Supermarket chains across the UK have said that 'technical errors' have led to issues involving delivery slots and card payments in several of their stores.

On Saturday (March 16), Tesco and Sainsbury's said they are experiencing numerous issues with its systems - and are working to resolve them.

Sainsbury’s has said it is experiencing “technical issues” at some stores meaning it will not be able to fulfil the “vast majority” of online grocery deliveries.

The supermarket chain said on Saturday morning it was “working hard to fix the issue” and apologised to customers affected.

There have been problems with contactless payments due to an error with an overnight software update, although all stores were open as usual and chip and pin and cash transactions were working, a spokesperson told the PA news agency.

A statement said: “We’re experiencing technical issues affecting some stores, our Groceries Online service and our ability to contact customers.

The Northern Echo: A warning at a Sainsbury's storeA warning at a Sainsbury's store (Image: PA MEDIA)

“Unfortunately, we will not be able to fulfil the vast majority of today’s Groceries Online deliveries.

“We are working hard to fix the issue and apologise to our customers for the inconvenience.

“We will contact customers proactively to rebook orders as soon as we can.”

One customer said she was meant to have a “very important” order delivered between 8-9am, which did not happen.

Tesco also said it is working to fix a technical issue that has meant it has had to cancel some of its online orders that were due for delivery on Saturday.

It comes after Sainsbury’s said it was also experiencing technical problems, which had left it unable to fulfil the “vast majority” of its online grocery deliveries and was causing issues with contactless payments at some stores.

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A Tesco spokesperson said: “We are working to fix a technical issue which has meant we have had to cancel some online orders that were due for delivery today. We’re sorry for the inconvenience.”

Argos, which is owned by Sainsbury’s, has also been affected by the software update, meaning customers may have issues with ordering new items or collecting orders in-store.

It said there may be delays in fulfilling orders placed on Saturday.