Almost every consumer is used to grocery shopping online; with the advent of instant deliveries, more and more people are now opting to buy their daily groceries online via different apps. However, we often overlook hidden charges or certain additions which are added to our bills or even baskets. Recently a consumer took to social media to talk about something called basket sneaking which is a questionable practice which can lead to wastage.
The Bengaluru resident took to X (formerly known as Twitter) to criticize Swiggy Instamart for automatically adding free tomatoes to his order without giving him the option to remove them. Describing the practice as "basket sneaking," a form of "dark pattern," he expressed frustration over the inability to opt out of the free 500 grams of tomatoes that were included in his recent order.
Normally, customers can remove such freebies from their cart, but this wasn't the case for him. He shared a screenshot of the cart showing the forced addition and called out Swiggy Instamart for its "bad design" and lack of flexibility in removing the item.
"Very bad design in Swiggy Instamart, where an item is automatically added to my cart. I don’t want tomatoes but I cannot remove it from my cart. Even if I am not paying for it, this is basket sneaking which is a dark pattern," the user wrote.
"Basket sneaking" is a deceptive online shopping tactic where retailers add additional items to a customer's cart without their explicit consent. Often, this involves including free samples, promotional products, or items labelled as "gifts" that the shopper didn't select. While it may seem like a harmless way to promote new products or offer bonuses, it can mislead consumers, who may not notice the added items or assume they cannot remove them.
This practice is considered a "dark pattern"—a design strategy that manipulates user behaviour to achieve specific outcomes, often at the expense of transparency and customer choice. For instance, even if the added product is free, the inability to remove it or the subtle way it appears in the cart can make the experience feel intrusive and in the case of groceries or daily produce, it can lead to wastage.
Netizens had a lot to say about this tweet and also shared similar experiences. "Customer must have the final say. Offer freebies but the customer must decide yes or no. Swiggy is losing its way & Zomato is becoming very dominant briskly. We need a brand that generates profits for businesses & serves us, the consumer better," an X user commented.
"This is nearest dark store having too much stock of tomatoes and want to just dump them off. Give it to your watchman or someone bro," commented one user.
"If it was sent to a bachelor who doesn't even cook in the house and have food outside. Then it is definitely waste of resources. Instead they can ask customer whether they can donate it on behalf of the customer to someone in need," wrote another user.