Tesco to offer free delivery for premium Clubcard members to rival Amazon Fresh

Supermarket delivery slots have seen a surge in demand due to the coronavirus pandemic as Britons were told to stay home. Even as lockdown eases, the service is still popular with new quarantine rules coming in regularly and some people still shielding. But there are plenty of options to choose from as brands are now competing for customers – with Tesco announcing its latest plans for a free delivery service. 

Talking to the Sunday Telegraph, Chief Executive Dave Lewis said: “The idea of Prime is very similar to where we are in Clubcard Plus, in terms of bringing a whole bunch of benefits together.

“So an opportunity into the future for us is to think about how we put delivery into Clubcard Plus.”

He added that “that’s always been the direction of travel”, though with Amazon announcing it is rolling out its grocery service across the UK by the end of the year it could happen sooner than planned. 

Tesco already offers free deliveries with its Delivery Saver subscription, which is £7.99 a month. 

However, the news means the benefit would be part of the Clubcard Plus scheme as well, enticing more shoppers to sign up for the service. 

Until now, Amazon Fresh purchases have required a monthly add-on fee of £3.99 or a £2.99 delivery fee, even for Prime members – and they weren’t available in many postcodes. 

Customers will now have to pay a flat fee of £4.50 for a one-hour slot, while anyone whose orders are delivered from one of its fulfillment centres will pay £5.50. 

Shoppers have raised concerns over the change, seeing it as a price hike as slots used to be available for as little as £2. 

However, they also reached £7 for peak times – which Tesco has now said is no longer fair given the new sustained demand for deliveries in the UK. 

There’s also a charge of £1.50 for Click and Collect orders, though for either option there is a surcharge of £4 for orders under £40 (delivery) or £25 (collection). 

 

source: express.co.uk