UPDATE on Jun. 6 at 10:26am: This article has been amended with an updated statement from the Pizza Hut spokesperson.
The Jun. 5 Pizza Hut giveaway in Singapore, where those who flashed the old 10-cent Singapore coin were entitled to a free pizza, is done and dusted — but complaints have since emerged.
Some who tried to get the free pizza claimed the giveaway was fully redeemed at some of the 14 participating outlets before the stated 2pm redemption time.
The giveaway, which was announced to take place from 2pm to 4pm on Wednesday, granted the first 50 customers a free regular pan Hawaiian pizza when they presented a first series 10-cent coin with the seahorse and seaweed design at the participating Pizza Hut outlets.
Customer said pizzas fully redeemed when she reached at 1:40pm
A Mothership reader, who went to the Punggol Safra branch, said the pizzas were fully redeemed when she reached at approximately 1:40pm, which was 20 minutes before the supposed start time.
Photo courtesy of Mothership reader
Staff at the outlet told her there was a long queue even before the starting time, and they had to put up the sign to warn people that they were already going to be out of giveaway pizzas.
The staff also said the first customer started queuing at around 9am.
Giveaway at the Jalan Malu Malu outlet began at 12pm
Another Mothership reader, who went to the Jalan Malu Malu outlet in Sembawang, received similar news when they arrived at around 2:05pm.
To their surprise, they were told by the staff that the giveaway had ended.
"There were quite a few of us in the queue and we were very surprised about it," the reader said.
"We probed further and the staff informed us that the giveaway started at 12pm and all 50 pieces had been given out."
They said they were "quite shocked to hear that", as "it was reported that the giveaway was to start at 2pm but this Jalan Malu Malu outlet decided to start at 12pm instead".
"Why did Pizza Hut not have proper control?" the reader asked, adding that they wasted time to make the trip.
Pizza Hut aware of the early redemption at some outlets
A Pizza Hut spokesperson told Mothership that they were aware that some outlets had notified customers that the free pizza giveaway had been fully redeemed before the redemption time of 2pm.
"At Pizza Hut, we have a standard procedure in place to ensure a smooth redemption process," the spokesperson said.
"While we had a standard procedure in place to ensure a smooth redemption process between 2pm to 4pm, some stores started experiencing queues in the early morning," they said.
To prevent overcrowding outside the stores, some stores made the decision to hand out redemption tickets earlier to the first 50 persons in the queue, the spokesperson explained.
"We are humbled by the overwhelming response to our recent free pizza redemption promotion at select stores, and apologise for any inconvenience caused to those who were unable to redeem the giveaway as the quota had been filled," the spokesperson said.
They said, "we will take learnings from this promotion and work with operations to strengthen the mechanics for future promotions," adding they seek their customers kind understanding and support.
Giveaway announced on Jun. 1, limited to 14 outlets
The giveaway was announced on Jun. 1.
Pizza Hut said participants had to present a first series 10-cent coin with the seahorse and seaweed design at certain outlets to get a free regular pan Hawaiian pizza.
The event was slated to take place from 2pm to 4pm on Jun. 5 at the following 14 outlets:
- Viio Balestier: 520 Balestier Road#01-08, Singapore 329853
- Marymount CC: 191 Sin Ming Ave #02-01, Singapore 575738
- Boon Lay Community Centre: 10 Boon Lay Place #01-02, Singapore 649882
- Punggol Safra: 9 Sentul Crescent #02-02B, Singapore 828654
- Downtown East: 1 Pasir Ris Close #01-342, Singapore 519599
- Block 614 Tampines North Ave 1 #01-10, Singapore 521614
- Block 162 Bukit Merah Central #01-3555, Singapore 150162
- Block 166 Bukit Batok West Ave 8, #01-262, Singapore 650166
- Block 654A Punggol Drive #01-08 Singapore 821654
- Block 306 Woodlands Street 31 #01-17, Singapore 730306
- 4 Bukit Batok Street 41 #01-31/37/38, Singapore 657991
- 66 Jalan Malu Malu, Singapore 769681
- 750 Chai Chee Road #01-16, Singapore 469000
- 251 Tanjong Katong Road, Singapore 437039
Customers were limited to one pizza per redemption.
Top image via Fiona Tan & Pizza Hut Facebook