Sainsbury’s has updated the rules for its Double Up promotion after being under pressure from Money Saving Expert Martin Lewis earlier this week.
The Double Up event sees customers given the chance to ‘double up’ their Nectar pointsand exchange them for vouchers between November 11 and November 17.
However, shoppers were left outraged when they realised the vouchers can only be redeemed in-store at bigger Sainsbury's supermarkets and cannot be used online, meaning shoppers will need to leave home during lockdown if they want to take advantage of the savings they have earned.
Martin Lewis demanded that Sainsbury’s change its rules so vulnerable Nectar card holders were still able to take advantage of the promotion.
The retailer has now issued updated rules for the Double Up event.
A spokesperson for Sainsbury’s said: “Double Up is a promotion aimed at loyal Sainsbury’s customers to get great value when they are already shopping with us in store for essential items.
“We launched the promotion pre the announcement of the English lockdown and have taken the decision to continue to offer it to customers, knowing that it helps them get great value ahead of Christmas.
“Unfortunately, most of the products included in the promotion are not available to buy online, so we are unable to offer Double Up online.
“Where Clinically Extremely Vulnerable customers have already redeemed points during our pre-issuance period from 28th October – 3rd November, we will reimburse double their points so that they can get great value again once they are able to go back into store.
“Where Clinically Extremely Vulnerable customers have a letter from their GP, our customer service team will support them in arranging points to be added to their account.”
This means vulnerable customers will now be able to maintain their double points until they can visit stores again after lockdown.
