 100% over.

To give an example.

I regularly shop in Asda nowadays. On around 10-15% of my receipts I *will* find a misprice but in my experience (apart from "reduced" items) it has always been in my favour (undercharged).

I'm not really one for conspiracy theories but look at it this way. If Tesco's have 500,000 customers through their door on an average day (purely an "example" figure, I have no idea of their customer numbers) and 50% of them are overcharged by the same amount I usually am (£1+) then that is £250,000 extra profit each day.

Or £1,750,000 per week.

Or £91,000,000 (91 million) per year.

No wonder they are the biggest growing chain in the UK!

My honest opinion is this: It makes financial sense for Tesco's to run the refund&replace policy while overcharging on 1000's of items because the profit in it is enormous and because of the policy people assume the mistakes are completely genuine and never report them to Trading Standards. And even if TS do get involved the chance of a fine is small, and even if they get a fine well there is still a massive profit minus a small fine.

One of the more interesting things I've noticed recently is that Tesco's won a court case against Asda who claimed they were the cheapest supermarket. Tesco's proved they were just as cheap....but you can guarantee they based the figures they used ON THE MISPRICED SHELF LABELS. For instance, they advertised (on the shelf) their bacon joints at £3.42/kg. Asda too had them for £3.42. However, Tesco's were actually charging £3.44/kg. Asda charged exactly what they advertised.

I hope everyone here gets as much free stuff as possible from Tesco's because if you have regularly shopped with them for a few years then I can almost guarantee you've already paid for it.
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All food for thought and thoughtful discussion, no other kind, differences of view notwithstanding. These are, after all, the stuff of Life.
Kind wishes to you, seanparkin

ampersand

tommyj wrote:

Given the nature of some of the responses, and the attitudes of Tesco, I'm considering a little game on Saturday morning, when it's very busy. There are several Tesco's close by, so I may visit a new one, and ONLY buy overcharged product. A significant shop, totally refunded, would be a corker. How much do people reckon I can get away with?

Hello tommy - good luck!
As much as you have incorrectly priced in your trolley is my Howlongisapieceofstring? answer.

ampersand

--Tony-- wrote:

Update: Called Tesco, nice chap in HQ said the manager was in the wrong asked me how expensive the dearest of the four cheeses was, he took the bar code and said he would send me 4 times this amount by cheque (more than I paid).

He also said he would include with the cheque the full printed policy for my refference and would call the express manager and put him right.

Congratulations, Tony - I echo smarties' comment.

Dalkirst

This is a new one for me but i was in the Beckton store earlier and picked up the bacon joints and some mackeral which is pre-packed and next to the salmon.Anyway went through as usual and went to the desk and told them i had been over charged.She said she would have to call her manager.Then a guy came aong and told me i could only have a refund and they now have to take the items off the shelf and send them all(yes i'm sure he said all) to head office.I quoted the poster near the desk that said i could ahve my money back and products free and he said they have got to remove that.Once he went i said to the woman he's making that up isn't he?
She said no someone came in last week and tried to get alot of stuff free.Really i thought as i was in another store last night getting refunded £31 and got the items but i was in a rush and just took the money back and let them keep the items.I have emailed Tesco's though and i'll see what they say and have given them the guys name.I might even go back tomorrow or Thursday and see if the items are back still at the dearer price and if the poster is still up and then i'll let them have it;)

ampersand

Dalkirst wrote:

This is a new one for me but i was in the Beckton store earlier and picked up the bacon joints and some mackeral which is pre-packed and next to the salmon.Anyway went through as usual and went to the desk and told them i had been over charged.She said she would have to call her manager.Then a guy came aong and told me i could only have a refund and they now have to take the items off the shelf and send them all(yes i'm sure he said all) to head office.I quoted the poster near the desk that said i could ahve my money back and products free and he said they have got to remove that.Once he went i said to the woman he's making that up isn't he?
She said no someone came in last week and tried to get alot of stuff free.Really i thought as i was in another store last night getting refunded £31 and got the items but i was in a rush and just took the money back and let them keep the items.I have emailed Tesco's though and i'll see what they say and have given them the guys name.I might even go back tomorrow or Thursday and see if the items are back still at the dearer price and if the poster is still up and then i'll let them have it;)

Reflective Mmmmm......keep us posted, won't you Dalkirst?