Sainsbury's customer, 76, forced to go out for food after delivery blunder

Robert Senft from Maltravers Drive has been getting home deliveries from the supermarket for years - but since the coronavirus outbreak he has needed them more than ever, after the Government asked all those over the age of 70 to stay indoors for three months to stop them getting infected.

But he said when he tried to book a slot last week, a message came up stating Sainsbury's was prioritising the most vulnerable customers and they could not verify he was one of them.

He said: "I feel very frustrated that I am forced to go out into a shop due to not being able to book a delivery slot.

"This exposes me to the danger of a COVID-19 infection and being 76 years old, I do not want to take the risk.

"Preferably, I will not go out at all as advised besides going for a walk to get some exercise.

"I have only been able to book a home delivery if a slot suddenly became available."

Robert is a blue badge holder due to a brainstem stroke, and had a heart monitor implanted last year - which he felt should make him eligible.

He said he had tried to update his account to show his age, but to no avail: "When logging into my account, there is no input for age or a file upload proving your age.

"I have tried everything possible, including what Sainsbury’s suggest, and phoning them."

He said he called at 9pm on March 25, and finally got through at 10.30pm, at which point he explained his situation.

A member of staff told him they would update his account and email him within 24 hours, which he said did not happen.

He then called the next day and was made the same assurance, and again received no email, he said.

Fear for his health was on his mind: "How can I self-isolate if I can’t get home deliveries?"

In response, Sainsbury's said: "We’re working with the government to prioritise the nation’s most vulnerable people.

"We are adding the government’s database which tells us which people the government considers to be most vulnerable to our own existing data and will shortly be writing to those who are registered with us to offer them a delivery slot.

"Our existing data includes criteria such as date of birth and where an account holder has been in touch to highlight to us that they are vulnerable in the past, for example during extreme weather.

"We are prioritising the most vulnerable people but there are still slots available for elderly customers.

"As of Wednesday 25th, we had proactively contacted 270,000 customers who had already given us information that meant we could identify them as elderly or vulnerable. We had also booked slots for 115,000 elderly and vulnerable customers.

"Our customer careline is working at full capacity and we are able to give an additional 8,000 customers a day access to delivery slots over the phone. We are doing our very best to offer delivery slots to as many people as possible and would urge everyone to keep trying."

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