Investigation into Asda, Sainsbury's and Tesco finds differences in schemes means claims to be the cheapest are worth little to customers
Popularvoucher-style price match schemes run by the majorsupermarkets vary enormously, making it hard for shoppers to tell which supermarket is the cheapest, according to new research.
The consumer group Which? analysed shopping trips to Asda, Sainsbury's and Tesco – which all operate rival price match schemes – but warned that their claims about likely savings "should be taken with a pinch of salt".
The warning came as the advertising watchdog banned what it said was a misleading advert for the Sainsbury's campaign – known as Brand Match – for suggesting that consumers do not need to shop around to benefit fully from deals at rivals Tesco and Asda.
Price comparison tools have become a key battleground in the fiercely competitive UK grocery retail sector. But the supermarkets have been waging further war against each other by challenging their rivals' claims and even referring them to the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA).
The investigation by Which? found that the schemes run by Asda, Sainsbury's and Tesco differ greatly, making them of little real worth to shoppers. Secret shoppers visited the supermarkets to find that, in the majority of cases, each claimed to be cheaper than its rivals.
Which? analysed the till receipts from 59 shopping trips – 19 at Asda, 20 at Tesco and 20 at Sainsbury's – each time checking the price of the basket with the supermarket's own online price match. Asda was the cheapest, according to its own "Price Guarantee" on the most occasions (17 out of the 19), Sainsbury's judged itself cheaper than Asda and Tesco for 10 of the visits and joint cheapest for another two, according to its "Brand Match", and Tesco was cheaper than Asda and Sainsbury's for 10 of the 20 visits – according to its "Price Promise".
But supermarkets set their own rules for what is and isn't compared under price-matching schemes, and sometimes stock products in different sizes, so it can be hard to tell which is the cheapest.
Overall, the 59 shopping trips analysed by Which? resulted in an average discount voucher for shoppers of just £1.45.
Richard Lloyd, Which? executive director, said: "Supermarket price-matching schemes can save you money but we believe they should be taken with a pinch of salt because they are difficult to compare. At a time when consumers are facing a squeeze on their household incomes, we want all the supermarkets to do whatever they can to help consumers find the best deal."
The Sainsbury's television advert showed various people shopping, with the screen split three ways to indicate the supermarkets Sainsbury's, Tesco and Asda, before a voiceover said: "Deals. Everywhere aren't they? But wouldn't it be nice if we didn't have to go everywhere to get them?" The advert said Sainsbury's would compare baskets of £20 or more with prices at Asda and Tesco and offer a coupon for the difference, taking deals into account. But two viewers pointed out that Brand Match compared the total cost of the branded shop, and any savings on cheaper Sainsbury's products were offset against any items that were cheaper at Tesco or Asda. The deal meant the value of the coupon was reduced, and customers could have saved more by buying the items at their cheapest price from across the three supermarkets.
Sainsbury's said it believed the advert made it clear that the comparison was of the total price of the branded shop, and believed it contained all the necessary information "for viewers to understand the offer and assess it objectively".
But the ASA said: "We understood that the amount of any voucher for the price difference would be reduced if any of the purchased branded items on offer at Sainsbury's were more expensive at Tesco or Asda, and that in order to achieve the cheapest overall price in these circumstances it would be necessary to shop in different supermarkets. We considered that the ad … misleadingly implied consumers did not need to shop around to obtain the full savings from deals, when in fact that was not the case. We therefore concluded the ad was misleading."
Article Source : http://www.guardian.co.uk
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