Asda scraps home delivery change plan due to privacy

The supermarket said it had temporarily paused the proposal amid privacy concerns.

These cameras, along with an artificial intelligence “driver distraction system”, would have been used to identify subtle movements from drivers.

According to The Times, it would have provided audio prompts if there was a concern about safety, such as signs of tiredness.

However, in correspondence seen by the newspaper, the GMB union expressed serious concerns about the use of the technology.

They argued that it amounted to a “severe breach of privacy and unnecessary intrusion on a driver while at work, ultimately leading to drivers leaving the business”.

One Asda delivery driver said it would be like having a “spy in the cab”.

Upon the news that the proposal was paused, the union said it was “really pleased that Asda has listened to our feedback and have indefinitely halted the driver distraction system trial. This is a huge win for GMB drivers.”

Asda is understood to have made the decision before and independently of the GMB’s input, but said that it would take its feedback on board.

Asda said it had paused the plan to install driver-facing cameras in its home delivery vans independent of input from the GMB union (Image: PA)

A spokesperson for the supermarket said: “This proposal did not reach the operational stage and has been paused while we focus on other projects.

"Colleague safety remains of paramount importance and we continue to look at how technology can be used to keep colleagues safe across our business.”

Asda is currently focusing on turning its core grocery business around.

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The Times reports that it has struggled since it was bought by the private equity firm TDR in concert with the billionaire Issa brothers in 2021 in a £6.8 billion leveraged buyout.

Since the take-private deal, Asda has lost market share, and its net debt stands at £3.8 billion.

Allan Leighton, who ran the company in the 1990s, has been drafted in as executive chairman to reverse its decline.