More than 300,
000 customers flooded Tesco's website this morning as they logged on to try and secu... View MoreMore than 300,
000 customers flooded Tesco's website this morning as they logged on to try and secure a Christmas delivery slot.When MailOnline checked at 8.20am, there were nearly 275,000 people waiting in the online queue to get their festive shopping sorted after the UK's biggest supermarket started taking orders.
Delivery Saver customers were told they could book a slot from 6am this morning, but many were left shocked to find more than 130,000 people on the site already.
Some complained the queue was opened before the advertised time and others claimed they were 'kicked out' before they could get the chance to order.
Tesco said the issues were caused by a 'high number of visits to our website and Groceries app' and confirmed later in the morning its website was back up and running.
Tesco is relatively late to open bookings for its Christmas delivery slots, with most other supermarkets having released them last month.
Shoppers had been expected to seek out the slots in greater numbers than usual this year as they set tighter budgets and seek to spread the cost of Christmas in an effort to cope with cost-of-living pressures.
The cost of some family favourites such as Heinz tomato ketchup has soared, forcing people to change their shopping habits, while some pensioners have been forced to come out of retirement to pay their bills ahead of Christmas.
In recent days Lidl and Sainsbury's have both run short of eggs, while pub chain Wetherspoon has offered hash browns in place of the item in its English breakfasts.
The slots that have opened up today are only for customers who have the Delivery Saver plan with Tesco. Regular customers will have to wait until November 22 to book theirs.
Despite claiming to have more than 1.2million delivery slots available in the week before Christmas, customers rushed online this morning to bag the one they want.
On Twitter, one customer said: 'I logged on at 5.59 (am) to get ready only to find over 135, 000 in the queue already.'
By 6.13am, users were posting screenshots that showed the queue was up to 180,000 people.
Others complained they spent time waiting in the queue only to be kicked out: 'Hey Tesco just sat for half an hour in your xmas queue and as soon as I reached the front of the queue I got kicked out and now the wait is an hour.'
Another said: 'I was 38,000 in the queue and the app 'refreshed' itself and now I'm number 178, 000. You're having a laugh.'
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A Tesco spokesperson said: 'Online Christmas slots are now available for Delivery Saver customers on our website and Groceries app after some customers temporarily had difficulty logging on or placing orders this morning.
'We're really sorry about that and it has now been resolved with slots available for both Home Delivery and Click+Collect over the Christmas period.'
Tesco offers delivery passes from £2.49 a month for click and collect, while off-peak delivery costs £4.99 a month, The The most expensive delivery pass plan costs £7.99 a month, offering same day deliveries.
The troubles faced by shoppers today come amid shortages of popular items and a cost of living crisis that has left people struggling to pay bills in the run-up to Christmas.
Shoppers shared photos of signs at Lidl urging people to limit the number of eggs they buy amid the country's worst ever bird flu crisis.
Shelves were almost bare in a Sainsbury's store, where a sign explained that the supermarket was experiencing shortages.
A Wetherspoon spokesman said the shortage was only affecting some pubs and it was a temporary issue.
The pub giant added the shortage was not specific to Wetherspoon and blamed the lack of supplies on Avian flu outbreak.
Some brands have passed on the cost of inflation in the form of higher prices.
As a result, millions of shoppers have been switching to supermarket 'own label' food and budget chain products.
Research into average prices across leading stores found the price of Heinz Tomato Ketchup was up by 53 per cent. The 460g 'squeezy' version of the ketchup is currently £2.80 in Tesco but prices vary among retailers.
Meanwhile, Dolmio Lasagne Sauce (470g) rocketed by 47 per cent - but the increase at one retailer was 107 per cent.
The study of big brands by consumer group Which? found Heinz Classic Cream Of Chicken Soup (400g) went up by an average 46 per cent.
Rising prices, combined with soaring energy bills, have even forced some pensioners to leave retirement and return to work.
Recruitment specialist Reed said fearful retirees are reassessing finances due to soaring inflation and warnings of a looming recession.
They are also worried about a potential fall in the number of available jobs if the economy dips in the coming months, according to company boss James Reed.
Mr Reed told The Telegraph: 'If you did a spreadsheet in 2020 doing some calculations about potentially retiring early, your numbers would look pretty different than they would now.
'I can see that for a lot of people that might not have been a sustainable choice.'
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