Campaigners urge shops to waive their delivery charges for disabled people
By Julia Gregory, local democracy reporter
Campaigners are urging shops to waive their delivery charges for the disabled as the service is a lifeline for them.
Sandip Sodha, from Action Disability Kensington and Chelsea’s access group said many people with long-term health conditions, the disabled and older people are struggling to make ends meet during the pandemic.
He said the delivery charges make it harder to afford crucial home deliveries such as food.
“Many Disabled people cannot get out of the house and shop on the high street and have no choice but to pay supermarket delivery charges.
“In some cases, people have to make an unenviable choice of heating the home or putting food on the table. Others are being pushed into debt,” he said.
One respondent to a recent Inclusion London survey which looked at how people manage, said: “Food shopping each week costs far more than buying it from the shops myself and is often so short-dated it has to be used in half a week and then I have to spend more on takeaway.”
Mr Sodha added: “We are urging supermarkets to scrap supermarket delivery charges and lower minimum spending to £5.
“This will make an enormous difference to tens of thousands of disabled people, older people and people with long-term health conditions.”
Andrew Opie, director of food and sustainability at the British Retail Consortium, said: “Retailers have been working tirelessly since the start of the pandemic to support all their vulnerable customers.
“Supermarkets have greatly expanded their delivery capacity and doubled down on priority slots to ensure as many people as possible have online access to the goods they need.
“Many have provided support for delivery fees, and some have removed the fees altogether.”
He said that food companies have also brought in other measures to help vulnerable people, including dedicated shopping hours, and volunteer voucher schemes.
He added: “Furthermore, the safety measures put in place – from perspex screens to social distancing to additional hygiene measures – mean that everyone can shop safely in-store if they wish.”
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