Let them do the hard work! (asda.co.uk)

Member Name: lemontiger

Product:	asda.co.uk
Date:	07/03/09 (106 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Great for a big shop and if you don't have a car

Disadvantages: They sometimes get it a bit wrong

I have been using Asda delivery for around 4 years. Before that I used Tesco but when we moved we couldn't do that anymore. However, I have felt that ASDA has been better overall.


***Starting Off***
The ASDA website is easy to register with and negotiate. After registering, click the groceries button at the top to go through to the online shopping section. It is easy to negotiate around the site and I've always found the pages load pretty fast even on a slow computer (which was an improvement on Tesco).


***Delivery codes***
I usually start by booking a time and day- these vary in price and the cost of delivery has just gone up to roughly £3.50-5.50 depending on day and time- weekends are more expensive, Tuesday and Thursday are least expensive. You get to keep this slot for 3 hours without checking out. If it takes you longer than that your slot disappears and you have to choose another- sometimes the one you want then, is gone. Slots are 2 hours such as 1-3pm. Sometimes you'll look and certain times aren't available because they are booked up- that's just bad luck. For some more remote areas they only deliver on certain days. I think you can usually book up to 2 weeks in advance. You can book an order for the next day if there are slots to be completed any time before 5pm. You can also make changes to an order including cancelling up until 5pm the day before the order is due.

Codes for free delivery are available widely on the internet and although you may well come up again 10 codes no longer valid before getting one that is, yet it is worth persisting. Usually you have to spend £50 to get this discount, although check your voucher. However, do be aware that this your final bill has to be £50 so if you 'spend' £52 but then two items are out of stock and there's no appropriate substitutions and it takes your total down to £49 you won't get that discount so I always make sure it's at least £55. There are other voucher codes for certain combinations of products or sometimes £5 off (especially if you're ordering first time) worth looking for too. However, you can only us one at a time.


***Choosing your shopping***
You can choose to go through section by section (e.g. dairy milk and eggs), search for the items you want (e.g. eggs) or do as I do and start at the top with the special offers. Sometimes there are some fantastic offers here. This is where you can find all the multibuy offers together too rather than hunting for them aisle by aisle which is really helpful.

Once you've ordered once, you can go on to 'favourites' and click those items you've ordered before that you want again which saves quite a bit of time. You just click the item you want to add it to your shopping basket whatever part of the site you're on. The biggest disadvantage I have found of ASDA online is that sometimes the range is a bit limited- for example, sometimes there might be only 2 types of cling film while you know if you went to the store that there would be about 7 or 8. This is sometimes a bit limiting and annoying.


***Concerned about freshness?***
Sometimes I also get a bit concerned about the fresh goods. I'm someone who likes to look and see what's best quality and then I buy that. I go to the shops for a 'roast' and I'm not too particular about what it is and buy what looks freshest or nicest. I have not had any particular problem buying fresh goods although sometimes three meals worth of things I have asked for all have use by dates in 2 days and if I'd been shopping myself I would have just chosen something different. They do say that the person choosing will choose the freshest of what you have asked for. I think this is generally true as use by dates vary greatly as they do in store. I tend to buy packets of things like tomatos that things to be weighed as sometimes the price goes up from say £1.99/ kg to £2.99/ kg as the price on the internet is a guide price, not the actual price. Or they choose a massive pepper when you'd have chosen a small one...Only one of around ten orders have I received the wrong weighed item- I think I got broccoli instead of courgettes.


***Delivery and substitutions***
Deliveries for me have always arrived on time and the drivers have always been really pleasant. They've appreciated a bit of help in unloading but aren't bothered if you don't. When they arrive they give you a list of what you have ordered and if they have made any substitutions it says on this printed list. It tells you what they have had to substitute and what they have chosen instead (sometimes there's nothing they have done this with though). At this point you decide whether you want to take these or hand them back to the driver. They are easy to find as all substitutions are in bags with a plastic 'substitution' sticker on the handle. You'll never get charged extra for a substitution but it is always worth more e.g. if you order 1kg rice and they don't have it, it's usually the 2kg same rice they bring you as a substitution. Occasionally an unusual item is not available and there is nothing they can sub it with, so that just gets taken off your final bill. If you don't want the hassle of substitutions at all you can select 'no' just before you confirm your order.


***Unexpected or missing items***
Once I got items that weren't mine- a red pepper and a bag of grapes. I rang the helpline and stayed on hold for 30minutes hoping they could find out who they should have belonged to. However, I gave up in the end, as my call didn't get answered, hoping the person they belonged to had better luck getting through! Once I had some items missing including a bottle of red wine. There were 6 items in total- I reported it via the phone number, getting through straight away that time and they refunded the full amount to me. It was a pain not having those items though.


***Little bugbear***
I must say I do hate the number of plastic bags they use- I often get say 30 carrier bags for 80 items. I tip out single items as quickly as possible, collect as many as I can and hand the bags back to the driver before they go. You can give the driver any carrier bags from any shop incidentally which saves you trying to recycle them elsewhere.


***In summary***
ASDA offer a good all-round service although occasionally they do get it wrong. I use them a couple of times a year to avoid going to the supermarket, to get a shop with all those big things, to save money (often in store I end up putting extra things in), or to save energy like now while I'm pregnant. It was a real lifesaver when we didn't have a car. It is easy and quick although sometimes a bit limiting. But overall I would definitely recommend it- let them do the hard work.

Summary: Worth doing, definitely