Panic-buying as shoppers look towards self-isolation

Customers shun shops to avoid exposure to the virus while demand for hand sanitiser strips shelves bare

ONLINE shopping has surged amid the alarm over coronavirus, as customers worry about venturing into busy supermarkets that are already running low on supplies.

Shoppers have been frantically buying essentials including toilet roll, nappies and medicine in case they are forced into self-isolation.

But in a bid to avoid infection, customers have been shunning the shops in favour of the safety of their homes, according to experts.

Prof Hugh Pennington, emeritus professor of bacteriology at Aberdeen University, said: “Online shopping has helped reduce the risk. There is limited contact with people – if at all. Even supermarket online delivery drivers don’t hang around because they are having to deliver their next order.

“Fewer people hanging around shops obviously reduces the risk. I know that’s not good for retailers, especially those who don’t have online.”

But door-to-door service appears to have raised further issues, with delivery drivers said to be avoiding going into homes over exposure fears.

One customer wrote on social media: “Sainsbury’s delivery people now won’t enter the house for fear of infection. I suppose people are still working in their shops?”

Sainsbury’s said no advice had been given to their employees to avoid going into properties.

There is a shortage of hand sanitiser at Tesco, Asda and Sainsbury’s, as concerned members of the public try to keep themselves clean during the outbreak, which has so far killed nearly 3,000 people across the world.

Family-sized packs of hand-cleaning gel are being sold for up to £53 on Amazon, and Boots is restricting customers to two bottles.

Waitrose has reported “increasingly strong sales online over a long period”.

A disgruntled Tesco customer complained that one person bought 36 in one transaction, while a Sainsbury’s shopper reportedly tried to buy a whole shelf.

Lidl has said it is “experiencing a significant increase in demand”. A spokesman added: “We have increased deliveries to our branches.”

Ocado customers have been warned that the home delivery service is in “exceptionally high demand” with increasing numbers of people placing “particularly large orders”. They are being told to allow three days for their food to arrive.

Dentists who rely on face masks are also feeling the ripple effect of the coronavirus outbreak. A spokesman for West Earlham Dental Health Practice in Norwich, Norfolk, said boxes of 50 masks, which usually cost just 94p, were now priced at £3 apiece.