Shoppers cash in on new Tesco Clubcard scheme during lockdown

Savvy shoppers have been taking advantage of Tesco's new Clubcard to bag big discounts on their food.

The supermarket launched Clubcard Plus late last year - with the idea being to reward people who carried out big shops at the store with money back.

But with lockdown meaning big shops were also about the only shops people were doing, people have been cashing in on the offer.

In fact, Tesco said today that the card is having three times as much of an impact than it anticipated before launching, even before Covid-19 hit.

And since then?

Tesco said the change in buying behaviour from shoppers - with fewer visits and bigger baskets only "enhances" the value of the Clubcard Plus offer.

Tesco said people were making fewer visits, but buying more each time they were there (Getty Images)

The Tesco Clubcard Plus offers people 10% off their shopping each month - in return for a £7.99 subscription.

However, the discount can only be applied two visits to the store.

That means, to get the biggest rewards, you need to buy £200 of shopping in one go, and do that every two weeks.

Before lockdown, with people often just picking up a few items here or there for that night's dinner, it might not have seemed worthwhile.

But since people were advised to head out as little as possible to reduce the chances of infection, it's absolutely perfect.

The bigger the shop, the more you save (Getty)

And people could make big savings.

"Taking into account the monthly subscription cost, customers who are taking advantage of the benefits could save over £400," Tesco said ahead of the card's launch.

Mirror Money calculations show that order to break even, you'll need to spend at least £79.90 a month over two shops - or £40 twice a month, every month - to cover the cost of subscription.

Anything more than that and you should be quids in.

The 10% discount applies to food, drinks, alcohol, household, pet, baby, fresh flowers and plants, health and beauty products.

The better news is it's free to cancel - so if your shopping habits or destination changes after lockdown is fully lifted, you can stop paying extra for the card.

The easiest way for customers to access the Clubcard benefits is through the Tesco Clubcard app.

But be aware the discount isn't applicable on lottery tickets, fuel, in branch cafés, at tobacco kiosks, gift cards, e-top ups, savings stamps, postage stamps, 10p carrier bags, prescription medicines or infant milk formula.

The traditional Clubcard is also still available to all customers free of charge.

To subscribe to Clubcard Plus, customers can visit  www.tesco.com/clubcard/clubcard-plus