Thursday, February 4, 2010

Know Your Store's Coupon Policy

A few weeks ago, there was this wonderful coupon out for a free half gallon of chocolate milk when you bought two gallons of milk. It came out again earlier this week. And last summer there was a great coupon that, when matched with a good sale, meant free bacon. Free stuff makes my heart sing. But, sometimes finding a store that will take the coupon can be a pain in the behind neck!

Maybe this story sounds familiar:  When I sent Hubby out to get milk one night, I sent the free coupon with him. But Shopper's wouldn't accept it. Eerrgh. If we'd realized that ahead of time, he would have gone elsewhere to get the milk.This was one of those times I was mad at myself for not double-checking the coupon policy before he went to the store. Has this happened to you too?

To solve this problem keep a copy of each store's coupon policy in your coupon box or binder. I can't do this for every store I ever enter, but I can certainly do it for the ones I frequent.

Some coupon policies are easier to find than others. So, for those who live in Maryland and some of the surrounding states here are the links to the coupon policy (that I could find) for some of our larger grocery chains.

  • Food Lion - does not have policy online; check your local store's customer service
  • Giant Food - doubles up to $0.99; accepts internet coupons
  • Harris Teeter - complicated policy - you need to read it yourself
  • Martin's Food Markets - general policy that varies by store, check at your store
  • Safeway - complicated policy you need to read all the fine print
  • Shoppers - doubles up to $0.99 (may be limited to 4 identical coupons); accepts internet coupons up to $1.00, does not accept internet coupons for free items
  • Super Fresh - could not find policy online; check your local store
  • Target - accepts coupons at face value
  • Walmart - accepts coupons at face value (>40 coupons requires Manager approval)
  • Wegman's: Virginia & Maryland, Other states, Internet Coupon Policy
  • Weis - could not find policy online; check your local store
Have I missed one of our locals?  How do you keep track of coupon policies for your local stores?

For more tips on living a frugal life visit Frugal Friday at Life As Mom.

5 comments:

Leslie said...

so true. I'm just learning that myself.

Amy Rainey said...

I generally try to keep up with it in my head, which may not be the best plan of action :)

Food Lion does not double. But, I have never had them reject a coupon....ever.

Superfresh doubles up to .99, and takes competitor coupons (any, from registers, flyers, whatever.) They also reserve the right to limit you to 4 like coupons. Some stores don't worry about it. I've found the managers to be very accepting of coupons. Oddly, a couple of the cashiers at mine are weird about coupons. Twice the manager has had to make them accept one for me.

Weis doubles to .50. I have never had a coupon rejected there, although their system spazzes out if your final cost is $0. So, if I have coupons to get stuff for free, I usually throw in a small filler item to keep that from happening.

Great post!

Mom2fur said...

Frankly, if a store was that stingy that they wouldn't accept the coupon, I probably would not shop there again. I can see limiting coupons, but not accepting a legitimate one is a dumb financial move--not a very good way to keep a good customer!
To tell the truth, I use self-scan whenever possible. It helps me avoid the coupon police. Of course, I'm always honest, but I don't need the cashier staring at my coupon with a magnifying glass! If the computer accepts is, that should be good enough.

Coupon Teacher said...

You are right about knowing policies, because the cashiers don't. I also shop at Harris Teeter and do matchups each week! Come check it out!

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