The sight of a worried man counting out his change in the milk aisle of Asda prompted one woman to step in and give him some money. The random act of kindness is just one of many taking place across the UK as the cost of living crisis hits home.
And people are going on to social media to share their own experiences of helping someone out, or of being helped out themselves. Posts are getting many likes, shared and comments.
One post on a spotted page in Gloucester was from a person wanting to speak to a man who was in Asda and clearly concerned about money. He was, the post said 'pacing' the aisle and counting the loose change in his hand to see if he could afford milk.
The post on Spotted: Quedgeley, Kingsway and Hardwicke continued: "It pulled on my heart because I know what it’s like when you are down to your last bit of change and need milk for your kids.
"It was only a few quid I gave you but the relief and gratitude I could see in your face was priceless." The man then got four pints of milk and went to the till.
The poster said they were looking for the man, not to get the money back, but to make sure he was okay.
One man said: "Lovely gesture! Times are tough.... Seen a lot more people going around supermarkets now with their calculators out adding things up."
Another person also shared how they had helped someone out: "A young girl with two kiddies she was counting change standing in the corner of the fridges. I paid her shopping was only just over £4 and gave the little girls outside my two pounds coins... a little kindness goes a long way."
On another local Facebook group, the Leyland Hub in Lancashire, one woman said she bought a young girl a slushy at McDonald's as her mother didn't have enough money. While another post on the same group said they had seen someone paying for a stranger's shopping in Home Bargains
The BBC also reported on a mother of twins whose shopping at an Asda in Essex was paid by a stranger while she fed her babies. Claire Armstrong, 32, went on to Facebook to find the woman who paid her bill of almost £100.
The post read: "Whilst I was trying to scan my shopping, the twins started crying and wanted a bottle so a very lovely, kind and generous lady told me to go feed them and she not only scanned and packed my shopping for me, she paid for it as well!"
Many families are facing a financial squeeze as prices go up faster than wages. Fuel and energy bills, as well as food, have all increased and McDonald's is also putting cheeseburgers up from 99p to £1.19.
Some of the biggest UK retailers will offer new deals to help families struggling with soaring prices over the summer holidays. Businesses agreed to slash some costs as part of the Government’s Help for Households campaign.
It comes as the surging cost of living is pushing more and more families towards breaking point as rising food and fuel prices sent inflation to a new 40-year high.
The deals include the extension of supermarket giant Asda’s scheme allowing children to buy a meal for £1, and the introduction of a “feed your family for a fiver” campaign by Sainsbury’s.
