Shopping

The Jersey Consumer Council were concerned to read the results of a recent cost of living survey by Island Global Research. The survey reports very worrying statistics such as 10% of Jersey residents having to go without their essentials, 36% find it difficult to keep up with the rising grocery prices and over 50% strongly agree that they are feeling the impact of the rising costs of living. In times like this every little helps so we've compiled some top tips for saving on your grocery bills. Depending on your circumstances, we know not all of these may suit you or be possible, but we hope you can use some of them. Top tips for saving on grocery bills 1. Prices.je – Use our price comparison site and find out the best price. We compare around one hundred grocery and household items in the six main supermarkets (Alliance, Co-Op, Iceland, M&S, Morrisons and Waitrose). 2. Make a list and stick to it – Supermarkets might put their essential items across different sections of the shop, making sure customers walk past as many shelves as possible, even if they’re only intending to get the basic items. Keep to your list and don’t be distracted by other products, we know it’s difficult, but it is a good way to save money. 3. Create a weekly menu – Planning what meals you will be cooking for the next seven days, will help limit the chance of over buying and reduce the amount of unused food that you bin. 4. Leftover food – Look up recipes that you could use leftovers in. Vegetable soup is a good use of leftover veg, and a chicken carcass can be boiled to create a perfect stock or soup base. Jamie Oliver has a great range of leftover recipes. 5. Own-brand options –  Most stores will have a couple of differently priced options from the cheapest ‘value’ item, usually their ‘own-brand’, a ‘mid-range’ and ‘premium’ selection. You can make a big saving by going for an own-brand product. Don’t be put off, many supermarket brands are actually made at the same factories as branded items and in some cases branded items taste better! These cheaper options might not be displayed where you would expect them to be and could be on the lower shelves, so make sure to look around. 6. Supermarket promotions – Keep a look out for promotions and, if you can afford to, bulk buy. The most important point about promotions is not to be tempted to buy just because something is on promotion, especially if you can’t afford it or don’t usually eat/use the item. Sometimes promotions are not exactly as you might expect, so the easiest way to keep track of how much an item usually costs is to keep and compare your receipts. Don't be fooled by supermarket trickery - two packs of 5 might be cheaper than a pack of 10.  7. Batch cook and freeze – If you can afford to make the most of promotions, it’s a great way to bulk buy so you can batch cook. Whether it’s tins of chickpeas to make a large vegetarian curry or kilos of minced meat to make a Bolognese, you will have your own family favourites and there are loads of ideas online. 8. Be flexible with best-before dates –  Don’t be confused between use-by and best-before dates. Food with a use-by date must be used by midnight of its expiry date otherwise it’s unsafe.  Best-before dates can be a looked at a little more flexibly. If an item is at it’s best-before date it will usually be fine to eat over the next day or so. Supermarkets will mark the food up with a yellow sticker and it will usually be significantly cheaper. 9. Look around to find the bargains – Sometimes supermarkets will have promotions of products at the end of the aisle or other different areas than you would normally see it. For example, cheaper rice, coconut milk and chickpeas might be found in the world foods shelves, than in other parts of the shop. 10. Grow your own – Whether you have a garden or a windowsill, growing your own food is always fun and is significantly cheaper than the supermarket version. Tomatoes, peas and herbs are all very easy to grow and taste better than shop bought. You don’t even have to buy the plant pots. You can recycle the plastic supermarket food containers. Nobody wants to pay more than they need to on their basic grocery items. Always shop around and use Prices.je to help with this.

Some retailers are preferring to give an email receipt rather than a paper receipt, and most other retailers now ask if you need the receipt before automatically giving it to you. Automatic paper receipts as we knew them are becoming a thing of the past. It is a more environmentally friendly way of working, but do you say no to a receipt when you really mean yes? Remember if you need to return anything your receipt is still usually required. We’ve been contacted by some consumers who are concerned about requesting a paper receipt and about giving their email address over the counter for the email receipt. Others have said their supermarket self-service machine repeatedly will not print a receipt when they want one and they feel silly waiting for someone to come and help. The Jersey Consumer Council would like to empower Jersey consumers to ask for a paper receipt should they want one. Do not be put off by an assistant who is reluctant to provide one. If you feel uncomfortable about giving your personal email address to an assistant, well you don’t need to do it. Most retailers have the policy that they will provide a paper receipt if asked.  The Jersey Consumer Council have contacted the retailers New Look and Dunelm who now prefer to issue email receipts. Both shops have confirmed that they will happily give a paper receipt if the customer asks for one.   We’d like to hear about your experiences. How do you feel about asking for a paper receipt? Have you had a problem getting one? Email us at contact@consumercouncil.je 

You may have noticed that our popular price comparison website isn’t currently being updated. This is due to some essential changes and improvements which we have been making. We will be ready to relaunch the site – which will have a new web address – sometime around Easter.  We thank you for bearing with us and apologise if this has caused you any problems.  In the meantime, you can keep up with all of our latest news – and price updates – by following our social media channels.  Follow @JerseyConsumer on Twitter/X and Instagram or search Jersey Consumer Council on Facebook or LinkedIn.   

The Channel Islands Co-op has announced that it could be forced to slash or suspend its “divvy” payments this year, as a result of ‘extremely challenging market conditions’. The local retailer has written to members to say that a proposition allowing its board to decide whether dividend rates should be reduced, or whether no dividend should be paid this year, will be presented in May at its Annual Members Meeting. Islanders have taken to social media to express their outrage at the announcement, which will affect consumers of all ages, as well as local charities who have share numbers that some shoppers choose to use. Today, long queues of customers queued at the Co-op’s Grande Marche store to withdraw their previous dividend funds from their accounts. Our Chairman, Carl Walker, has described the news as ‘another blow for consumers’. Speaking to the local media, he said that is was unfair and immoral to take a dividend from people who had been consciously building it up, with many Islanders choosing to shop at the Co-op purely because of the 4% dividend that they’ve always known they will receive – especially as every receipt they have received previously told them what they would be getting back. He said that many Islanders see the payment as a bonus, and many make plans each year on how they will spend it. "I've been speaking to Coop customers this morning, who are queuing up with their share books in their hands withdrawing their money which they've saved up in there over the years because they are angry at the decision that the Co-op surprised everyone with," said Mr Walker. "They're angry that the announcement hasn't come sooner or that the announcement isn't warning them that maybe next year's dividend would be withheld." Writing to members, the Chief Executive Officer of the Co-op, Mark Cox, said: “Regardless of our concerted efforts, our end-of-year financial report will reflect a notable reduction in our net surplus. Faced with this decline, the Society must make some tough decisions that will impact our members. This may involve either reducing dividend payments or suspending them entirely for the 2023 financial year."

Here are our top tips for consumers this Christmas: Plan early – organisation is key. Don’t forget your everyday bills – they still need to be paid. Shop around to get the cheapest prices. Be careful with your credit card – clear the balance straight away. Don’t reply on your overdraft – it always has to be paid back. Don’t borrow from unauthorised lenders. Always buy from a reputable company and do your research. Don’t be tempted to buy something just because it’s advertised with a big discount. You might find a better deal elsewhere. Check and track prices using sites such as camelcamelcamel.com who monitor Amazon prices throughout the year. Sign up to your favourite store newsletter or follow them on social media for the latest deals. Get a store loyalty card to receive loyalty points or special offers. Look out for two-for-one offers – get two presents for the price of one. Look out for scams - if it’s too good to be true it usually is.

If you've received any Christmas gifts you don't want or, even worse, that don't work, then it's important you know your rights. Most shops will allow you to return unwanted gifts, as long as you have either a gift receipt, or ask the person who bought it for the original receipt. But there's some important things to be aware of.   Returning faulty goods As a consumer, the Supply of Goods and Services (Jersey) Law 2009 protects you if your goods are:    Faulty or damaged    Useless    Not what was advertised or matching the description    These terms apply whether your goods were bought new, in a sale or even second hand. Usually you'll be required to provide proof of purchase when returning goods, such as a receipt.    If goods are faulty, within a reasonably short period of time after the sale took place, a consumer is entitled to a full refund or compensation. However, consumers could alternatively select a repair or replacement, which would then be at the company’s discretion to accept.   Returning unwanted goods When returning unwanted rather than faulty goods, consumers will usually have to follow the company’s internal returns policy. These ‘goodwill’ policies may offer either a refund, exchange or credit note. It’s worth noting that company’s aren’t required by law to have a returns policy. Time limits may be imposed on these returns, such as 28 days, and may increase around the Christmas period.     Returning online goods When buying online goods, you have additional rights for returns. This is because of the ‘expectation versus reality’ phenomenon, where the image online may look nothing like the physical item you receive. Under the Consumer Contracts regulation, you have the right to return items if you change your mind. Once your goods have been received, you have 14 days to request a return. Some companies will do pre-paid returns, but some will require the customer to pay for their own postage.      Gift cards Expiry dates for gift cards can vary enormously. These can range from just a few months to even a year. When receiving a gift card, make sure to check the expiry date to ensure you use it in this timeframe. The gift giver won’t get their money back if you don’t spend it!   If you lose a gift card, then you may be able to have one reissued for a small fee. However, this is ultimately within the retailer’s power.