How I found out which supermarket won't leave you fuming over missing deliveries

By HOAR Team 18 May, 2025 5 mins read 115 Views

Let me share something that drives me absolutely bonkers - ordering groceries online only to find half my dinner ingredients missing when the delivery arrives. Anyone else? I swear my blood pressure spikes every time I open that front door to a sheepish driver holding a bag that's suspiciously lighter than it should be.

I spent three weeks of my life (that I'll never get back) testing different supermarkets after a particularly disastrous Tesco order where they somehow managed to substitute chicken breasts with a bottle of fabric softener. I'm not even joking. My husband still brings it up at dinner parties.

The Missing Broccoli Incident That Started It All

Back in January, I ordered £87 worth of groceries during that awful cold snap when nobody wanted to leave the house. The driver arrived without my broccoli, pasta, AND the birthday cake for my son's party the next day. I nearly had a meltdown right there on my doorstep.

So I did what any reasonable person would do - I went down a rabbithole investigating how each major supermarket handles these situations. And boy, did I learn some things.

What's Asda's deal?

Asda gives you a measly three days to sort out any problems with your delivery. THREE DAYS! Who unpacks their entire shop that quickly? Sometimes I find random items hiding in bags a week later.

You'll need to visit their help centre at groceries.asda.com/account/order/2 to request a refund. The good news is that they don't charge for unavailable items, and you can opt out of substitutions entirely at checkout.

Last time I ordered from them, they substituted my Whiskas cat food with some fancy organic brand that cost twice as much. My cat turned her nose up at it anyway. Typical.

Tesco - surprisingly decent (most of teh time)

If something arrives damaged, you can hand it back to the driver immediately and they'll process your refund. Missed the driver? Just take it to your local store.

What I actually appreciate about Tesco is their price matching on substitutions. So when they gave me premium bacon instead of the value range I'd ordered, I only paid for the cheaper stuff. Small victories, people.

The annoying bit? If something's missing and there's no substitute, you have to call their Customer Service team. In 2024! Who has time for phone calls anymore?

Sainsbury's and their voucher obsession

Here's where it gets interesting.

Sainsbury's handles things differently by giving vouchers as compensation for substitutions. So if they give you something pricier than what you ordered, you'll get the difference back as a voucher for your next shop.

They email the voucher code and add it to your online voucher wallet. These vouchers last 2 months and can only be used for online groceries.

Word of warning though - if you accept a substitution at delivery, you can't later decide you don't want it and request a refund. My neighbor learned this the hard way after accepting some weird vegan cheese alternative that apparently tasted like "feet and disappointment."

And finally... Morrisons (my unexpected winner)

Morrisons gives you a whole week to request refunds through their website at accounts.groceries.morrisons.com. A WEEK! That's more than double what Asda offers.

Their drivers notify you about substitutions before they arrive, which saved me from a potential meltdown when they substituted my daughter's favorite yogurts. I could mentally prepare her for the disappointment rather than dealing with a tantrum at the door.

Listen. After all my testing and approximately £450 spent across different supermarkets (don't tell my husband), I've switched to Morrisons for our weekly shop. The longer refund window and upfront substitution warnings just make my life easier.

Sometimes it's the small things that make all the difference when you're juggling work, kids, and trying to remember if you've run out of milk... again.

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A report by Bankrate indicated that only 29% of Americans have a written financial plan.
A study by the National Endowment for Financial Education found that 60% of Americans do not have a budget.
As of 2021, the average student loan debt for recent graduates was approximately $30,000, according to the Federal Reserve.
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How To Educate Yourself About Personal Finance

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