Tesco and Sainsbury’s Delays Refund Payments For Cancelled Orders Upto Six Weeks

Tesco and Sainsbury’s have come under fire for leaving customers waiting for refunds after their online delivery orders were canceled.

Consumer champion Which? says one shopper was left waiting six weeks for money back from her canceled Sainsbury’s shop worth £90.

Elisabeth Pearson from Glanamman in Carmarthenshire, Wales, called Sainsbury’s four times to ask for an update on her refund and said she had to borrow money to cover bills.

In another case, one customer had to borrow cash for food after Sainsbury’s took two weeks to issue her £150 refund.

But instead of a cash refund, the shopper was given three £50 vouchers to use – which she then couldn’t use at first because of a glitch online.

On its website, Sainsbury’s says customers should expect a refund within five working days.

Sainsbury’s issued these shoppers a £20 voucher to apologize but the customers say they feel “let down” by the service.

Which?: “We fulfill tens of millions of groceries online orders every year and are committed to offering the best possible service.

“The case studies Which? has shared do not represent what the vast majority of our customers experience.”

Which? Tesco customers were also disappointed by the long wait for their money back.

Neo Dark from Kent waited six working days to get his money back from Tesco for his £144.44 order after his delivery was canceled.

Neo, who has several health issues and relies upon deliveries, spoke to Which? he only “considers Tesco as a last resort” to do his food shopping now.

Another Tesco shopper, a single parent who is “on a tight budget”, struggled to feed his family after he was charged twice for his £100.34-worth of shopping.

According to Tesco’s website, it claims that refunds will be processed within three to five days. Which? asked the supermarket. The supermarket said that duplicate authorizations were very rare and would only cancel online orders under exceptional circumstances.