Woolworths Gave Me Far Lesser Quality / Quantity Substitute

lonewolf on 01/03/2024 - 17:43
Last edited 01/03/2024 - 19:59 by 1 other user

Hey guys, not sure if there is a body / organisation that deals with complaints with grocery stores or if it's just Dept of Fair Trading and ACCC.

I have 2 orders, in one some products were substituted for similar type but far less quantity (about 30-40% less) and i would say not as good a product but not terrible either and they reckon it adheres to their policy which is meant to be of similar product of equal or higher quality and quantity. The other product is far less quality product with lower quality ingredients and really for a different purpose to the original product I ordered.

In my second order, some of the similar issues as the first order but also its missing some of the items that were meant to be the substitutes and instead it's got a completely different type of product which is a lot cheaper than the substitute or my original product.

Anyone know which company is the best to go to for complaints and dealing with grocery stores? Or do people recommend a credit card chargeback which is what a friend recommended to me (I think though one of the orders was using gift card for most of the payment).

Food & Grocery

Related Stores

Woolworths
Woolworths

closed Comments

  • djsweet on 01/03/2024 - 17:48
    +50

    Did you try complaining on the chat. Woolworths constantly stuffed up my orders and they always refunded me. Ultimately I stopped using them though because the stuff ups were almost weekly.

    • HeWhoKnows on 02/03/2024 - 12:57
      -7

      Thier Ts & Cs say that you agree to substitution.
      Comes with Home delivery.

      Not sure if they base substitution on quality of nearest price or both.
      I guess it depends on whats available.

      So really there are no grounds for complaint.
      But you can try.
      Not sure what to expect really given the circumstances when something is out of stock.

      As djsweet cncluded… stop using them

      But Coles will have the same Ts & Cs.

      So better off just going into store and deciding on your own subtitutions when out of stock

      • dcash on 03/03/2024 - 15:52
        +1

        I agree. They do their best to substitute, so that the customer doesn't go without something they may have really needed. Unfortunately it's simply not always possible, as for example, they can't substitute a branded item for home brand. No matter what they do, there will always be customers who complain because either nothing got substituted and they would have been happy with something remotely similar, or because something did get substituted and it wasn't precisely what they wanted.

        If you can't handle the way it works, just go elsewhere or do your shop in person like a normal person.

        • HeWhoKnows on 04/03/2024 - 09:55
          +1

          Yep, Correct

          Dont know why I got 8 neg votes.

          All Ive done is stated the obvious!

          Obviously those people dont understand the process, nor the challenges of the grocery delivery business.

          Fairly typical of many OBers. They have unrealistic/unreasonable expectations.

  • randomusername2017 on 01/03/2024 - 17:49
    +47

    Anyone know which company is the best to go to

    Customer service department of the company with which you placed the order….

      • onetwothreefour on 01/03/2024 - 20:06
        +5

        If only there was some sort of survey that you could fill out…

        • orangetrain on 01/03/2024 - 21:58
          +2

          Takes too long. What, best case scenario, it helps me. Who wants that?

      • randomusername2017 on 01/03/2024 - 20:24

        Surely they didn't mean to hang up on you.🤗

  • ihfree on 01/03/2024 - 17:56
    +11

    Have you messaged online chat or spoken with support?

    Before I disabled substitutions, I found both supermarkets easy to deal with when this happened.

  • Jimothy Wongingtons on 01/03/2024 - 17:59
    +9

    I support your right to be outraged and take it all the way to your member of parliament.

    (I’ve only ever done Cole’s online orders and of the three times, calling up and complaining or just messaging them was sufficient to fix issue. Also going no substitutions helps)

    • No on 01/03/2024 - 18:08
      +14

      parliament? Straight to the united nations with this one.

      • Mikefr on 01/03/2024 - 18:21
        +6

        I raise your United Nations…..
        International Court of Justice
        International Court of Justice: World's Highest Court - International Relations Series | Academy…
        😉

        • Mikeer on 02/03/2024 - 14:04

          I raise your ICJ - the Court of OzBargain

    • Gunnar on 01/03/2024 - 20:23
      +6

      I took it to my MP and he took it all the way to the Prime Minister

      • Forfiet on 02/03/2024 - 22:11

        and he 'took' to charlie and biden, right!!! right?????

      • Inzo on 03/03/2024 - 01:27
        +4

        Mr Prime Minister!!! ANDY!!!!

        • Gunnar on 03/03/2024 - 02:31
          +1

          What’s the good word mate?

    • drfuzzy on 03/03/2024 - 14:12

      Complain to Queen Elizabeth. She's a good listener.

  • jv on 01/03/2024 - 18:22
    -3

    Woolworths Gave Me Far Lesser Quality / Quantity Substitute

    I'm not surprised.

  • GordonD on 01/03/2024 - 18:43
    +20

    Hanlon's Razor:
    Never attribute to malice that which is adequately explained by stupidity.

    "Woolworths" doesn't pick your order. A member of its staff does. And you don't work for a supermarket because you are the brightest. The person given the job of picking your order has tried to give you want they think you want, or hasn't tried very hard to. And you aren't happy with the result. So complain to Woolworths. Don't whinge to us. We can't change anything.

    I've always found Woolworths counter staff very accommodating of my complaints.

    And if that doesn't work, shop somewhere else. I'm sure you'll be just as unhappy about them. Of course if you give other people the job of doing your shopping for you they'll guess wrong sometimes about what you'd prefer when exactly what you want isn't available.

    • smalltime0 on 02/03/2024 - 22:04

      Depending on where you are, the order was unlikely to have been done at the store level. The click and collect orders are done in store - home delivery is increasingly done out of 'dark' stores.

      The easiest thing for OP to do is to just use the online message system

  • AndyC1 on 01/03/2024 - 19:02
    +1

    Try Woolworths first with a formal complaint, not a phone inquiry as they are the company you purchased from, then use google to see who is next.

  • Dollar General on 01/03/2024 - 19:03
    +2

    You could take it to the international court of arbitration but before that, what did Woolworths say when you did an online chat with them?

    Good chance they will refund you

  • Tomhaigh1 on 01/03/2024 - 19:08
    +1

    They should give similar product with same or more quantity, you can use their chatbot Olive to get a refund, its quite simple process.

  • Ocker on 01/03/2024 - 19:15
    +2

    The price you pay for convenience.

  • lonewolf on 01/03/2024 - 19:17
    -5

    Nah I went through the online chat, I had 3 orders in total. One had very few issues only 2 subs and they refunded that . The other 2 were major substitution and in one case the substitution they thought they had sent was not what got packed and instead an item that is far far lower priced was packed and it's a totally different item too. And 5 of the 6 of one item I had ordered they had packed this one in. They refuse on both orders. One saying they didn't make a mistake when they did . And the other being if substitute is ticked in then it's my fault . Even though i proved them wrong by showing both products side by side and the quantity and ingredients and showed how it was not close to being like for like or similar quality or quantity. They just ignored it.

    • Dollar General on 01/03/2024 - 19:45
      +6

      Are you are constant complainer to them?

  • lonewolf on 01/03/2024 - 19:21
    -5

    I have already gone through online chat and then through their email customer service representative with multiple emails back and forth before I posted on here
    That's why I came.on here asking for the organisation I can contact.Last night I even put up pictures of each item that I was unhappy with and showed in the picture the difference in weight as well as the difference in ingredients or how they are 2 totally different products for different purposes.

    I went through every item like that with them on the email with pictures on each item etc. they just ignored it and responded back saying substitute was ticked on again…

    • Typical16-bitEnjoyer on 01/03/2024 - 19:49

      Guess it's time to shop direct at a Farmers market then.

    • SadieS on 02/03/2024 - 02:01
      +11

      I would suggest that next time you turn the sub option off when you make online orders. They rarely pick something better for you… most of the time the sub is either awful or completely wrong. I can't even bear the trouble having to return the sub every time so i just turn them off and never accept sub again.

      Also if they did give you sub that has not meet your need, you can ask them to refund it right on spot when you pick up if you were doing click and collect.

      If you are doing online delivery orders, just take your phone or rewards card( so they can find your orders record), and take the unwanted items to your nearest wws store, and ask for a refund from the staff there.

      I've done this multiple times it was super smooth everytime no questions asked happily refunded me every single time.

      also the other comments are confusing me… please this is quite normal when you shop online and it's not the customer's fault if the supermarket sub it with something inferior, and you don't need to go through all the ACCC complaint troublesome process to get you money back!

      Just take them back to the store when you can, and ask for a refund! Saves you the hassle

      • lonewolf on 02/03/2024 - 08:30
        -5

        Thanks mate, I didn't know it was an option to take it back in store without the online support saying I am allowed to do that as I thought maybe they are the ones who have control over the order as it was made online. But makes sense that the store itself will be able to do this.

        Yes I am quite surprised at some of the comments. It was a pretty simple question, who can I go to for issues if the retailer is not willing to fix the issue and yet some people decided to have a go for some odd reason. Ozbargain community has changed somewhat from when it first started but I guess that's bound to happen with a much larger amount of people.

        In some substitutes or mistakes they made, I am actually losing a few hundred dollars over the 2 orders. So it's not something that I feel I should accept.

        Mine was click and collect, I didn't realise I can refuse to accept the substitutes on the spot. I thought I had to go through customer support online..

        I just saw you mentioned I can take it back to any Wws store? Wow that would be easier. As one of my orders was in a not very convenient work place and the other is closer to home. So I can take both order returns to the same place that would be much easier.

        I am surprised the online support never told me any of this. If I had known that, that's what I would have done.

        • randomusername2017 on 02/03/2024 - 18:00

          am actually losing a few hundred dollars

          Really?¿
          What were the substituted items?

          • lonewolf on 02/03/2024 - 18:34

            @randomusername2017: Health food items and supplements. Protein powders and other types of items. So subs I can sort of see they are in the ballpark, others were similar but 40% less weight but then there were some that were nothing alike not even close and also far lower quality and cost and were subbed 1 for 1.

    • rumblytangara on 02/03/2024 - 14:38
      +3

      they just ignored it and responded back saying substitute was ticked on

      Then turn of the 'substitute' option next time and get on with your life.

  • Iwantthebestprice on 01/03/2024 - 19:26
    +1

    I find if I complain hard enough about the subs I get a refund. But last time I ordered a 3 pack of up and go energise and they were out of stock and they gave me a 12 pack instead, I was very happy that day!

  • Typical16-bitEnjoyer on 01/03/2024 - 19:26
    +4

    some products were substituted for similar type but far less quantity (about 30-40% less) and i would say not as good a product

    Probably best to post on a bargain website and give us completely zero context. That'll solve it.

    • Presence on 01/03/2024 - 19:34

      Has he tried Whirlpool or Reddit yet?!

    • lonewolf on 01/03/2024 - 20:14
      -6

      Because I was asking what company looks after complaints about grocery stores. Not looking to talk about substitutions.

  • Empharand on 01/03/2024 - 19:42
    +2

    Anyone know which company is the best to go to for complaints?

    Have you tried Woolworths Customer Service?

    • lonewolf on 01/03/2024 - 20:12

      Yes as I said , I have.

  • JimmyF on 01/03/2024 - 19:47
    +1

    Anyone know which company is the best to go to for complaints and dealing with grocery stores?

    Umm woolworths….

    Or do people recommend a credit card chargeback which is what a friend recommended to me

    Sure do that and your account will be banned.

    Woolworths Gave Me Far Lesser Quality / Quantity Substitute

    You know you can turn of off substituted items right? Might be something you should do from now on, as it causes so many issues for you when the item you ordered doesn't arrive.

    • lonewolf on 01/03/2024 - 20:15
      -3

      Never had issues with substitutions before but yes that is what I should do although I am thinking of just going with other stores now and avoiding woolies as it's too risky.

  • websterp on 01/03/2024 - 20:24
    +1

    Anyone know which company is the best to go to for complaints and dealing with grocery stores?

    Coles

  • SnoozeAndLose on 01/03/2024 - 20:36

    Here you go Grocery Code Reviewer

  • djones145 on 01/03/2024 - 20:38
    +1

    complain here
    https://www.ozbargain.com.au/node/833907

    ACCC want to hear about it

    • lonewolf on 01/03/2024 - 20:50

      Thanks , I did have someone mention that

  • Puglife on 01/03/2024 - 22:08

    Maybe you could shop for your own groceries and never have any issues.
    What am I saying. That is a crazy idea. Forgive me for even suggesting it..

  • Seraphin7 on 01/03/2024 - 22:37

    I had a similar issue and simply returned the items in question.

    • lonewolf on 02/03/2024 - 08:40
      +1

      Thanks mate, yeah I didn't know this was an option as the customer support people never told me I could do that
      They just kept saying next time don't select substitute

  • CurlCurl on 01/03/2024 - 23:00
    +2

    Do your own shopping. Problem solved.

  • greyeye on 02/03/2024 - 07:33
    +1

    I once ordered a bag of med grain rice (20kg)
    and when I arrived to pick them up, their trolly was full of 1kg bag of LONG GRAIN rice.
    I refused to pick it up and called the customer service to initiate refund.

    So it turned out that wollies have every rights to swap the ordered product with ANYTHING. You may say, meh it's med/long whats the diff? but I didnt exactly order the long grain. Instead of updating their ordering system and keep the stock up to date, or even updating the order that certain items may not be available as supermarket being constant fluctuation of the stocks, they stuff your order with whatever they want to get rid of.

    Moral of the story, I've never order online from them again.

    • lonewolf on 02/03/2024 - 08:33

      This is what happened to my substitutes as well, they aren't similar products or similar weights. The items I ordered were half price so they substitute for full prices in some areas and then claim it doesn't matter if it weigh 40% less or is far inferior as well as a completely separate use for the product not even close to what i ordered.

  • Trekky on 02/03/2024 - 10:09
    +1

    I have subs turned off. And if I've gotten incorrect items, I go onto the online chat and they refund me. Takes a minute.

  • 2esc on 02/03/2024 - 10:34
    -1

    Seriously?

  • eckorock on 02/03/2024 - 11:12

    It would help if you actually told us the product you ordered, the weight and the substituted item!

    • CurlCurl on 02/03/2024 - 11:18
      +1

      Think he ordered lube and they sent Goanna oil.

      Ouch.

    • lonewolf on 02/03/2024 - 14:57

      i ordered some health food products and supplements, but i wasnt interested in going down the route of then just talking about substitutes and whats appropriate or whats not since i was asking the question about which organisation looks after supermarket issues.

      • eckorock on 03/03/2024 - 00:58

        I don't think it's really in the spirit of the forum to be so generic, you really should have included more details. It's far too vague otherwise.

  • dmcneice on 02/03/2024 - 11:16
    +1

    We used to get the same problems. I have a wheat allergy, they would often substitute gluten free items for non-gluten free items as a sub. Definitely turn off substitutes. We eventually gave delivery away to them constantly missing delivery time slots, and having multiple items out of stock every time, which meant we had to go to the shop anyway (thinks like milk, bread, our dinner options).

    Ended up being more hassle than it was worth.

  • chicane on 02/03/2024 - 11:46
    +1

    Just raise it with Woolworths online support, they will fix it up for you with less hassle than making an OzB post about it.

    • lonewolf on 02/03/2024 - 18:28

      I spent close to a week on online and email support before putting up this ozb post.

      • Name on 02/03/2024 - 20:49

        I don't get how. OLIVE (If I remember right that's the chatbots name) does the refund for you. There is zero wait.

  • StephBlanks on 02/03/2024 - 14:40

    like many said, use the online support. they can be generous/easy if you're reasonable. a bit of a wait unless you start the chat right when they first open? they were ok when i complained last time. even offered to refund for products i used (bad packaging) but i refused.

    • lonewolf on 02/03/2024 - 18:27

      Yes I did first contact online support and then got moved to email support.

  • lonewolf on 02/03/2024 - 14:55

    Guys, I am not sure if my posts arent visible to everyone, I have spent the last few days on the online support and email support with woolies before i came on here to ask you guys what is the next step i can take. As woolies just say, as i ticked substitute on , then they can substitute with whatever they feel is ok.

    • ihfree on 02/03/2024 - 16:25

      Emailed complaints?

      • lonewolf on 02/03/2024 - 18:24

        From online support it then goes to email responses.

        • ihfree on 02/03/2024 - 18:31
          +1

          There's also a complaints form - I think this. It may be a good escalation point beyond standard support.

          • lonewolf on 02/03/2024 - 18:43

            @ihfree: Thanks, might try that, not sure if it just goes to the same email customer service rep or a different team.

    • Thinkswithelbow on 02/03/2024 - 17:04
      +3

      This seems suss.
      I contact Woolworths online chat for refunds when I don't like a substitute even when I've tick substitutes allowed with literally 0 pushback. It's always an auto refund from the chatbot…..which woolies is this?

      Something doesn't add up here.

      • lonewolf on 02/03/2024 - 18:25

        I have been shopping with them for 20 odd years or so, I haven't had this issue before either. But I have heard other people have too.

  • gromit on 02/03/2024 - 16:03
    +1

    Their home delivery is complete arse when it comes to substitutions/misdelivered items etc. If you must order online then untick the box for substitutions allowed, you basically gave them permission to sub in whatever the personal shopper thinks is ok. I canned my delivery unlimited sub with them as it just isn't worth the hassle.

  • iguana on 02/03/2024 - 17:33

    Do you own shopping then.

  • DiscoJango on 02/03/2024 - 17:53
    +1

    I feel sorry for the Dept of Fair Trading and ACCC having to deal with nonsense complaints like this. No wonder the systems backlogged. OP is probably the type to call the police if mcdonalds is temporarily out of something.

    • lonewolf on 02/03/2024 - 18:20
      -5

      Good you know all the details. So I should just be out a few hundred dollars and cop it..

  • lachhelix on 02/03/2024 - 17:57
    -1

    JFC
    Every day I hate people more and more
    Get over yourself

  • lonewolf on 02/03/2024 - 18:23
    -7

    Anyone know how to request to close threads if you are the OP? This is pointless. I came on here asking a simple question. Not looking for arguments or trolling. I was hesitant even asking a question for exactly this purpose and anyway while some people have been very helpful. Others not so much.

    • CurlCurl on 02/03/2024 - 19:04
      +5

      You came here for to have a whine and copped what you deserve.

      • lonewolf on 02/03/2024 - 19:12
        -3

        thank you for proving my point. I actually came here asking a question as i wasnt sure if there was a body that looks after that area. But anyway lets not let facts get in the way of your creative narrative.

    • Typical16-bitEnjoyer on 02/03/2024 - 19:46
      +4

      I came here seeking only opinions that were identical to mine and didn't get what I wanted, what the heck

      • lonewolf on 02/03/2024 - 19:59
        -1

        If I wanted that, i would have concentrated on what the substitutes were etc, instead of asking which company to go to or if i should go to my bank. And there is a way of disagreeing without being derogatory. The reason why i didnt go into details of substitutes was because i wasnt interested in talking about substitutes, i just wanted to know if there is a organisation or company that looks after supermarkets as there are with many other industries.

        A community or forum is based around people asking questions or looking for advice in areas they dont know about yet. When forums degrade to just trolling and attacks, people think twice about posting threads in the forums and just post those questions in other forums.

        • Typical16-bitEnjoyer on 02/03/2024 - 20:02
          -1

          So your next query will be on Whirlpool?

          • lonewolf on 02/03/2024 - 20:06
            -1

            @Typical16-bitEnjoyer: actually i have been on whirlpool before ozbargain started and i dont remember them going this far down this route. But there are many other good forums out there anyway.

            • DiscoJango on 03/03/2024 - 10:05
              +1

              @lonewolf: The problem is you are wanting to complain to a major government body over a trivial issue where a supermarket gave you the wrong item. This is not what the system was designed for, unfortunately it is back logged because of people like you.

              • lonewolf on 03/03/2024 - 16:55

                @DiscoJango: You should read what I wrote. I am missing items as well..all up worth a few hundred… But anyway let's create our own narrative.

                • DiscoJango on 03/03/2024 - 17:25

                  @lonewolf: Missing a few hundred dollars worth of items means basically missing an entire trolley worth of goods, which im sure if raised with the supermarket they would be happy to deal with.

                  End of the day, like the old saying goes: if you want it done right, do it yourself. Dont assume that some kid on minimum wage is going to put any effort into your order.

                • Typical16-bitEnjoyer on 03/03/2024 - 19:23
                  -1

                  @lonewolf:

                  I am missing items as well..all up worth a few hundred…

                  Return. Your. Delivered. Items. To. A. Store.

                  You have the answer but continue to blame everyone else for your failure to read.

  • Maxxjet on 02/03/2024 - 18:44
    -1

    Time to break up Woolworths and Coles. Period.

  • Narull on 02/03/2024 - 20:38
    +2

    OP so upset that people aren't taking his side that he wants mods to close the thread so people stop mocking him, next post gonna be 'who do I complain about the ozbargain website, no I don't want to complain to ozbargain themselves', OP you got whatcha deserved, want out? delete your account and run away.

    • lonewolf on 03/03/2024 - 17:00
      -1

      I wasn't looking for sides, I was looking for an answer to a question m the hilarious fact is people creating their own stories. Because there can be no sides when I didn't actually go into the details of substitutions or products or even anything about I hate woolies, why did woolies do this or that..I asked a simple question which alot of people helpfully answered. And then there were some people who decided to create their own narratives and inject their own fantasy into it and come back with their own opinions of the created fantasy.

  • Name on 02/03/2024 - 20:46

    So strange you're having this problem. Every time I've had this issue they've just refunded.

    If there is a product I specifically want, I now uncheck the substitute button or if I've had issues with strange substitutions I now put a little note under the item. Like "if substituting, any mango except r2d2" or for eggs I have "no caged eggs if substituting" and the packer has done it.

    • lonewolf on 03/03/2024 - 16:58

      I am ok with substitutions according got woolies policy of similar product of equal or higher quality . Problem was alot of the substitution was totally different, I mean completely different products with different uses and also of lesser quality . I am keeping the substitutes that were close enough to original products uses.

  • lozbargain on 02/03/2024 - 21:24
    +1

    I ordered a bulk pack of meat for something like $15/kg. They substituted it for a smaller pack for something like $20/kg. I complained as this is obviously not cheaper, and the customer service argued they charged me "the lesser price" because 500g @ $20/kg is less than 1kg @ $15/kg.

    The level of understanding is not high.

  • grack on 02/03/2024 - 22:52

    Unrelated but I'm hijacking the post - bought some pricier than usual 5kg bag of bakers flour from woolies and left it in one of those Sistema clip containers all closed. Went overseas and came back 2 months later to find rice moth infesting the flour. Do I have grounds to get a new bag for free? Or do I just take the L? I've never had this happen to me before and the bugs must have already been in the flour if the container was sealed

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