Tesco faced a wave of customer frustration on Wednesday evening after its app and online services experienced technical difficulties, leaving many unable to complete their grocery orders. The issue began shortly after 7pm, with users quickly taking to social media and outage tracking sites to report problems with the checkout process. Many encountered error messages while trying to finalise their delivery orders, leading to mounting concern as the 11:45pm order cut-off time approached.
Tesco confirmed it was aware of the problem and stated that their technical teams were working to resolve it as quickly as possible. Despite the reassurance, users reported that the issues persisted for over an hour, with some still experiencing difficulties by 8:30pm. The disruption led to panic among regular customers who rely on the app for scheduled deliveries, especially those who shop late in the evening.
The frustration was amplified by the lack of immediate updates or clear communication from the company, with some customers complaining they were left in the dark. Social media was flooded with complaints, with users demanding answers and expressing disbelief that such a large retailer could experience what many described as a basic systems failure. Concerns were also raised about potential missed deliveries and the inability to access Clubcard discounts during the outage.
Although there was initial speculation that the incident might be linked to broader cyber issues affecting retailers in recent months, Tesco confirmed that the disruption was due to a technical fault rather than a cyberattack. No customer data or payment information was compromised during the outage.
By the early hours of Thursday morning, services had gradually returned to normal, and the app was once again functioning as expected. While Tesco has yet to release a full explanation for the technical issue, the event has sparked questions about the resilience of digital infrastructure in major supermarket chains. As online grocery shopping continues to grow in popularity, especially post-pandemic, customers are increasingly reliant on seamless app performance to manage their daily needs.
The incident serves as a reminder of how dependent consumers have become on digital platforms and the expectation that services run without interruption. For Tesco, the focus now will be on restoring trust and ensuring similar outages do not occur in the future.