Would you fall for these dubious supermarket special offers?

Many regulators are only there to advise and have very little power that’s if they are given enough money to do everything that needs to be done Many are set up by trade organisations as well so will work for the interest of the trade not the public

Well said Bishbut, you cant argue with the truth and actual dogma of those behind this .

The BOGOF offers can be a problem for single people, unless fresh food can be frozen. Those living in small flats may find it difficult to store bulky items such as kitchen roll.

So if you don’t want a bogof, don’t buy it? Let those who can make use of it benefit.:-)

Another problem is that the single item price has often been inflated, and the BOGOF price is the only sensible option. Getting rid of these offers will mean that everyone will benefit.

Multi-buy offers contribute to food waste because food spoils before it is eaten.

It does depend where you shop and what you buy – so it needs a little thought. My experience – the prices where we shop are not pre-inflated hen offers. And many of the offers we buy can be frozen if they are not going to be used within date – but are needed. We just have to use our common sense on what we buy; if you don’t agree with an offer, then simply avoid it.

I have seen many examples where the single price has been inflated. It’s hard on elderly people with little money who are not in a position to shop around. Let’s think of them. As Ian suggested, getting rid of the offers would help.

It wouldn’t help those who can take advantage. The world is full of “offers” and “deals”- discounted appliances, cheap day returns, cash back on purchases, energy tariffs, early bird holidays or last minutes deals, interest-free credit card transfers, ……It won’t change; we just have to be savvy. All paid for by everyone in the end of course.

If you are old and living alone on a small income and without a car, you might not be able to shop around for groceries. We need to care about those who are disadvantaged as well as those recognised as vulnerable.

That is not the point I make. The offers will still be made so trying to remove them disadvantages those who can use them – including those for whom it makes their budget go further, such as low income larger families, or the single elderly who shop prudently.

As I have replied before, I along with many others do care about the disadvantaged and vulnerable, and am active in doing so. However, I do not subscribe to the notion that if everyone cannot access something, no one should be able to.

Online deliveries are a lifeline for people living alone who may be unwell, although the substitutes can be a bit of a pain at times.

Before online shopping people had good helpful neighbours who would do their shopping for them ARE some still around (good neighbours that is) or does everyone now only care for themselves and nobody else I still have !!

It still happens, Bishbut and on-line ordering has made it better. A cousin does the ordering for her mother who lives 400 miles away to make sure she gets a regular supply of the essentials, plus anything else she wants or needs [which can include things you wouldn’t find in the village shop], as well as the occasional extra. Not exactly neighbours perhaps, but it shows the facility is there – people just need to use it.

| know that there are many people who care It’s the ones who do not care about others only themselves that get media publicity

At 84 I find it very difficult to weigh up the so called “bargains” I am lucky when one of my sons is with me when I go shopping and when I am reaching for one of the bulk buys, they restrain me and say, “Hold on dad, look at this, if you buy two of these items, they actually work out cheaper than the bulk buy offer”. They have their full count of brain cells, not like their 84yr. old dad! Great to have them with me, they often remove things from my trolley taking them back to the shelves and returning with the real “bargains”. “God bless them”. I’ll really miss them when they get into old age and can’t spot the real “bargains”.

Have you seen mysupermarket bishbut?

Here is a link for all supermarket prices for Heinz Tomato Ketchup. Click on the picture then ‘see all’ and you can see the price in every supermarket.

http://www.mysupermarket.co.uk/Shopping/FindProducts.aspx?Query=heinz%20tomato%20ketchup

These prices are not 100% accurate but they are a good guide. They seem slow to update sometimes which means there might be a special offer and it is not shown or the special offer has already gone. Prices also vary between areas and ‘local’ supermarkets.

Interesting question on who decides which the special offers to run. It is often manufacturers who run a product promotion. Then I also think it is supermarket chains competing for business.

“Funny you should say that, bishbut but I believe that “mental arithmetic” has been banished from many of our schools because it is assumed that it is no longer needed when “they” can just look it up on a computer/calculator and calculators are allowed in examinations! What a wonderful world we live in! I often find that shop assistants look at me in amazement when I give them the correct price for several items before they have reckoned them up on their calculators! Before they have actually entered all the prices into their calculators! We learned mental arithmetic at school and I have always found it one of my most useful attributes, whether shopping or in my workshop. John.

And did you enjoy one of your five a day Beryl? 🙂

Thanks Alex, I hope to share it with family. The following website is a useful guide for people like me who are increasingly reliant on delivery deals:

lovemoney.com – Cheapest supermarket online grocery deals: Save at Tesco, Asda, Sainsburys, Morrisons and more. It also provides a direct link to:
mysupermarket.com – Cheapest offers to compare how much your trolley would cost with a number of supermarkets.

Those living in rural areas rarely have a choice of supermarket, and usually no delivery service unless they are on the edge of a town. In many suburban locations and small settlements people are increasingly reliant on the smaller ‘local’ or ‘express’ stores that have a limited product range, don’t offer the ‘own label’ alternatives in many categories, and have higher prices than the same company’s supermarkets on fresh produce, bakery, and fish and meat. Residents in those areas might also be less-well off than their metropolitan counterparts because they have a higher cost of living due to travelling expenses and energy costs.

A useful retirement point to consider before contemplating ‘escaping to the country’ John. I am fortunate inasmuchas I am able to enjoy the best of both worlds as I live in an AONB with excellent transport links to local towns. My online delivery is a 3 weekly occurrence and the local village post office and shops are within walking distance if I run out of fresh produce.

The nearest small town to us is 17 miles away and we do live in a remote location, but fortunately Tesco, Asda, Waitrose and Sainsbury all deliver to us, along with just about all of the entire N Wales area. Waitrose get a special mention, since they have to travel around 30 miles to reach us.

There’s also something of a tradition in Snowdonia for Co-ops to inhabit villages, which does make life easier.

That sounds good, Ian. I expect you make their journeys worth while. It must throw the economics of the operation out of gear, though – subsidised by the townies, of course!

Do you still qualify for Waitrose free delivery Ian? 30 miles is a commendable distance to receive this extra perk, bearing in mind of course their £60 minimum limit now easily exceeded with recent food rises I have to say!

We only order occasionally, and when we do it’s always above £100. One problem can be the weather; sometimes the passes are snow-bound and there are only two routes they can use to get to us. Can be fun living at altitude in the mountains.

No doubt you have admirable storage facilities up there! Oh and a heli-pad for Santa 🙂

We do have a fair bit of space, which we need in winter, and plenty of hard standing for Santa’s Gravity-drive and inertia-compensation sleigh. 🙂