Supermarkets are being urged to increase access to cheaper loyalty prizes

Most supermarket loyalty prizes offer real savings over the usual price, but are still not always the cheapest option, according to a major new report.

The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) says that while most of the prices it looked at offered real savings, some loyalty price products were cheaper at other supermarkets, and is urging customers to shop around.

It was also found that a very limited number of loyalty offers showed a pricing pattern that could indicate that the ‘usual’ price for the product may have been too high during the loyalty price promotion.

The report reiterated Which? is calling on supermarkets to provide access to lower loyalty prices for people excluded from signing up. It follows a series of Which? Research has shown that some loyalty pricing discounts are not always as good as they seem.

Are loyalty prizes real?

Two-tier loyalty pricing is now common among retailers, with members of a store’s loyalty program paying less than other customers. Many shoppers are leery of higher prices from non-members. Our survey of 1,970 shoppers earlier this year found that a worrying 55% believe non-member prices for items in a loyalty offer are higher than the usual retail prices of those products at that retailer. .

The good news for these consumers is that the CMA analyzed around 50,000 grocery items for loyalty price promotion across five supermarkets (Tesco, Sainsbury’s, Morrisons, Co-op and Waitrose) and found that the majority (92%) offered real savings on the usual price . of the product at that retailer.

However, which one? has previously looked at prices for thousands of products, not just from supermarkets, but also from health and beauty stores. We’ve repeatedly found examples of loyalty price offers that aren’t as good as they seem.

Our latest research uncovered cases where the non-member price was increased just before the loyalty promotion launched, instances where the product didn’t return to the non-member price when the loyalty promotion ended, and loyalty discounts that simply never stopped.

We also found some non-member prices that were much higher than competitors’ prices for the same products.

More information: loyalty discounts are not always as good as they seem

Millions excluded from lower prices

According to the CMA, the vast majority of consumers (97%) are members of at least one supermarket loyalty scheme.

But the CMA also found that 43% of shoppers thought it was unfair that loyalty program members paid lower prices than non-members for some products.

Earlier this year Which? revealed Millions of people don’t have access to lower loyalty prices at some of Britain’s biggest retailers as many programs have minimum age requirements, require shoppers to have a UK residency or address, or require an email address or access to an app to sign up.

This means young carers, teenagers buying lunch and people without internet access are among those excluded from lower prices at some stores.

We called for action from retailers to tackle this problem. The CMA has now backed these calls, saying some supermarkets could do more to ensure certain groups of consumers, such as those without smartphones or those under 18, can access – or know how to access – loyalty prizes.

Should you sign up for a loyalty program?

Retailer loyalty programs are big business. Some stores offer two-tiered loyalty pricing, where there is a lower price for members and a higher price for everyone else. Others offer points, different types of rewards or personalized discounts.

The discounts available through loyalty programs can be significant – on average between 10% (at Co-op and Boots) and 33% (at Superdrug), according to our Loyalty price survey in August 2024. The savings on individual products are sometimes much greater.

Loyalty programs collect purchasing data from customers: what they buy and where, and how much they spend. The insights gathered from this data are then often sold to other companies.

If you don’t mind getting a discount in exchange for your details and can sign up, it may be worth doing so as you will likely save money on your purchases.

But don’t let that put you off shopping around, there are big savings to be made by simply switching supermarkets, especially to Aldi and Lidl. These are regularly at the top of our monthly magazines cheapest supermarket comparison.

• More information: loyalty programs compared

Which one? calls for action on loyalty awards

Which one? believes the CMA should continue to look at loyalty pricing practices across a range of retailers (not just supermarkets) and be prepared to use its new powers to take action against those who fail to comply with consumer law.

Sue Davies, which one? head of the Food Policy Department: ‘Dual loyalty pricing has become a common practice among retailers. It is therefore reassuring that the CMA has found that most of the prices it examined in supermarkets delivered real savings over the usual price. However, the CMA emphasizes that it is worth shopping around as loyalty prizes are not always the cheapest option.

‘Which one? also looked at prices for thousands of products and repeatedly found examples of loyalty price offers that aren’t as good as they seem. We also raised concerns that millions of consumers are being excluded from access to lower prices due to loyalty program restrictions. It is therefore vital that supermarkets heed the CMA’s recommendation that supermarkets should do more to enable people to join their schemes.”