Dunnes Stores shoppers could be left with worthless vouchers in the run-up to Christmas after the retailer shortened the time frame for its popular €10 off €50 vouchers.
Many consumers familiar with the long-running scheme will have grown accustomed to the 14-day period in which the vouchers can be used to buy groceries.
According to The Irish Times, Dunnes Stores has started issuing vouchers that expire just 10 days after they have been given to shoppers who spend at least €50 with the retailer.
The voucher scheme has been central to the success of Dunnes Stores in recent years. The most recent figures from retail analysts Kantar suggest it has been the most popular grocery retailer in the country for a significant period.
According to the most recent data, Dunnes held a 23.7 per cent market share with growth of 10.8 per cent, compared with Tesco on 22.5 per cent and SuperValu on 20.6 per cent.
A dedicated Facebook group with over 100,000 members is used to exchange Dunnes Stores grocery vouchers and attracts hundreds of posts every day.
Staff working in the grocery department of one outlet said they had been caught unaware by the change and there was no prominent notification on the retailer’s website outlining the move.
