Shoppers say their trips to a north Bristol supermarket are becoming a nuisance due to trolley shortages at the store. Asda has confirmed that it is aware of trolleys being "taken" from its Filton branch.
The store is close to the UWE (University of the West of England) campus, and one customer claims she was told that university students were suspected to be responsible. Asda has not confirmed this, however, and a UWE spokesperson said that if any abandoned trolleys are ever found on campus they are returned by staff.
Betty Goodfellow, who lives by Filton Abbeywood station, has made a number of complaints to the the store. She said: “This has been an issue for months now and no matter how many times you complain you get the same answer. When I spoke to the duty manager he said that the students at UWE were taking the trolleys but offered no resolution to the problem."
The 66-year-old, who is medically retired and suffers from arthritis in her hips, spine, knees, hands and shoulder, relies on her shopping being delivered but visits Asda for fresh produce two to three times a week. She said: "I am disabled and need a trolley to walk around, otherwise I have to use my mobility scooter which is not ideal inside the store.
"Whenever I have asked a member of staff or security to get me a trolley I get told 'you will have to use a basket', which I can’t do due to my disability." She said she often finds herself going on a “trolley search” and believes that if Asda does not find a solution it “will lose business to the other stores in the area".
She added: "It's not like they’re the only option we have.”
A spokesperson for Asda said: "We are aware of a current issue with the lack of trolleys at our Filton store and we are working to retrieve a number that have recently been taken. As well as working with Collex to offer a collection service for any trollies which go walkabouts we’ve also ensured our trolley lock system is functioning as it should be."
Mrs Goodfellow is not alone the only customer who has had a negative experience when trying to source a trolley, after taking to a local Facebook group to share her concerns. Some shoppers claimed to have spotted abandoned trolleys in residential areas while some said they have switched to other supermarket stores.
The supermarket chain did not addressed claims that the shopping carts have been taken by UWE students. However, it acknowledged their disappearance and asked residents to "directly report" any abandoned trolleys using the Collex app - so it can "arrange for them to be collected and put them to better use".
A spokesperson for UWE said: “If any UWE Bristol students are found in possession of supermarket trollies on our campuses, our security team ask them to leave campus and return the trollies to the store as soon as possible. If trollies are found abandoned anywhere on our campuses, they are collected by our grounds and security teams and returned.”
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