Sainsbury’s and Ocado stop deliveries from certain customers hours after Britain goes into lockdown

Supermarket website chaos as websites crash and delivery slots are booked solid for WEEKS after Boris Johnson tells Britons to avoid going to stores and shop online

  • Tesco and Asda delivery slots unavailable until April as websites go down
  • Ocado and Sainsbury’s are not taking deliveries from newly registered accounts
  • It comes as Boris Johnson encouraged the country to use delivery services 
  • Coronavirus symptoms: what are they and should you see a doctor?

Boris Johnson’s suggestion for the nation to use online delivery services for food shopping has hit a stumbling block. 

Supermarket delivery websites crashed within hours of the Prime Minister’s lockdown announcement as shoppers flocked online for their groceries. 

But even those who got managed to get through were disappointed.

Sainsbury’s and Ocado have both stopped taking deliveries from new customers, despite the coronavirus pandemic putting Britain under lockdown just a few hours ago.

Some Asda shoppers will have to wait until April for a vacant delivery slot, while Tesco shoppers have nothing available before April 13. 

Boris Johnson urged the country to ‘use food delivery services where you can’ on Monday evening. By the early hours of Tuesday morning, supermarket delivery services were crashing and some were refusing to take deliveries from new customers

Speaking to the country earlier today, Mr Johnson said: ‘You should not be going shopping except for essentials like food and medicine, and you should do this as little as you can and use food delivery services where you can.’

An email to newly registered Ocado customers on Tuesday read: ‘In this time of unusual demand, we have made the call to temporarily prioritise deliveries for our existing customers. We’re very sorry, but as a result we are unable to offer you a delivery slot at the moment. Unfortunately, new customer bookings will not be processed.’

The delivery service says it is working hard to increase delivery capacity.

Sainsbury’s has a similar message for online shoppers, it reads: ‘Due to the huge increase in online orders, we’re pausing new registrations for the time being.’ 

Ocado had this message for new customers trying to sign up to its supermarket delivery service

Ocado had this message for new customers trying to sign up to its supermarket delivery service

Anyone trying to pay a visit to the delivery section of Morrison's website was greeted with this

Anyone trying to pay a visit to the delivery section of Morrison’s website was greeted with this

Sainsbury's is pausing new registrations 'for the time being,' it told customers hours after Boris Johnson advised Britain to use delivery services where possible

Sainsbury’s is pausing new registrations ‘for the time being,’ it told customers hours after Boris Johnson advised Britain to use delivery services where possible

There's nothing to choose from for Tesco customers trying to book deliveries online

There’s nothing to choose from for Tesco customers trying to book deliveries online

The supermarket has previously introduced a policy to give priority to elderly, disabled and vulnerable shoppers. 

No delivery slots are available for Tesco up to April 13 – the same date the government will review its nationwide lockdown.

As for Asda, delivery slots in Crayford, on the edge of south east London and Kent, are fully booked until April 1.

Like its competitors, the supermarket has buckled under the strain of new delivery requests in the hours after the PM’s speech. 

A statement on its website reads: ‘Give us a moment, we’re just fixing something.’ 

Shops had already started dedicating early opening hours for vulnerable shoppers, while limits had been put in place for essential items including toilet paper and canned goods.