Ocado and Sainsbury's warn delivery slots are booking up fast as Britain braces for second lockdown

Ocado and Sainsbury's have warned customers that delivery slots are booking up fast - as fears of a second wave appear to be fuelling the return of panic-buying.

The online supermarkets pasted notices on their 'pick a slot' page warning customers the sites were experiencing high demand.

Ocado's read: 'Delivery slots are selling out faster than usual. If you can't find a slot now, please use the "Next 3 days" button to see available slots further in advance.'

It comes as Government scientists spooked Boris Johnson with warnings of hundreds of daily coronavirus deaths 'within weeks' as they said: 'There is no alternative to a second national lockdown'.

A notice on Sainsbury's delivery slots page said: 'Slots are still in high demand. We have been working hard to expand our service. More slots are now available and we are able to offer some of them to other customers.

'Customers who are vulnerable will get priority access and are able to book slots in advance of anyone else. We’re releasing new slots regularly so please check back if you can’t see any available.'

Meanwhile Tesco was fully booked until Wednesday with an available slots all priced at £5.50 - and there were no available spaces until Monday at Asda.