Waitrose to trial delivery service allowing drivers to enter your home while you're out

The entire delivery will be filmed by a camera worn on the driver’s chest

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Waitrose is going to be trialling a new delivery service that allows drivers to enter your home when you’re out so that they can put your food shopping away for you.

The service, which is likely to raise security fears, will give drivers access to the homes of customers that use Yale “smart lock” technology.

Using a secure app, the Waitrose delivery driver will receive a temporary access code when they arrive at the customer’s home which will allow them to enter.

In addition to unpacking all of the food, the driver will also ensure that any perishable food products are put in the fridge or freezer.

Once the food delivery has been completed, the code on the driver’s digital device will be deleted.

The entire delivery process will be filmed by a camera worn on the driver’s chest, with the customer then being able to request the video footage on the next working day.

Waitrose believes that it’s the first supermarket to test the delivery service in the UK, with similar services already being rolled out the US and Scandinavia.

The service will initially be made available for 100 customers living in Coulsdon, south London, in an area spanning 169 postcodes.

The supermarket then plans on making it available to more than 1,000 customers in spring next year, depending on how well the trial goes.

Customers who live in Coulsdon can register to use the service now by visiting wya.waitrose.com.

Once 100 eligible customers have been selected for the trial, the service will then begin later this month.

Archie Mason, head of business development at Waitrose & Partners, says: “There is certainly an increasing demand among our customers to make shopping with us even more convenient to fit around their busy lifestyles.

“Rather than waiting for a delivery or trying to put everything away, it gives customers more flexibility to use that time differently, including more time enjoying cooking and eating the food they’ve bought.

“The concept of in-home delivery has started to prove popular in other countries so we are keen to establish if there is an appetite for it in the UK.”

When using the service, customers will have to make a minimum order of £25 and organise a minimum of six deliveries.

However, Waitrose is going to review these requirements following the initial trial.

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