Sainsbury’s has today been hit by an IT meltdown following an ‘error with an overnight software update’ that has prevented the grocery retailer from being able to fulfil online orders and accept contactless payments in stores.
“We’re experiencing technical issues affecting some stores, our Groceries Online service and our ability to contact customers. Unfortunately, we will not be able to fulfil the vast majority of today’s Groceries Online deliveries,” it said on X (formerly known as Twitter).
“We are working hard to fix the issue and apologise to our customers for the inconvenience. We will contact customers proactively to rebook orders as soon as we can.”
It added: “Unfortunately no orders will be going out today. Please book a new delivery from Monday onward. We’re very sorry for the inconvenience. Please bear with us whilst our IT team work tirelessly to resolve this.”
We’re experiencing technical issues affecting some stores, our Groceries Online service and our ability to contact customers. Unfortunately, we will not be able to fulfil the vast majority of today’s Groceries Online deliveries. (cont…)
— Sainsbury’s (@sainsburys) March 16, 2024
All stores are open as usual today but are operating with some limitations. While chip and PIN and cash transactions are working, Sainsbury’s is having issues with contactless and mobile payments.
Shoppers have also been reporting problems with using their Nectar cards and the SmartShop app.
One social media user questioned if customer personal data has been impacted by the technical outage.
They were told that shoppers’ ‘details will still be safe and secure even with the issues going on’.
Checkout.com
In 2022, Checkout.com was appointed by Sainsbury’s to simplify and modernise payment infrastructure across the retailer’s business.
New till-free technology was the first stage in a long-term partnership, aimed at creating more digital payment solutions for Sainsbury’s and improving its customer offering.
The Checkout.com enabled SmartShop functionality allows customers to pay for their shopping via an app on their smartphones.
Underpinning the new functionality is Checkout.com’s payments platform, enabling transactions through digital wallets such as Apple Pay and Google Pay.
This is live across Sainsbury’s SmartShop stores and has since been rolling out to Argos and Habitat stores.
Helen Hunter, Chief Technology Officer, Customer and Data, Sainsbury’s, said at the time: “Our priority is providing our customers with a smooth and frictionless shopping experience.”
“We’re excited to roll-out this new capability, made possible by Checkout.com’s technology, as we redefine an omnichannel checkout experience for customers with SmartShop.”
“Our strategic partnership with Checkout.com is an important part of our plan to simplify and modernise our payments infrastructure across Sainsbury’s.”
“We’re delighted to award them our supplier award for ‘One to Watch’ as a testament to their ability to go above and beyond. We look forward to evolving our omnichannel strategy, underpinned by their platform.”
StrongPoint deal
In January, StrongPoint said that it been selected by Sainsbury’s to supply order picking technology for online grocery orders fulfilled manually in-store.
Sainsbury’s is the UK’s second largest grocery retailer with over 1,400 supermarkets and convenience stores across the country, employing more than 152,000 people.
“StrongPoint is focused on serving the unique needs of grocery retailers and providing the very best e-commerce technologies. Our grocery e-commerce order picking solution is truly world class,” said Jacob Tveraabak, CEO at StrongPoint.
“The fact that we now serve the UK’s second largest grocery retailer is a perfect testament to the quality of our solution.”
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