SWAP FLOPS
Shoppers left baffled by barmy replacement product selections
ORDER..
SAUSAGE rolls instead of loo rolls and Victoria sponge cake rather than sponge scourers are among barmy grocery swaps that left online shoppers baffled.
Four in 10 online orders feature replacements because a product is unavailable, research has found.
Aldi was named as the most likely chain to swap items ordered via click and collect.
Among the more bizarre results was Ben and Jerry’s Phish Food ice cream as a replacement for breaded fish fillets.
And an Asda shopper was surprised when Cadbury Creme Eggs were replaced with a box of ordinary eggs.
However, the supermarket made another shopper’s day when three £25 bottles of whisky were replaced with three £60 bottles as the originals were out of stock.
A Morrisons online buyer found their breadsticks order was missing but dog food was added instead.
And upmarket chain Waitrose surprised one customer who ordered shaving foam by delivering tampons. Another sent duck liver paté instead of duct tape.
Consumer watchdog Which? said some substitutions were “downright ridiculous”. The survey of 1305 online shoppers found Iceland customers were the least likely to get a swap shock. Just 18 per cent said their delivery had been changed compared with 49 per cent of Aldi shoppers. Ele Clark, Which? retail editor, said: “While product substitutions in your online shopping can sometimes be genuinely helpful, our research has shown that they can also be downright ridiculous. “You have the right to reject substitutions at the point of delivery, or you could opt out of receiving substitutions altogether – though this can result in a headache if the key ingredient for your dinner that night is missing. If you do end up with a substitution you don’t want, always contact the supermarket for a refund.” Which? said pickers who fulfil the online grocery orders often get prompts on their handheld scanners suggesting substitutions. It added: “Sometimes these computer-generated ideas are not suitable and have to be manually overridden – and as pickers have tight time targets, they sometimes give up on choosing a sensible swap.”