Tesco has launched the first drive-thru supermarket in the UK aimed at shoppers who don’t want to wait at

home for a delivery.

Run by the Tesco dotcom team, the trial started last month at the supermarket’s Baldock Extra store in Hertfordshire.

Customers order shopping on the Tesco.com website in the usual way but use the ‘Click and Collect’ option to book a two-hour collection slot. They can collect the shopping at any time within the two hours.

Customers drive to the reserved area in the Tesco car park and show staff their reference details. The ordered shopping is then brought to the car with any substitutions flagged up before being put in the boot. A flat £2 charge replaces the normal home delivery charges.

“This will be especially popular with busy mums who have the school run and children’s activities to manage,” said Tesco dotcom and Tesco direct CEO Laura Wade-Gery. “We also expect it to help professionals who want the convenience of a pre-picked and packed shop but who cannot commit to waiting at home for a delivery."

The service may be rolled out to more areas if the trial is successful.