Albert Heijn tests home delivery with a smart door lock in the absence of the resident

Albert Heijn has started testing a new delivery method in the Alkmaar region. From now on, via a smart doorbell and a smart lock, groceries can also be delivered to your home when the residents are not there. AH follows the example of Amazon in the US.

The supermarket chain has been testing the delivery method on a small scale since last summer. A select test group then received a smart door lock from Nuki. The new test phase is more extensive and lasts a total of eight weeks. When the delivery person from Albert Heijn arrives, he rings the doorbell via a smart video doorbell from SecuFirst. The customer sees who is at the door on his smartphone and can then open the front door remotely via Nuki’s smart lock. The delivery person puts the groceries that have to stay cool in the fridge and leaves again. The doorbell and smart lock apps allow the customer to closely monitor the entire delivery process.

During the test period, which lasts until mid-December, a lot of attention will be paid to the experiences of customers and deliverers. “People are not yet used to having their groceries delivered to their home when they are not there themselves. Our main objective is to gain insight into the perception and opinion of both customers and deliverers regarding this new delivery method”, says Julie Kuipéri, innovation specialist at Albert Heijn Studies show that more than fifteen percent of consumers are interested in home delivery of food products.