‘While You’re Away’ gives drivers access to customers’ homes when they are out

Waitrose is trialling an “in-home” delivery service that gives drivers access to customers’ homes to unpack groceries while they are out.

The supermarket believes it is the first in the UK to test demand for such a service – initially with 100 customers in Coulsdon, south London – after it proved popular in the US and across Scandinavia.

The service, called While You’re Away, allows a customer with Yale smart-lock technology to set a temporary access code that is sent to Waitrose via a secure app. The code is then sent to the delivery driver’s device at the time of arrival at the customer’s home and is deleted once the delivery is complete.

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The driver will put away goods that need to be refrigerated or frozen and leave other groceries on the kitchen counter, or as instructed by the customer.

The delivery will be captured on a chest-camera worn by the driver, with the video available on request by the customer the next working day.

There will be a minimum order of £25 and, initially at least, a minimum of six deliveries, although Waitrose said it would review this after the trial.

Waitrose said it anticipated being able to make the service available to more than 1,000 customers in spring next year depending on the success of the trial.

Archie Mason, the head of business development at Waitrose & Partners, said: “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.”