Waitrose facing backlash after new free tea and coffee rule forces customers to buy items first

Chloe Chaplain21 March 2017

Waitrose is facing a backlash after announcing it has “refined” its offer of free tea and coffee so customers will now only get the drink after they have paid for their shopping.

The supermarket has been accused of not “trusting its customers” after it announced the changes for myWaitrose card holders.

Currently, members of the loyalty card scheme are able to pick up a cup and help themselves to tea or coffee as they are browsing the shops.

But an email sent to customers said that, from April 3, they will be asked to show proof of purchase before picking up their free drink.

There will be no minimum spend requirement and Waitrose said the change was "just a refinement" to the offer.

Customers have expressed their sorrow on social media after receieving the email - labelling the policy change “disappointing”, “rubbish” and “terrible”.

Alexander Brook tweeted: “@waitrose poor show. What about trusting your customers? When a coffee costs as little as it does to supply, this shouldn't be a hurdle.”

Coffee: Customers will have to show proof of purchase before getting their free drink

And another customer joked that the move marked the start of “Brexit Britain”.

The email to customers says: "Our myWaitrose free tea and coffee offer is one of the ways we thank our customers for shopping with us - and we want all our customers to be able to enjoy a free hot drink when they shop with us in our branches.

"From 3 April, we'll simply be asking myWaitrose members to make a purchase before collecting their cup at the checkout."

In 2015 Waitrose scrapped a tea and coffee free-for-all which allowed myWaitrose members to enjoy a hot drink for nothing in its cafes even if they had bought nothing else.

Members of the scheme were told that if they wished to enjoy a free tea or coffee in one of its cafes they must also purchase a "treat" such as "a sandwich, cake, biscuit or piece of fruit".

The store brushed off the suggestion that the 2015 change was in response to reports that Waitrose was facing a middle-class backlash from customers upset that the stores were being invaded by less well-off shoppers.

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