Tesco Apologises After Wrongfully Accusing Shopper of Theft

A man was left “humiliated and furious” after staff at a Tesco store wrongly accused him of shoplifting – despite clear proof of payment.

📱 Andrew Kennedy paid £75.92 for groceries using Apple Pay at the Hurst Park store on Good Friday. But as he left, staff claimed he hadn’t paid and publicly accused him in front of other customers.

Even after showing evidence of the transaction on his phone, staff allegedly insisted it was only a “pending payment” and suggested he was trying to trick the system by doing “two identical shops”.

💳 His card was blocked due to the duplicate charge, and when he abandoned the shopping in frustration, the original payment went through.

🧾 But when Kennedy called for a refund, Tesco told him he needed to drive 120 miles back to the store and prove he hadn’t taken the goods.

📢 The story exploded on social media, racking up over 1.3 million views in hours.

⏩ By the evening, Tesco’s CEO’s office stepped in with a formal apology, refund, donation to mental health charity Young Minds, and a gift card.

Kennedy said he spoke out not just for himself, but “for those without a voice” – and urged others to challenge petty authority.

🗣️ Tesco said the issue was caused by a faulty scan-as-you-shop device and admitted their handling “fell below the high standards we would expect.”