Asda offers money back to customers

The retailer launched an internet-based system yesterday allowing customers to check their grocery receipts against its competitors and offering to repay any difference in the form of a voucher.

The scheme is similar to the Never Knowingly Undersold motto used by the John Lewis department store, which dates back to 1925.

It follows a series of price-matching guarantees among the supermarket chains as consumers face recession.

Leeds-based Asda said its guarantee was permanent and would cover about 70 per cent of groceries, with 10 per cent of items left out because they were unique to Asda and another 20 per cent eliminated due to trading standards regulations relating to differences in pack sizes.

Items such as electrical equipment, DVDs or clothing would not be included.

Asda chief executive Andy Bond said: "From today Asda cannot and will not be beaten on price. Our grocery guarantee puts an end to the phoney price wars that most shoppers are sick of."