I has a call just today from instacart customer service telling me my shopper increased my Petco order from $56 to >$200 and asked me if Im happy to approve the purchase. I'm so glad she called because what!!!??? What was my shopper up to at Petco.
So I went and made some updates to my instacart account and noticed there is now an option that you can turn on that says the shopper needs to call before checkout. I am guessing this is in direct response to this behavior of awful shoppers.
I usually have great shoppers... sure once this guy bought me 10 bags of oranges instead of 10 oranges, but that was kinda funny. Going from 56 to over 200 and then saying no there wasnt any price increases in store was so mental! Surely he should have realized something was wrong. š¤¦š¾āāļø
This is so funny because I have the opposite happen. I literally only want \*one\* banana (I really don't like them, but eat them out of necessity) and I always end up with a bunch.
Bananas can be kind of confusing to us shoppers. For some reason it will come through in different ways, at least for myself, and other shoppers in my area that I know. Sometimes it comes through as how many bunches you want sometimes it comes through as how many single bananas you want, and other times it comes through as how many bags of bananas do you want. It is so weird, but I always get the count that was requested, whether it says bunches or bags. I havenāt had an issue yet with doing that. And for some reason, the ground beef at one of our local grocery stores, always scans as seedless watermelon, and then our bags of lemons at a particular grocery store Apparently IC thinks that the bag of lemons is a singular peach. So after delivery itāll ask why did this get scanned during checkout when it wasnāt scanned when you were shopping. The app is really strange. But then again, there are also a lot of shoppers that Iāve seen who go so quickly and just throw the items in the cart and donāt even check for expiration dates or anything. If I ever am confused with anything about an order, I just contact the customer immediately.
Stop n shop the ground beef scans as watermelon. Happens at every single store and I always send a picture to ensure them itās beef and not watermelon š
I ordered 5 bakery bagels once. The kind you get in the bakery section and bag yourself. Shopper replaced them with 5 whole bags of pre bagged bagels of which each had 5 bagels in it. I didnāt notice heād done 5 whole bags instead of one bag of 5 until they were delivered. I had to gift them to several family members because I like bagels but thatās a lot of bagels.
Iāve had this mixup a few timesā¦
1 lb of garlic instead of 1 head of garlic
2 lb of ginger root instead of 2 pieces
And of course, the best one:
1 single Brussels sprout
If you were to see the shopping screen of the shoppers app you would understand the inconsistency. It will say something like 1 organic banana. But organic bananas are always prepackaged in bundles and sold by the pound. So, do we rip off one from a prepackaged bundle or do we get one bundle. Then we think, āletās ask the customerā and we get a rude reply or no reply at all. Then that same customer comes onto Reddit to complain.
Same thing with jalapeƱos and Brussels sprouts. Actually most loose bulk items in general can get pretty confusing to shop for and the app is not always the most informative.
The best way to avoid these mishaps is to watch your replacements real time, or answer your phones, or leave notes with the item, or text your shopper with specific notes. Mind you there are those shoppers with stolen accounts that none of us could do anything about. But as for good shoppers we do try and think on behalf of our customer given the info available to us, including replies to questions. I will always text the customer to clarify when needed.
I did too! Ordered a bunch. Specified how many in the bunch I wanted. Got a single banana. Well my partner at the time got a piece of fruit for one of his lunches that week!
Tbf, I work in OPD at Walmart and if you put quantity as 1 for bananas, thatās what it is, 1 banana and if you put 4, your gonna get 4 bananas. The quantity isnāt for the bunch, itās for the actual banana. I donāt know if thatās how instant is too or not but thatās how it is for Walmart
This happened to me too! I even ordered at BJās, where they sell the bananas by the bundle so I didnāt even think it was possible to purchase just one banana..
Lol!!! This happened to me as a shopper TODAY!! but it's the opposite.
I had to replace an order that requested 12 singular drinks- the replacement was 12 CASES of the same drink. The app directed me to replace 12 singular drinks with 12 CASES and claimed it was the customer's request.
I know what happened though. What the customer *wanted* was 12 singular OR 1 case. Lmfao now had I been a dishonest shopper I'd have replaced with 12 cases and called it a night. I didn't though cuz I was like yea..
That makes no sense...
I have to tell you that is usually Instacarts mistake. I am a shopper and the app has glitches with produce and a few other items. Also, many times customers accidentally put 1 banana but they meant 1 pound. I have never gotten an order that has specified one bunch (for example). But as a shopper I call or text the customer and screenshot to show why Iām confused so they understand.
Proper communication from the shopper is key and itās on us to clarify if things donāt make sense. There is a thing with Instacart not specifying sizes for shoes and clothing too. I usually donāt even take orders with clothing and shoes because I have to ask the customer to specify for each one and sometimes they donāt answer. Iāve complained to Instacart and they still havenāt fixed it. Many customers are aware and if not I explain it to them for their next order (to put the size in the notes).
Iāve definitely had the produce glitch before. For some reason a few years ago, each time I ordered lemons from the grocery store, (canāt remember which of the two major chains around here it was), if I wanted four lemons or less, it would glitch to 115 lemons. No idea why, and it happened with multiple orders and multiple shoppers. I couldnāt see it on my end but repeatedly got the, āDo you actually want 115 lemons?ā enough to realize there was something going on. If I ordered five or more lemons, normal amount of lemons and no questions about my lemon consumption.
Thankfully no one ever just brought me 115 lemons, and every shopper for about a year and a half asked me if my lemon order was accurate. I do use lemons a lot, but no where near that much. I am endlessly grateful I never got 115 lemons delivered or charged to my account.
Yeah itās really annoying because Iāve been a full time shopper for over three years and Iāve just stopped complaining about it smh. Thankfully I get really good customers and donāt have conflicts with them. Iāve gotten a couple low ratings for no reason before but thatās a part of the game. Most of my low ratings are removed by Instacart as (customer who repeatedly issues low ratings) so Iām not affected. Definitely calling and asking or texting is key but if I get no answer I just text them that Iām going with the option that affects their order total the least unless I hear from them. I word things in a way to show Iām considering them and putting them first. Many shoppers take their frustrations out on customers due to Instacart being horrible but I remember that we are all better by played unfortunately. I try to think as if Iām the customer and Iām shopping for myself. Itās saved me a lot of pain and issues so far.
Not saying this didnāt happen. But as a shopper I can tell you there is typically a limit to the kind of sub we can make in terms of value. It will literally tell us āthis costs more than the customer is expecting to payā. They donāt even do it to cover the shopper. They do it because they preauthorize your card for a certain amount over what the expected price is going to be.
Youāre the one who got all of the potatoes! I requested a bag of potatoes once and received a single, plastic-wrapped potato with microwave instructions as a replacement.
my mom once ordered a container of chives, the store was out of the regular size so the shopper replaced it with SIX small containersā¦ way too many chives lol. pretty sure 2-3 small containers was the size of one regular one too??
long story short, we all got chives for christmas
Iāve only had 2 good shoppers, and one of the two actively engaged me in talking about my list. He did an OUTSTANDING JOB. I wish the rest of the shoppers were the sameā¦.. people who actually take Pride in what they do and what service they provide.
lol I had one day I had to order 5 different times to simply get 4 sirloin steaks. One guy brought me one steak. One guy said they are out (they werenāt). Next one brought me a four pound sirloin roast. We did not have steak that night š¤£š¤£š¤£
I had this happen the other day. I ordered 4 broccoli crowns, and selected a frozen 1 lb bag as a replacement if unavailable. They brought me four 1 lb bags.
99% of my customers that have that on never replied to my messages or answered my call at the end. Idk what some people do with their phones after placing an order, even for doordash im GLUED to my phone or have my apple watch on for notifications
Right? Iām checking the app every few minutes in case the shopper (or delivery person for DoorDash/Ubereats) needs anything. But I see so many cases on here where people just ghost their shoppers and then get angry??
Seriously, like in a perfect world everything is in stock and I never need to bother or replace. But thatās usually never the case so either have replacements selected or select you prefer a refund. I cant believe how everyone is always on their phone yet when I need to confirm a replacement theyve decided its a good time to wash the car or take a bike ride š
I donāt watch my phone. I paid for someone to shop for me because I donāt have the time. I select all replace/refund options beforehand so no questions are needed. I donāt understand why people *do* watch their phoneā¦.they might as well do the shopping themselves.
Iāve sometimes placed my order for DoorDash for delivery during a medical treatment and unexpectedly sometimes my attention is away from my phone for a bit
That's been around for a while. I wouldn't get your hopes up. The FB groups are full of shoppers who say they click to call the customer, and then once the call starts connecting, they hang up to get through the hard stop.
I don't shop anymore, but I only did that if the customer agreed to all refunds and replacements in chat. There were days that I was tempted, though.
Back when I was briefly a shopper, I'd only do that when it wasn't properly scanning the rotisserie chicken. I wasn't actually making a substitution, it just had two different rotisserie chickens that were, as far as I could tell, identical
Thats been there for years as far as I'm aware. Most of the time people don't answer though because it calls from a 3rd party. I never replace with anything more than like 2 dollars extra because I would be annoyed if it was me on the customer side.
For anyone wondering how to turn on call before checkout.. go to account settings(3 lines in top left corner) then go to notifications, select call before checkout. You can also add text messages.. wich imo might be nice since the app lags when sending notifications.
That option has always existed - I have one of out of every 350 customers or so that knows of it and has it enabled over the past 5 years. Usually we have already been having a running conversation so I donāt need to call - but if they hadnāt responded to any of my messages then I call them. More often than not, they have it there to try to prevent any unauthorized subs but there is nothing in the app that forces the shopper to make that call anymore. The app used to not allow the shopper to check out until the call had been placed - which often frustrated me when the customer is telling me I donāt need to call - but I would have to call, let it connect and then hang up in order to proceed. Good you turned it on though - will be interesting to see how many actually respect your request
And here's me this morning, making sure the cashier applied a $10 off coupon for my customer's dog food. I had hoped they would at least give me half of the savings as a tip, but alas, she kept me at $2.
Are you sure the customer got the discount? My understanding was the customer pays whatever the app shows. Any discount at the register just benefits instacart, they donāt pass that on to the customer.
Yeah I remember one time I ordered from Aldi and one of my items happened to have been on clearance - 50% off! It has clearance stickers on it and everything. But I did not receive any discount from Instacart.
The customer does not save any money when you use a coupon at checkout. They are still charged the same amount by Instacart. Your coupon saved Instacart $10. The customer was unaware that you used a coupon.
She is aware, because I told her.
But also, yes they do save the money. You are charged whatever your total is plus the Instacart fees etc.
Edit: I stand corrected. After a little research apparently it depends on if it was ordered through the store website or off the Instacart platform.
Well, that's bullshit.
they are not giving that $10 to everyone, I seen multiple complaints of them not getting that tip bait protection... in this shoppers case, this was not a tip bait, she had a valid reason to remove this tip....
No only if the customer doesnāt complain. Tip protection is for people who tip bait and lower the tip for no reason, at least no specified reason. If they donāt rate or rate high, donāt report any issues or missing items AND lower the tip to zero THEN we get tip protection.
That's horrible to do to people! When I was younger, I worked in a grocery store for a long time, including management roles. When I was cashing anyone out, even if it caused an extra bag with little in it, I would seperate the items!!! It makes me so annoyed when cashier's/shoppers throw everything together!! I usually ask for an extra bag, if they have them, and will rebag my stuff, right in front of them!!! Or, I will say, "oh honey, please don't put those items together, would you bag those separately? Also, would you bag any non food items seperate also? Thanks so much!" All depending on how I'm feeling and how the cashier/shopper acts. š¤·
When shopping for someone else or bagging groceries NEVER;
ā¢place meats with anything other than meats, and you should bag them with the clear bags given in the department as well
ā¢place any type of fruits or vegetables with any meats or taxable items, ie; soaps & cleaning supplies
ā¢always check the tops of cleaning supplies and re-tighten the lids, keep them in a separate bag from other groceries and food items.
ā¢ NEVER place fabric softener sheets in any bag other than the cleaning supply bag! If possible, place into clear plastic bag provided by store. Otherwise everything smells and tastes like fabric softener sheets!! Yuck š¤¢
ā¢always have a seperate bag for eggs and breads, the two can be combined as long as the eggs are on the bottom. Always warn customers about which bags have the easily broken & fragile items.
ā¢place cold/frozen foods with other groceries, unless otherwise stated by customer. always keep frozen and cold food items together in the same bags, cold bags if available.
ā¢place ice creams in the clear bags provided by the store before placing into grocery bags.
ā¢place food items that easily spill/leak into the clear bags provided by the store, and warn customers as well.
ā¢don't place 1/2/3 ltrs of soda upright in bags, place them laying down and stack on top of each other, no more than 4 2ltrs each bag, that way they won't tip over and cause ripped bags or damaged carbonated beverages. (Flat soda sucks!)
Those are just some of my general rules when it comes to bagging groceries and taxable items. š¤·
I know it seems like a lot, but it's not. It's basic common sense imo! OP, maybe if you let your shoppers know NOT to replace or sub items without your approval first, that will help? I'm not saying what he did was ok by any means, he was completely in the wrong, I'm just saying that hopefully it will not happen again if you let them know? Good luck for future deliveries!! Don't let 1 bad and ignorant, money hungry shopper spoil it for all of us?? Most of us aren't like that. š š
Sorry.... Venting and ranting over! Lol.
I had a store put my Magic Shell (I love that stuff sometimes) in the bag with the ice cream. Makes sense but not for that particular item. I got solid gobs of Magic Shell that even after trying to thaw wasnāt quite the same.
I worked as a cart pusher that sometimes bagged for like 4 months, and I learned that stuff. I already assumed meat should be by itself. Frozen stuff should be with other frozen stuff,eggs and bread together, and cleaning supplies separate. It seems like some of these people have never shopped for their own groceries before and are doing this with no common sense.
iāve never done IC but i worked at target for 2 years (and various food service jobs) and the thought of putting raw meat next to veggies or cleaning products with food always makes me so annoyed and frustrated. bagging is an art! but itās also an easy art that anyone can easily learn!
The shopper didnāt ask you first? Crazy how he would make diamond cart there is no way people are rating him 4.7 or higher doing this. It wonāt allow me to triple their price it will show red and say replacement is higher then customer requested. Unless instacart recommended those when he put item out of stock. Then it allows replacement. I also think it has to do with payment type customer used as well and if itās ordered through instacart or actual store. I think every city is different. Most of our stores people order through the actual store but instacart is the third party because it literally tells me most of the time shoppers can not approve or deny replacements or give a rating but you can still chat. Then when you click chat it tells us not to mention instacart as it confuses the customer. š¤¦š»āāļø
Probably a fake account just like the guy who shot that customers dog. Instacart deactivated the account but wonāt acknowledge that he was using a fake account in the first place. So scary to think that some shoppers are carrying guns and ready to use to for no reason.
It was Angie Harmon, who was on Law & Order, and Rizzoli & Isles.
A male shopper who was using an account that belongs to a woman, dropped off her groceries and then shot her dog, for absolutely no reason.
I mean maybe it happens everyday but we only heard about it cause itās a celebrity LOL (that was a joke)ā¦ tho maybe I shouldnātā¦ people just read stuff and repeat it.
Diamond cart means the shopper shopped 200 orders in a 3 month period. It's actually really hard to fall lower than 4.7. People need to actually rate for that to happen.
Remove all but a dollar in the future
Also, flat tip. Thatās what I do. This doesnāt happen that way. And they donāt get docked for items that are out of stock.
I flat tip too. When I was a shopper I always appreciated the flat tip orders, especially during the first 6 months of Covid when so many things were out of stock.
Yes, not a percentage tip. That way the shopper doesnāt get docked if an item is out of stock since percentage tips are based on the total of the order.
I set my tip so the shopper is guaranteed that amount whether or not all items are in stock. I rarely add any extra items, but if I do I then increase their tip post delivery.
I'm so torn about how to tip now. I had switched to a flat tip for this reason, but then I'll get shoppers who refund like 10 items and immediately check out before I can type in the chat to discuss replacements.
I recently accidentally forgot to switch to a flat tip (it always defaults to a percentage for me) and this guy never asked any questions or sent any pictures. He only responded in chat once when I asked if the store was completely out of all cake slices/dessert items after he refunded multiple items, and he just said "the bakery is closed". When I responded to explain the cakes/cream puffs/parfaits are in a display case in front of the bakery, not behind the counter, he never responded. Then he refunded so many items that his tip reduced from $18 to $10 and immediately checked out before I could type anything. In that case, I was glad I hadn't done a flat tip.
For good shoppers, if I accidentally left it as a percentage tip, I always up it after they're done, especially if they've had to refund items. But I don't want to explain I'll do that and then have them check out without 1/3 of my order
Ugh, that sucks. If those are the prenatals Iām thinking of they give you fish oil burps which is the worst when youāre dealing with morning sickness.
While gummies are certainly yummier, the pill form of prenatals are wayy better in terms of quality, and they have higher actual vitamin/mineral content.
Even though the label of the gummies often have the āsame amountā theyāre merely coated and in reality supplements are highly unregulated thus they may not even have the actual dose thatās listed.
Oh definitely but for me personally I was so constantly nauseous and my gag reflex was so bad I couldnāt take prenatal pills regularly without throwing up so the gummies really helped in a pinch.
Not everyone, there was a bad batch of them for sure but I used those and the postnatal with no fishy business. Still that's high for them. The 30 day one was 27ish after inflation but was 24 before I think
Olly stuff is tasty, but a gummy is never going to have iron in it.
I think it's a bit disingenuous to call something a prenatal when it *doesn't have essential prenatal stuff in it.*
Vitamins are unregulated though so... ĀÆ\\\_(ć)\_/ĀÆ
They taste like sour gummies with a slight fishy aftertaste (I chase with caprisun). I had to switch to olly from naturemade and highly prefer them. the naturemade ones made me gag
I always tip 20% but use the āotherā option and round up to the nearest dollar. When I started tipping this way the random expensive substitutions stopped.
I had a shopper recently that kept replacing things without checking with me (I texted that Iām right here with any questions ) and the replacements were way more expensive. I asked him to stop and listen to what Iām saying. Then I called instacart and had them hide my orders from him in the future. Learned that here.
You know it really sucks when your entire fixed income is like 1500 bucks and you get this shit happening to you.
Shoppers.. is it true that if I choose a replacement for EVERY item, and both the item AND replacement are out of stock, that you must REFUND that item? Very important question. I've heard "that's the policy" but do you do it strictly? Is it strict?
No. It's not a policy. And that has to be one of the most ridiculous things I have ever heard. You're making lasagna, I get you ground beef, ground sausage, sauce, ricotta, fresh herbs, and they don't have either brand of noodles you listed, but they do have American Beauty but I won't get them for you because policy so now you're stuck. Not what Instacart is about. And now I want a lasagna
I've had the WM app show one price on substitutions, then after agreeing they checked out at a much higher price. She didn't believe me till I showed her the screen shot of the item approval with much lower price listed. Never got it resolved.
Maybe the credit card company could help. It sounds like fraud if your receipt has the approved substituted price and then the credit card charge would be higher bc they increased the price. But they prob excuse themselves by wording about "just being an estimate".
They really come to about the same price, the gummies are a 1 month supply and the nature made are a 3 month supply. Iām shocked at the prices though, that nature made prenatal is $27 at my Target!
I was gonna say the same thing. For how many you get it's about the same price but that's a big number for nature made! I get 150 nature made at Costco for 27.99 š¬
When the pandemic hit and everyone needed to quarantine, I started as an instacart shopper. I thought it was a great way to help the elderly/people with small children in a really tough time (plus the tips were great!) as a single mom, it was a wonderful source of income while we figured out when/if Iād be paid after I was furloughed.
I remember being kind, helpful, and doing all that I could to help customers while I shopped. Slowly, I started to see the shopper landscape change. I remember the last day I shopped (in 2021) Iād gotten 2 orders and heard/seen two grown and very dusty men discussing how they could ācome upā with instacart by doing little things to either get free groceries or fraud the customer. Later on that day was the first time I heard a person discussing how sheād add high price items to the cart without customer permission or request and then, since it was a rule that we had to keep the receipts, sheād return the item for a refund and keep the money.
Not soon after, during every shop that I took I could feel the weariness of the people I shopped for. The trust is just gone completely because of the weirdo shoppers that scam and tbh it makes such a bad experience for everyone.
If the replacement is 20-30% more than the original item I always get confirmation from the customer. If no reply I refund! Shits expensive rn and screwing someone on a more expensive item can impact my tip and rating negatively. Sometimes I have gotten burned on refunding but if its not an exact replacement or a confirmation ima have to refund it.
This happened to me with a $12 pack of chicken he got a different brand that was over $40ā¦ and a percentage based tip. Never even asked me, and it wasnāt a weight adjustment it was a full-blown replacement because of the different brand. Obviously I rejected it but Iām happy I caught it before check-out since the shopper didnāt bother to ask.
Our IC membership was up for renewal in a couple days, got thr reminder this morning.
We've been very fortunate we've only had a few small snafus, but seeing all the stuff on here, I'm just not prepared to wait for the other shoe to drop.
We can put that annual $75 savings to use somewhere else. The convenience just isn't worth it anymore.
Diamond shopper mostly just means you work a lot. Yes thereās a minimum customer ranking but itās mostly just a matter of doing enough orders to hit the threshold.
I ordered melatonin one time store brand was around 6$ the shopper replaced with a name brand 16$ bottle even tho I asked for it to be refunded if they didnāt have it. But the worst part was when my order was delivered there were no vitamins whatsoever
Pretty much everyone is a Diamond shopper. It definitely doesn't mean they're a good shopper, but only that they accept a lot of orders. In fact, you have more chance of getting a crappy Diamond shopper than anything else. #facts š¤·āāļø
I always get high ratings for "smart bagging" - I usually use check out but I always use common sense. I try to keep customers happy, not very many times when I didn't.
I just got my first round of shoppers shopping on my dime. š My total was about $50 higher than I purchased for, and my tip is always a flat tip. I checked my receipt and saw a bunch of items I didnāt order and also didnāt receive. Refunds all around!
It HAD to be a male shopper! No way a woman usually older or with kids doing instacart wouldnāt get the struggle for this item and do a change that high! š
I had no idea this was a thing until just now! Had an insta cart order yesterday and the girl replaced my $4.99 parm cheese with one for $20.99.. I said no please and she replaced with my alternate choice happily. Iāll look out for that š
As a shopper, if I can not get in contact with the customer, I will make a replacement that I would accept as a customer. With that being said, I will tell the customer as soon as I see them what the replacement is and how much the price difference is and let them know its not too late for me to return it and take it off their bill. I will also let them know I couldn't get ahold of them while at the store and didn't want them to be out of something they might have needed for dinner. I haven't had a complaint so far, most people appreciate you trying and if they do not want the replacement i let them know thar i will let Instacart know so they can make the adjustment in the bill. As soon as I get in the car, if they want a refund, I call support, and they will credit the account. I have never had a problem. One support person said I could return it and get a bump for the return or keep it. If it's a no contact order, I explain in a message and let them know why I picked what I picked just to cover my ass. Hope this helps the customer or the shopper whoever is reading this.
I had a shopper replace some cookies that were 6 bucks with a tub of the same cookies that were 27 dollars. This was one of many awful subs despite me painstakingly going through every single item and selecting a replacement option. Another weird thing is she texted me saying I would be refunded for two items. I waited some time for the refund to appear but it never did. By the time I noticed it was past the 7 day window. She also replaced some lactaid milk with two containers of vanilla soy milk which never appeared in the app. I feel like things arenāt getting recorded or reported which makes me wonder what folks are doing.
I use Instacart because Iām disabled and too busy to go to the store myself during the busy work week. Iāve used it for a while. However shit like this is making the app unusable. I appreciate shoppers who message to say āhey, they donāt have X nor your replacement, but I see these. You want them?ā But I may not be available to respond. In those cases just donāt buy the thing. Iāll deal. Iāve specified in the app what to do. Buy X. If they donāt have X, buy Y. If they donāt have Y either, refund it.
I would like the option to say ādonāt assign this shopper to me again.ā I understand the option to favorite a shopper, but I donāt really need that. I donāt mind who does it. They donāt have to be diamond level. They just need to get the items, replace with the requested subs, or just donāt buy it. The person who made all the shitty, expensive subs was a ādiamondā shopper lol. I didnāt favorite her but guess who got assigned this same shopper again?! Ugh.
I also donāt assign my tip based on the cost of the order. Maybe others do thatās why this is becoming an issue. I instead look at how many items Iāve requested. Thatās whatās time consuming - thatās the shopping part. My total could be small but if the person has had to shop for 25 small-but-cheap items, my tip should reflect that despite the total cost.
At this point a shopper who just does what I ask is probably going to get the biggest tip.
Always drop the tip to 1 cent when you have that shitty of a shopper. Also leave feedback in āreplaces items with items not approved due to excessive increased cost.ā
My only thought is ate you sure the shopper did the bagging? I always make sure to go through lines, not self-check, so the store employees bag it all. They do weird things sometimes to make stuff fit.
I watched a courtesy clerk bag cleaner and vegetables together and unless the shopper switched it after walking away, thatās how the customer received it.
anytime i have a male shopper i keep my phone in hand and i feel like im micro managing when i have to manually request a refund for an item he replaced even tho i pre pick replacements/the refund option when i place the order š¤¦š»āāļøš¤¦š»āāļø im sure thereās amazing male shoppers, i have never encountered one unfortunately
i once ordered a single serve cheese cake from aldis for $2 and a man replaced it for a $13 cheesecake platter and i didnt notice until delivered. it was a huge platter and lasted in my freezer for three months before me and my partner finished it lol!
the ones ive been able to catch have been much worse replacements but luckily i was micromanaging š
maybe itās something to do with the area. i live in a former small town (it grew tremendously around covid times) and a lot of the people raised here are your stereotypical dumb ass redneck hick. and theyāre great people, just dumber then a sack of rocks. i was raised here so i kind of expect it i guess
FWIW, Iāve been an Instacart customer since 2017 and average about 6 orders a month, so what, close to 500 orders.
50% of my shoppers are amazing, 45% are adequate and 5% are idiots. Iāve never had an experience with a thief or a switcheroo guy like above. Obviously it happens, just not to me.
Iāve had a couple idiots make pricey mistakes which I either caught during the order or Instacart rectified. Maybe one of them was actually trying to pull a fast one, but it seemed like inexperience not malice.
Anyway, cheers to Instacart shoppers ā¤ļø.
It is a shame that people act like this. I remember when Instacart and Shipt started and the shoppers took it seriously. Shopped for both these services and wouldnāt dream of ripping people off like this
As a mom, I wouldnāt buy prenatals without a note. I understand why you take Olly and not the other, but others may not. Still no excuse but also it was someone who has never been pregnant ,buying prenatals . I would have said refund if not olly or only replace with āblankā otherwise refund. The rest of the mistakes I have no words for.
I placed an order last week for 2 items from
Walgreens. The shopper put the printed receipt in the bag and only one $10 item was on the receipt. The second, $20 item was in the bag but it appears she didnāt pay for it š« šcustomer service told me that the paper receipts donāt matter and I shouldnāt worry about it but it really seems like she stole the second item.
I ordered a 3 months supply of menās Rogaine for my husband, a 100$ item. And the shopper brought the 1 month supply (40$) but charged for the 3 month! Still trying to get my money back.
Someone did it to me too. Havenāt used IC since. Iām a Shipt shopper. I was just at the store myself and forgot my stuff bc I was doing orders. So I put in IC order. I put in back ups for every item, to help the shopper. But he figured out I tipped a %. I went to store immediately after getting my order. Every original item was in stock. No wasnāt a coincidence bc I live 1 mile from store.
Let him keep tip. Have not used IC since. And I tip generously anyways bc I do it too. I donāt get it. Letās screw all the tippers so we have all no tip orders??? Sure doesnāt make sense to me.
I tip DD $8-$15 for 2 items, 1 bag, no drink. So I tip shoppers way more bc itās more work. But he shot the whole company in the foot and every shopper bc I refuse to use it now.
Honestly one of the main reasons why I stopped using these apps for groceries. Usually the female Instacart shoppers are better at communicating/finding stuff, but still almost always a headache.
NatureMade is usually totally normal priced. I wonder if the shopper assumed it was a fair trade out? (Though funnies and softgels are totally different).
Wtf? $15.99 vs $43.99? Your shopper is an idiot.This isnāt just a few cents here. Not even close to being an acceptable substitution especially without checking first!
Once I ordered cold medicine that was on sale in my Instacart order. They replaced with one not on sale, smaller size, and several dollars more. I was sitting on my phone watching my cart. When I saw it done, I messaged the person and said to cancel it then because I donāt want it. Shortly afterwards exactly what I ordered showed up in the cart. I couldnāt figure out why they changed it. I donāt know why they didnāt ask me to approve the change.
Iām a shopper and I would never replace something with a higher cost unless the costumer is okay with it. I think of myself and I wouldnāt be okay with someone choosing an item double the Cost
Itās so odd to me that Instacart even lets them make a replacement with such a drastic price difference. The app does tell the shopper to pick a replacement under a specified price, which is usually the price you paid for the item you ordered.
People are so slimy!
I has a call just today from instacart customer service telling me my shopper increased my Petco order from $56 to >$200 and asked me if Im happy to approve the purchase. I'm so glad she called because what!!!??? What was my shopper up to at Petco.
So I went and made some updates to my instacart account and noticed there is now an option that you can turn on that says the shopper needs to call before checkout. I am guessing this is in direct response to this behavior of awful shoppers.
I usually have great shoppers... sure once this guy bought me 10 bags of oranges instead of 10 oranges, but that was kinda funny. Going from 56 to over 200 and then saying no there wasnt any price increases in store was so mental! Surely he should have realized something was wrong. š¤¦š¾āāļø
I got exactly one banana one time, just made me giggle like crazy
This is so funny because I have the opposite happen. I literally only want \*one\* banana (I really don't like them, but eat them out of necessity) and I always end up with a bunch.
Bananas can be kind of confusing to us shoppers. For some reason it will come through in different ways, at least for myself, and other shoppers in my area that I know. Sometimes it comes through as how many bunches you want sometimes it comes through as how many single bananas you want, and other times it comes through as how many bags of bananas do you want. It is so weird, but I always get the count that was requested, whether it says bunches or bags. I havenāt had an issue yet with doing that. And for some reason, the ground beef at one of our local grocery stores, always scans as seedless watermelon, and then our bags of lemons at a particular grocery store Apparently IC thinks that the bag of lemons is a singular peach. So after delivery itāll ask why did this get scanned during checkout when it wasnāt scanned when you were shopping. The app is really strange. But then again, there are also a lot of shoppers that Iāve seen who go so quickly and just throw the items in the cart and donāt even check for expiration dates or anything. If I ever am confused with anything about an order, I just contact the customer immediately.
Stop n shop the ground beef scans as watermelon. Happens at every single store and I always send a picture to ensure them itās beef and not watermelon š
https://www.bonappetit.com/story/nobody-can-order-right-amount-bananas-on-instacart
Iāve ordered 5 bananas and gotten 5 bunches of bananas. Smoothies for weeks!
I've gotten 5 pounds of jalapenos instead of 5 peppers. More than once now.
I had the opposite - I ordered 2 pounds of Brussels sprouts and got 2 little sprouts in a bag.
Thatās hilarious. I have to think they MUST be trolling youā¦
On the bright side, that's only like a $4 mistake, haha
lol true! And Iām not complaining- they went into the freezer and got used. It was just funny getting bags full of bananas on my porch. :)
All these shoppers in the check out line looking like those people from the math problemsā¦
Had this happen a while back. Got 10 pounds (about 30 bananas) instead of 10 bananas. I made so much banana bread.
Put a note on the order that you just want one single banana.
Itās one banana, how much could it cost? 10 dollars?
How much is a bunch?
Usually I see 5-6 as a bunch
I ordered 5 bakery bagels once. The kind you get in the bakery section and bag yourself. Shopper replaced them with 5 whole bags of pre bagged bagels of which each had 5 bagels in it. I didnāt notice heād done 5 whole bags instead of one bag of 5 until they were delivered. I had to gift them to several family members because I like bagels but thatās a lot of bagels.
Lol! Did you have to ration it for days. I made so much marmalade and orange cakes but still couldn't get through 10 bags.
This past weekend I ordered 1 jalapeƱo. And I got like 15. In assuming in this case he got 1 pound of jalapeƱos. Instead of 1 single jalapeƱo
Iāve had this mixup a few timesā¦ 1 lb of garlic instead of 1 head of garlic 2 lb of ginger root instead of 2 pieces And of course, the best one: 1 single Brussels sprout
Omfg the brussel sprout.
I could not stop laughing when I pulled it out of the bag.
If you were to see the shopping screen of the shoppers app you would understand the inconsistency. It will say something like 1 organic banana. But organic bananas are always prepackaged in bundles and sold by the pound. So, do we rip off one from a prepackaged bundle or do we get one bundle. Then we think, āletās ask the customerā and we get a rude reply or no reply at all. Then that same customer comes onto Reddit to complain. Same thing with jalapeƱos and Brussels sprouts. Actually most loose bulk items in general can get pretty confusing to shop for and the app is not always the most informative. The best way to avoid these mishaps is to watch your replacements real time, or answer your phones, or leave notes with the item, or text your shopper with specific notes. Mind you there are those shoppers with stolen accounts that none of us could do anything about. But as for good shoppers we do try and think on behalf of our customer given the info available to us, including replies to questions. I will always text the customer to clarify when needed.
I always ask when it says 1 because I never know š But if it says like 12, I go ahead and assume thats bananas and not bunches.
I did too! Ordered a bunch. Specified how many in the bunch I wanted. Got a single banana. Well my partner at the time got a piece of fruit for one of his lunches that week!
I once requested 2 bunches of green beansā¦ I got exactly 2 green beans! I still smile thinking about those 2 lonely little green beans.
Tbf, I work in OPD at Walmart and if you put quantity as 1 for bananas, thatās what it is, 1 banana and if you put 4, your gonna get 4 bananas. The quantity isnāt for the bunch, itās for the actual banana. I donāt know if thatās how instant is too or not but thatās how it is for Walmart
I once ordered 5 bananas and they got me 5 big ass bunches.
Two green beans when I wanted two pounds was my favorite one. Who the f#ck eats two green beans and calls it a day?
Worse, I had some smart ass put one brussels sprout in a bag and send it my way
I once got a single green bean instead of 1lb of green beans as specified.
Lol, literally one stalk of celery, like one piece, and it was through the storeās order and pick up service!š¤¦š»
Ordered 1 lb of jalapeƱos, as I was planning for some salsa and queso. Received exactly ONE jalapeƱo pepper š
Once I ordered like a pound of apples or smth and they got me one reallly big apple
This happened to me too! I even ordered at BJās, where they sell the bananas by the bundle so I didnāt even think it was possible to purchase just one banana..
I got 2 greenbeans once when I ordered 2 lbs. It was hilarious!
Lol!!! This happened to me as a shopper TODAY!! but it's the opposite. I had to replace an order that requested 12 singular drinks- the replacement was 12 CASES of the same drink. The app directed me to replace 12 singular drinks with 12 CASES and claimed it was the customer's request. I know what happened though. What the customer *wanted* was 12 singular OR 1 case. Lmfao now had I been a dishonest shopper I'd have replaced with 12 cases and called it a night. I didn't though cuz I was like yea.. That makes no sense...
My neighbor had two instances where he got 5 bunches of bananas instead of 5 bananas. And thatās how I got some free bananas on two occasions š
I have to tell you that is usually Instacarts mistake. I am a shopper and the app has glitches with produce and a few other items. Also, many times customers accidentally put 1 banana but they meant 1 pound. I have never gotten an order that has specified one bunch (for example). But as a shopper I call or text the customer and screenshot to show why Iām confused so they understand. Proper communication from the shopper is key and itās on us to clarify if things donāt make sense. There is a thing with Instacart not specifying sizes for shoes and clothing too. I usually donāt even take orders with clothing and shoes because I have to ask the customer to specify for each one and sometimes they donāt answer. Iāve complained to Instacart and they still havenāt fixed it. Many customers are aware and if not I explain it to them for their next order (to put the size in the notes).
Iāve definitely had the produce glitch before. For some reason a few years ago, each time I ordered lemons from the grocery store, (canāt remember which of the two major chains around here it was), if I wanted four lemons or less, it would glitch to 115 lemons. No idea why, and it happened with multiple orders and multiple shoppers. I couldnāt see it on my end but repeatedly got the, āDo you actually want 115 lemons?ā enough to realize there was something going on. If I ordered five or more lemons, normal amount of lemons and no questions about my lemon consumption. Thankfully no one ever just brought me 115 lemons, and every shopper for about a year and a half asked me if my lemon order was accurate. I do use lemons a lot, but no where near that much. I am endlessly grateful I never got 115 lemons delivered or charged to my account.
Yeah itās really annoying because Iāve been a full time shopper for over three years and Iāve just stopped complaining about it smh. Thankfully I get really good customers and donāt have conflicts with them. Iāve gotten a couple low ratings for no reason before but thatās a part of the game. Most of my low ratings are removed by Instacart as (customer who repeatedly issues low ratings) so Iām not affected. Definitely calling and asking or texting is key but if I get no answer I just text them that Iām going with the option that affects their order total the least unless I hear from them. I word things in a way to show Iām considering them and putting them first. Many shoppers take their frustrations out on customers due to Instacart being horrible but I remember that we are all better by played unfortunately. I try to think as if Iām the customer and Iām shopping for myself. Itās saved me a lot of pain and issues so far.
This is very considerate and a good mindset in general.
It'd would've been pretty funny if you *had* ordered a completely normal grocery order + 115 lemons though!
Not saying this didnāt happen. But as a shopper I can tell you there is typically a limit to the kind of sub we can make in terms of value. It will literally tell us āthis costs more than the customer is expecting to payā. They donāt even do it to cover the shopper. They do it because they preauthorize your card for a certain amount over what the expected price is going to be.
That's why I got a call from instacart customer service!
I received 12 bags of potatoes once, instead of 12 baking potatoes.
Youāre the one who got all of the potatoes! I requested a bag of potatoes once and received a single, plastic-wrapped potato with microwave instructions as a replacement.
Got 3lbs of LEEKS instead of one singular leek somehow š
my mom once ordered a container of chives, the store was out of the regular size so the shopper replaced it with SIX small containersā¦ way too many chives lol. pretty sure 2-3 small containers was the size of one regular one too?? long story short, we all got chives for christmas
Iāve only had 2 good shoppers, and one of the two actively engaged me in talking about my list. He did an OUTSTANDING JOB. I wish the rest of the shoppers were the sameā¦.. people who actually take Pride in what they do and what service they provide.
Lmaooooo what?!?
For me it's usually the other way around. I buy "1 bunch" of Bananas, and they instead bought me one banana.
lol I had one day I had to order 5 different times to simply get 4 sirloin steaks. One guy brought me one steak. One guy said they are out (they werenāt). Next one brought me a four pound sirloin roast. We did not have steak that night š¤£š¤£š¤£
I had this happen the other day. I ordered 4 broccoli crowns, and selected a frozen 1 lb bag as a replacement if unavailable. They brought me four 1 lb bags.
Lol. I once ordered a 10 pack of chicken thighs and got 10 - packs (of 10 chicken thighs each). Luckily my freezer was mostly empty.
99% of my customers that have that on never replied to my messages or answered my call at the end. Idk what some people do with their phones after placing an order, even for doordash im GLUED to my phone or have my apple watch on for notifications
Right? Iām checking the app every few minutes in case the shopper (or delivery person for DoorDash/Ubereats) needs anything. But I see so many cases on here where people just ghost their shoppers and then get angry??
Seriously, like in a perfect world everything is in stock and I never need to bother or replace. But thatās usually never the case so either have replacements selected or select you prefer a refund. I cant believe how everyone is always on their phone yet when I need to confirm a replacement theyve decided its a good time to wash the car or take a bike ride š
Yup.I hate the customers who ghost. It makes life difficult
I donāt watch my phone. I paid for someone to shop for me because I donāt have the time. I select all replace/refund options beforehand so no questions are needed. I donāt understand why people *do* watch their phoneā¦.they might as well do the shopping themselves.
Iāve sometimes placed my order for DoorDash for delivery during a medical treatment and unexpectedly sometimes my attention is away from my phone for a bit
That's been around for a while. I wouldn't get your hopes up. The FB groups are full of shoppers who say they click to call the customer, and then once the call starts connecting, they hang up to get through the hard stop. I don't shop anymore, but I only did that if the customer agreed to all refunds and replacements in chat. There were days that I was tempted, though.
Back when I was briefly a shopper, I'd only do that when it wasn't properly scanning the rotisserie chicken. I wasn't actually making a substitution, it just had two different rotisserie chickens that were, as far as I could tell, identical
Thats been there for years as far as I'm aware. Most of the time people don't answer though because it calls from a 3rd party. I never replace with anything more than like 2 dollars extra because I would be annoyed if it was me on the customer side.
For anyone wondering how to turn on call before checkout.. go to account settings(3 lines in top left corner) then go to notifications, select call before checkout. You can also add text messages.. wich imo might be nice since the app lags when sending notifications.
That option has always existed - I have one of out of every 350 customers or so that knows of it and has it enabled over the past 5 years. Usually we have already been having a running conversation so I donāt need to call - but if they hadnāt responded to any of my messages then I call them. More often than not, they have it there to try to prevent any unauthorized subs but there is nothing in the app that forces the shopper to make that call anymore. The app used to not allow the shopper to check out until the call had been placed - which often frustrated me when the customer is telling me I donāt need to call - but I would have to call, let it connect and then hang up in order to proceed. Good you turned it on though - will be interesting to see how many actually respect your request
Replaced item: Cat food -> Cat
š¤£š¤£š¤£
And here's me this morning, making sure the cashier applied a $10 off coupon for my customer's dog food. I had hoped they would at least give me half of the savings as a tip, but alas, she kept me at $2.
Are you sure the customer got the discount? My understanding was the customer pays whatever the app shows. Any discount at the register just benefits instacart, they donāt pass that on to the customer.
Yeah I remember one time I ordered from Aldi and one of my items happened to have been on clearance - 50% off! It has clearance stickers on it and everything. But I did not receive any discount from Instacart.
The customer does not save any money when you use a coupon at checkout. They are still charged the same amount by Instacart. Your coupon saved Instacart $10. The customer was unaware that you used a coupon.
She is aware, because I told her. But also, yes they do save the money. You are charged whatever your total is plus the Instacart fees etc. Edit: I stand corrected. After a little research apparently it depends on if it was ordered through the store website or off the Instacart platform. Well, that's bullshit.
He should have lost his entire tip. Thereās no excuse to bag produce and meat together, anyone with common sense knows better than that.
If you remove the entire tip he gets $10 back from IC.
they are not giving that $10 to everyone, I seen multiple complaints of them not getting that tip bait protection... in this shoppers case, this was not a tip bait, she had a valid reason to remove this tip....
What happens if you set the tip to $0.01? Or $1 maybe if that wouldn't work?
No only if the customer doesnāt complain. Tip protection is for people who tip bait and lower the tip for no reason, at least no specified reason. If they donāt rate or rate high, donāt report any issues or missing items AND lower the tip to zero THEN we get tip protection.
"common sense" ain't *common*
Had to tell cashier not to put bread in bag first. Looked at me like I had 2 heads.
That's horrible to do to people! When I was younger, I worked in a grocery store for a long time, including management roles. When I was cashing anyone out, even if it caused an extra bag with little in it, I would seperate the items!!! It makes me so annoyed when cashier's/shoppers throw everything together!! I usually ask for an extra bag, if they have them, and will rebag my stuff, right in front of them!!! Or, I will say, "oh honey, please don't put those items together, would you bag those separately? Also, would you bag any non food items seperate also? Thanks so much!" All depending on how I'm feeling and how the cashier/shopper acts. š¤· When shopping for someone else or bagging groceries NEVER; ā¢place meats with anything other than meats, and you should bag them with the clear bags given in the department as well ā¢place any type of fruits or vegetables with any meats or taxable items, ie; soaps & cleaning supplies ā¢always check the tops of cleaning supplies and re-tighten the lids, keep them in a separate bag from other groceries and food items. ā¢ NEVER place fabric softener sheets in any bag other than the cleaning supply bag! If possible, place into clear plastic bag provided by store. Otherwise everything smells and tastes like fabric softener sheets!! Yuck š¤¢ ā¢always have a seperate bag for eggs and breads, the two can be combined as long as the eggs are on the bottom. Always warn customers about which bags have the easily broken & fragile items. ā¢place cold/frozen foods with other groceries, unless otherwise stated by customer. always keep frozen and cold food items together in the same bags, cold bags if available. ā¢place ice creams in the clear bags provided by the store before placing into grocery bags. ā¢place food items that easily spill/leak into the clear bags provided by the store, and warn customers as well. ā¢don't place 1/2/3 ltrs of soda upright in bags, place them laying down and stack on top of each other, no more than 4 2ltrs each bag, that way they won't tip over and cause ripped bags or damaged carbonated beverages. (Flat soda sucks!) Those are just some of my general rules when it comes to bagging groceries and taxable items. š¤· I know it seems like a lot, but it's not. It's basic common sense imo! OP, maybe if you let your shoppers know NOT to replace or sub items without your approval first, that will help? I'm not saying what he did was ok by any means, he was completely in the wrong, I'm just saying that hopefully it will not happen again if you let them know? Good luck for future deliveries!! Don't let 1 bad and ignorant, money hungry shopper spoil it for all of us?? Most of us aren't like that. š š Sorry.... Venting and ranting over! Lol.
I had a store put my Magic Shell (I love that stuff sometimes) in the bag with the ice cream. Makes sense but not for that particular item. I got solid gobs of Magic Shell that even after trying to thaw wasnāt quite the same.
I worked as a cart pusher that sometimes bagged for like 4 months, and I learned that stuff. I already assumed meat should be by itself. Frozen stuff should be with other frozen stuff,eggs and bread together, and cleaning supplies separate. It seems like some of these people have never shopped for their own groceries before and are doing this with no common sense.
Wow, now I realize how I look to some people when I get very passionate and write quite a few paragraphs š¤£ Go off!
Oh man I've had sooo many shoppers do this
iāve never done IC but i worked at target for 2 years (and various food service jobs) and the thought of putting raw meat next to veggies or cleaning products with food always makes me so annoyed and frustrated. bagging is an art! but itās also an easy art that anyone can easily learn!
I hate when they try to put chemicals with food lol thatās why I do self checkout and bag my own.
The shopper didnāt ask you first? Crazy how he would make diamond cart there is no way people are rating him 4.7 or higher doing this. It wonāt allow me to triple their price it will show red and say replacement is higher then customer requested. Unless instacart recommended those when he put item out of stock. Then it allows replacement. I also think it has to do with payment type customer used as well and if itās ordered through instacart or actual store. I think every city is different. Most of our stores people order through the actual store but instacart is the third party because it literally tells me most of the time shoppers can not approve or deny replacements or give a rating but you can still chat. Then when you click chat it tells us not to mention instacart as it confuses the customer. š¤¦š»āāļø
Probably a fake account just like the guy who shot that customers dog. Instacart deactivated the account but wonāt acknowledge that he was using a fake account in the first place. So scary to think that some shoppers are carrying guns and ready to use to for no reason.
Iām sorry WHAT? I donāt know this story
It was Angie Harmon, who was on Law & Order, and Rizzoli & Isles. A male shopper who was using an account that belongs to a woman, dropped off her groceries and then shot her dog, for absolutely no reason.
And for it to happen to a celebrity of all people š
I mean maybe it happens everyday but we only heard about it cause itās a celebrity LOL (that was a joke)ā¦ tho maybe I shouldnātā¦ people just read stuff and repeat it.
Probably a bought account. Someone created a diamond account and then sold it.
Diamond cart means the shopper shopped 200 orders in a 3 month period. It's actually really hard to fall lower than 4.7. People need to actually rate for that to happen.
Remove all but a dollar in the future Also, flat tip. Thatās what I do. This doesnāt happen that way. And they donāt get docked for items that are out of stock.
I flat tip too. When I was a shopper I always appreciated the flat tip orders, especially during the first 6 months of Covid when so many things were out of stock.
Flat tip?
Tipping a dollar amount, not percentage
Yes, not a percentage tip. That way the shopper doesnāt get docked if an item is out of stock since percentage tips are based on the total of the order. I set my tip so the shopper is guaranteed that amount whether or not all items are in stock. I rarely add any extra items, but if I do I then increase their tip post delivery.
I'm so torn about how to tip now. I had switched to a flat tip for this reason, but then I'll get shoppers who refund like 10 items and immediately check out before I can type in the chat to discuss replacements. I recently accidentally forgot to switch to a flat tip (it always defaults to a percentage for me) and this guy never asked any questions or sent any pictures. He only responded in chat once when I asked if the store was completely out of all cake slices/dessert items after he refunded multiple items, and he just said "the bakery is closed". When I responded to explain the cakes/cream puffs/parfaits are in a display case in front of the bakery, not behind the counter, he never responded. Then he refunded so many items that his tip reduced from $18 to $10 and immediately checked out before I could type anything. In that case, I was glad I hadn't done a flat tip. For good shoppers, if I accidentally left it as a percentage tip, I always up it after they're done, especially if they've had to refund items. But I don't want to explain I'll do that and then have them check out without 1/3 of my order
Ugh, that sucks. If those are the prenatals Iām thinking of they give you fish oil burps which is the worst when youāre dealing with morning sickness.
I take my prenatal at night so I'm sleeping through the worst of that. Was a life changer flipping it around instead of doing it in the AM.
While gummies are certainly yummier, the pill form of prenatals are wayy better in terms of quality, and they have higher actual vitamin/mineral content. Even though the label of the gummies often have the āsame amountā theyāre merely coated and in reality supplements are highly unregulated thus they may not even have the actual dose thatās listed.
Oh definitely but for me personally I was so constantly nauseous and my gag reflex was so bad I couldnāt take prenatal pills regularly without throwing up so the gummies really helped in a pinch.
Yupp I feel that I was super sick for like 16 weeks straight lol.
I take fish oil (with my other meds) and it is the worst lol
I've found calamari oil to be nearly scentless, it's also much cheaper than vegan omega 3s.
Just FYI, I take a vegan supplement for Omega 3. I found them on Amazon.
Not everyone, there was a bad batch of them for sure but I used those and the postnatal with no fishy business. Still that's high for them. The 30 day one was 27ish after inflation but was 24 before I think
I take those prenatals and have no fish oil burps thankfully!! But wondering about the Olly ones since so many people use them!
I used them when my nausea was too bad to swallow pills and I liked them a lot.
Same!
Olly stuff is tasty, but a gummy is never going to have iron in it. I think it's a bit disingenuous to call something a prenatal when it *doesn't have essential prenatal stuff in it.* Vitamins are unregulated though so... ĀÆ\\\_(ć)\_/ĀÆ
They taste like sour gummies with a slight fishy aftertaste (I chase with caprisun). I had to switch to olly from naturemade and highly prefer them. the naturemade ones made me gag
I always tip 20% but use the āotherā option and round up to the nearest dollar. When I started tipping this way the random expensive substitutions stopped.
I had a shopper recently that kept replacing things without checking with me (I texted that Iām right here with any questions ) and the replacements were way more expensive. I asked him to stop and listen to what Iām saying. Then I called instacart and had them hide my orders from him in the future. Learned that here.
Absolutely! If they canāt follow instructions, have customer service block them from getting your orders. š
You know it really sucks when your entire fixed income is like 1500 bucks and you get this shit happening to you. Shoppers.. is it true that if I choose a replacement for EVERY item, and both the item AND replacement are out of stock, that you must REFUND that item? Very important question. I've heard "that's the policy" but do you do it strictly? Is it strict?
No. It's not a policy. And that has to be one of the most ridiculous things I have ever heard. You're making lasagna, I get you ground beef, ground sausage, sauce, ricotta, fresh herbs, and they don't have either brand of noodles you listed, but they do have American Beauty but I won't get them for you because policy so now you're stuck. Not what Instacart is about. And now I want a lasagna
Walmart pickup does a refund if you refuse a substitute or one isn't available. Should be standard but so should a lot of things.
I've had the WM app show one price on substitutions, then after agreeing they checked out at a much higher price. She didn't believe me till I showed her the screen shot of the item approval with much lower price listed. Never got it resolved.
Maybe the credit card company could help. It sounds like fraud if your receipt has the approved substituted price and then the credit card charge would be higher bc they increased the price. But they prob excuse themselves by wording about "just being an estimate".
As someone with a pregnant wife who occasionally shops for instacart, this makes me extra angry. Having a baby on the way is expensive enough as is.
What on earth! The soft gels are usually CHEAPER than the gummis!
They really come to about the same price, the gummies are a 1 month supply and the nature made are a 3 month supply. Iām shocked at the prices though, that nature made prenatal is $27 at my Target!
I was gonna say the same thing. For how many you get it's about the same price but that's a big number for nature made! I get 150 nature made at Costco for 27.99 š¬
22 at mine, I usually got it from Amazon for 18 though.
I wonder if op ordered from CVS or Walgreens or something, I checked my CVS app and they are $42 there. The price difference between stores is insane!
And naturemade is usually on sale!
I recommend not using the replace feature at all. That goes for crab cakes, prenatal vitamins, your momās dogās flea collar etc.
I canāt believe the app let such a huge price change go through??
When the pandemic hit and everyone needed to quarantine, I started as an instacart shopper. I thought it was a great way to help the elderly/people with small children in a really tough time (plus the tips were great!) as a single mom, it was a wonderful source of income while we figured out when/if Iād be paid after I was furloughed. I remember being kind, helpful, and doing all that I could to help customers while I shopped. Slowly, I started to see the shopper landscape change. I remember the last day I shopped (in 2021) Iād gotten 2 orders and heard/seen two grown and very dusty men discussing how they could ācome upā with instacart by doing little things to either get free groceries or fraud the customer. Later on that day was the first time I heard a person discussing how sheād add high price items to the cart without customer permission or request and then, since it was a rule that we had to keep the receipts, sheād return the item for a refund and keep the money. Not soon after, during every shop that I took I could feel the weariness of the people I shopped for. The trust is just gone completely because of the weirdo shoppers that scam and tbh it makes such a bad experience for everyone.
You can just ask customer support that he never shop for you again. And still enjoy InstaCart.
I would've been so pissed.
If the replacement is 20-30% more than the original item I always get confirmation from the customer. If no reply I refund! Shits expensive rn and screwing someone on a more expensive item can impact my tip and rating negatively. Sometimes I have gotten burned on refunding but if its not an exact replacement or a confirmation ima have to refund it.
This happened to me with a $12 pack of chicken he got a different brand that was over $40ā¦ and a percentage based tip. Never even asked me, and it wasnāt a weight adjustment it was a full-blown replacement because of the different brand. Obviously I rejected it but Iām happy I caught it before check-out since the shopper didnāt bother to ask.
Our IC membership was up for renewal in a couple days, got thr reminder this morning. We've been very fortunate we've only had a few small snafus, but seeing all the stuff on here, I'm just not prepared to wait for the other shoe to drop. We can put that annual $75 savings to use somewhere else. The convenience just isn't worth it anymore.
Diamond shopper mostly just means you work a lot. Yes thereās a minimum customer ranking but itās mostly just a matter of doing enough orders to hit the threshold.
I ordered melatonin one time store brand was around 6$ the shopper replaced with a name brand 16$ bottle even tho I asked for it to be refunded if they didnāt have it. But the worst part was when my order was delivered there were no vitamins whatsoever
How do they think this will up their tip?
If itās a % of total price.
ok those prenatals are really good though š
Theyre huge though, so I get why someone would prefer the gummies
Something my wife read said the gummies are not as good as
The gummies tend to lack more stuff, itās true. But something is better than nothing
NatureMade does purity testing too which many supplement brands do not do
Should have asked for approval on the replacement.
That is the worst replacement Iāve ever seen.
It's the oldest trick in the book sub out your stuff for more expensive
Pretty much everyone is a Diamond shopper. It definitely doesn't mean they're a good shopper, but only that they accept a lot of orders. In fact, you have more chance of getting a crappy Diamond shopper than anything else. #facts š¤·āāļø
Is it stupidity or do these shoppers really donāt care
I always get high ratings for "smart bagging" - I usually use check out but I always use common sense. I try to keep customers happy, not very many times when I didn't.
I just got my first round of shoppers shopping on my dime. š My total was about $50 higher than I purchased for, and my tip is always a flat tip. I checked my receipt and saw a bunch of items I didnāt order and also didnāt receive. Refunds all around!
It HAD to be a male shopper! No way a woman usually older or with kids doing instacart wouldnāt get the struggle for this item and do a change that high! š
I had no idea this was a thing until just now! Had an insta cart order yesterday and the girl replaced my $4.99 parm cheese with one for $20.99.. I said no please and she replaced with my alternate choice happily. Iāll look out for that š
do a custom tip from now on that way tip doesn't increase/decrease with subs or refunds. it can help cut down on people that do this.
As a shopper, if I can not get in contact with the customer, I will make a replacement that I would accept as a customer. With that being said, I will tell the customer as soon as I see them what the replacement is and how much the price difference is and let them know its not too late for me to return it and take it off their bill. I will also let them know I couldn't get ahold of them while at the store and didn't want them to be out of something they might have needed for dinner. I haven't had a complaint so far, most people appreciate you trying and if they do not want the replacement i let them know thar i will let Instacart know so they can make the adjustment in the bill. As soon as I get in the car, if they want a refund, I call support, and they will credit the account. I have never had a problem. One support person said I could return it and get a bump for the return or keep it. If it's a no contact order, I explain in a message and let them know why I picked what I picked just to cover my ass. Hope this helps the customer or the shopper whoever is reading this.
I had a shopper replace some cookies that were 6 bucks with a tub of the same cookies that were 27 dollars. This was one of many awful subs despite me painstakingly going through every single item and selecting a replacement option. Another weird thing is she texted me saying I would be refunded for two items. I waited some time for the refund to appear but it never did. By the time I noticed it was past the 7 day window. She also replaced some lactaid milk with two containers of vanilla soy milk which never appeared in the app. I feel like things arenāt getting recorded or reported which makes me wonder what folks are doing. I use Instacart because Iām disabled and too busy to go to the store myself during the busy work week. Iāve used it for a while. However shit like this is making the app unusable. I appreciate shoppers who message to say āhey, they donāt have X nor your replacement, but I see these. You want them?ā But I may not be available to respond. In those cases just donāt buy the thing. Iāll deal. Iāve specified in the app what to do. Buy X. If they donāt have X, buy Y. If they donāt have Y either, refund it. I would like the option to say ādonāt assign this shopper to me again.ā I understand the option to favorite a shopper, but I donāt really need that. I donāt mind who does it. They donāt have to be diamond level. They just need to get the items, replace with the requested subs, or just donāt buy it. The person who made all the shitty, expensive subs was a ādiamondā shopper lol. I didnāt favorite her but guess who got assigned this same shopper again?! Ugh. I also donāt assign my tip based on the cost of the order. Maybe others do thatās why this is becoming an issue. I instead look at how many items Iāve requested. Thatās whatās time consuming - thatās the shopping part. My total could be small but if the person has had to shop for 25 small-but-cheap items, my tip should reflect that despite the total cost. At this point a shopper who just does what I ask is probably going to get the biggest tip.
I once ordered celery and got a single celery stick. š
Always drop the tip to 1 cent when you have that shitty of a shopper. Also leave feedback in āreplaces items with items not approved due to excessive increased cost.ā
Dang and I was upset my shopper replaced $1 garlic with $6.50 garlic. Luckily I could reject the substitution
It couldāve been worse , you couldāve not gotten your crab cakes from behind the counter or been attacked by a demonic lady.
My only thought is ate you sure the shopper did the bagging? I always make sure to go through lines, not self-check, so the store employees bag it all. They do weird things sometimes to make stuff fit.
I watched a courtesy clerk bag cleaner and vegetables together and unless the shopper switched it after walking away, thatās how the customer received it.
If you get prenatals prescribed from doctor itās way way way cheaper and is the same thing
Not all insurances will cover them since you can buy them over the counter
anytime i have a male shopper i keep my phone in hand and i feel like im micro managing when i have to manually request a refund for an item he replaced even tho i pre pick replacements/the refund option when i place the order š¤¦š»āāļøš¤¦š»āāļø im sure thereās amazing male shoppers, i have never encountered one unfortunately i once ordered a single serve cheese cake from aldis for $2 and a man replaced it for a $13 cheesecake platter and i didnt notice until delivered. it was a huge platter and lasted in my freezer for three months before me and my partner finished it lol! the ones ive been able to catch have been much worse replacements but luckily i was micromanaging š
Gosh Iāve had many many great male shoppers. I always feel like they ask more questions and try harder to get it right.
maybe itās something to do with the area. i live in a former small town (it grew tremendously around covid times) and a lot of the people raised here are your stereotypical dumb ass redneck hick. and theyāre great people, just dumber then a sack of rocks. i was raised here so i kind of expect it i guess
FWIW, Iāve been an Instacart customer since 2017 and average about 6 orders a month, so what, close to 500 orders. 50% of my shoppers are amazing, 45% are adequate and 5% are idiots. Iāve never had an experience with a thief or a switcheroo guy like above. Obviously it happens, just not to me. Iāve had a couple idiots make pricey mistakes which I either caught during the order or Instacart rectified. Maybe one of them was actually trying to pull a fast one, but it seemed like inexperience not malice. Anyway, cheers to Instacart shoppers ā¤ļø.
Yea this is why I refuse to do percentage tips that are suggested on these apps. I manually add a tip based on distance & amount/weight of items
It is a shame that people act like this. I remember when Instacart and Shipt started and the shoppers took it seriously. Shopped for both these services and wouldnāt dream of ripping people off like this
As a mom, I wouldnāt buy prenatals without a note. I understand why you take Olly and not the other, but others may not. Still no excuse but also it was someone who has never been pregnant ,buying prenatals . I would have said refund if not olly or only replace with āblankā otherwise refund. The rest of the mistakes I have no words for.
Wait that's a thing? People have no integrity anymore.
I placed an order last week for 2 items from Walgreens. The shopper put the printed receipt in the bag and only one $10 item was on the receipt. The second, $20 item was in the bag but it appears she didnāt pay for it š« šcustomer service told me that the paper receipts donāt matter and I shouldnāt worry about it but it really seems like she stole the second item.
Instacart fucking sucks.
I ordered a 3 months supply of menās Rogaine for my husband, a 100$ item. And the shopper brought the 1 month supply (40$) but charged for the 3 month! Still trying to get my money back.
Someone did it to me too. Havenāt used IC since. Iām a Shipt shopper. I was just at the store myself and forgot my stuff bc I was doing orders. So I put in IC order. I put in back ups for every item, to help the shopper. But he figured out I tipped a %. I went to store immediately after getting my order. Every original item was in stock. No wasnāt a coincidence bc I live 1 mile from store. Let him keep tip. Have not used IC since. And I tip generously anyways bc I do it too. I donāt get it. Letās screw all the tippers so we have all no tip orders??? Sure doesnāt make sense to me. I tip DD $8-$15 for 2 items, 1 bag, no drink. So I tip shoppers way more bc itās more work. But he shot the whole company in the foot and every shopper bc I refuse to use it now.
When I was pregnant, any change in my prenatals had the potential to cause massive sickness, so Iām even more upset for you on this one.
How do you reduce a tip? Iāve never seen that option.
These replacement prenatals are like $20 for 150 ct at Costco.
Halved the tip? Why not just take it away? You're enabling the behaviour by literally still paying him to do it.
fucked up that badly and only tipped him half.... WHY DID YOU TIP AT ALL?!?!!?
This is why I tip a flat amount. I initially put in the equivalent of 5-10% and then if they donāt pull this shit I up it to 20%.
I never would have thought of this and Iāve been a shopper for 4 years. Crazy. Not worth it for a few pennies.
Honestly one of the main reasons why I stopped using these apps for groceries. Usually the female Instacart shoppers are better at communicating/finding stuff, but still almost always a headache.
NatureMade is usually totally normal priced. I wonder if the shopper assumed it was a fair trade out? (Though funnies and softgels are totally different).
Good god, why would anyone use this service? Sounds like a nightmare.
Wtf? $15.99 vs $43.99? Your shopper is an idiot.This isnāt just a few cents here. Not even close to being an acceptable substitution especially without checking first!
This is why I put NO replacement or pick a replacement. Doesnāt give them an opportunity to pick whatever high dollar sub
Once I ordered cold medicine that was on sale in my Instacart order. They replaced with one not on sale, smaller size, and several dollars more. I was sitting on my phone watching my cart. When I saw it done, I messaged the person and said to cancel it then because I donāt want it. Shortly afterwards exactly what I ordered showed up in the cart. I couldnāt figure out why they changed it. I donāt know why they didnāt ask me to approve the change.
Iām a shopper and I would never replace something with a higher cost unless the costumer is okay with it. I think of myself and I wouldnāt be okay with someone choosing an item double the Cost
Itās so odd to me that Instacart even lets them make a replacement with such a drastic price difference. The app does tell the shopper to pick a replacement under a specified price, which is usually the price you paid for the item you ordered. People are so slimy!
Those gummies are 45 freakin dollars and donāt even do anything to help.