Sainsbury’s shoppers slam supermarket as it SCRAPS popular Nectar card offer

SAINSBURY’S shoppers are fuming after the supermarket scrapped one of its most popular Nectar points deals.

The grocer has stopped its popular Nectar Double Up promotion and replaced it with a different offer this year.

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The change has left loyal customers disappointed as it means they’ll get less of a boost to their points than usual.

Each year, the supermarket runs a Double Up Nectar rewards scheme, allowing customers to swap their points for vouchers worth twice the usual amount.

But this year, Sainsbury’s is replacing that system with The Big Points Swap, and rewards will be smaller than usual.

To collect the points, customers simply shop as usual through the year and scan their Nectar card at the check out either in-store or online.

For every £1 spent, shoppers get one Nectar point – each point is usually worth 0.5p when redeemed in store,

So collecting 2,000 points will reward you with £10, for example.

But during the Double Up event, digital points are worth twice as much, meaning shoppers would receive a £20 voucher for 2,000 points instead of £10.

But that’s not the case this year.

Sainsbury’s is giving customers an extra 50% instead of 100% – so 2,000 points will get you a £15 voucher instead of the £20 of previous years.

One customer flagged the change in the Extreme Couponing and Bargains UK group on Facebook, saying: “Sainsbury’s are doing the Big Points Swap instead of Double Up this year.”

The post was met with 275 comments, many of which expressed disappointment and confusion surrounding the scheme’s replacement.

One person said: “I usually spend all my points on the double up and felt the removal of it was very poorly communicated.”

And to add to the frustration, not all Sainsbury’s customers are able to participate in the Big Points Swap.

One person raised this, commenting: “The event seems to be by invitation only.

“I don’t have it in my app so contacted Sainsbury’s live chat who said you can only participate if you’ve been sent an email, and that it’s for select customers – that’s BS and I plan to complain to head office.”

So those who didn’t receive and email invite won’t be able to join in at all.

Sainsbury’s told The Sun: “We regularly test new ways to offer our customers great value on their Nectar points.

“We’re currently trialling a points swap offer with a small proportion of customers and look forward to receiving their feedback.”

It also explained that shoppers will need 2,000 points to be eligible for the Swap, and can redeem up to a maximum of 10,000 points.

Customers will see different vouchers available to them within the app as part of the trial, which may explain why some are yet to receive an invitation.

You can find your local Sainsbury’s store using the branch locator.

The vouchers can only be used in one store and must be spent in one go, so bear that in mind before using it.

Shoppers should also check the expiry date of their vouchers on the app, which is free to download, to avoid missing out.

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This post first appeared on thesun.co.uk