Lloydspharmacy revealed to C+D in November that it would start charging new customers for medicines deliveries to their homes, and added that it was planning a pilot in which all customers would be charged for deliveries.

The multiple confirmed to C+D yesterday (January 25) it has been operating the pilot “at some of our stores in Sussex and Surrey since the start of the year”.

The multiple will be fully evaluating the pilot, “but will not be sharing details of this”, it said.

Lloydspharmacy confirmed the cost for a six-month delivery service is £35, and £60 for 12 months.

Patients can still collect their medicines in person from a pharmacy or register online to receive postal delivery free of charge, it added.

A C+D reader poll in December suggested that over a quarter (27%) of pharmacies plan to start charging patients to deliver medicines to their homes, while 42% “are considering” charging patients for this service.

Read Catherine McDermott's comment piece for C+D here for a full explanation of why Lloydspharmacy has made this decision, and how she predicts it could affect the sector.