Rite Aid: Wellness+ Program Changes for Richmond, Salt Lake City and Seattle
If you live in Richmond, Salt Lake City or Seattle and you shop at Rite Aid, you’ll want to take note of a few changes to the current Wellness+ Program.
Effective yesterday, February 5th, Rite Aid shoppers in these areas can expect the following changes…
* +UP Rewards will be automatically loaded to your Wellness + Card so you no longer have to worry about keeping track of your paper receipts (I love this feature! :D)
* A +UP Reward can be used starting at 6AM on the day after it was earned and will remain valid for 14 days.
* Check out this post for more information.
Please note that if you live outside of these 3 areas, nothing has changed, and the +UP’s generated on your register receipt can still be used on same-day next purchases.
(Thanks, Coupon Connections!)
They are going to have to wait to use them UGH !
I hope this doesn’t go nation wide.
I wanna be able to roll them right then and there !
i dont like this idea, you are going to forget that they are on your card, and you wont know if they were added correctly
Check out Rite Aid’s Facebook page! Many customers in the test areas are livid. If this goes nationwide, there better be an opt-out.
Check the 384 comments under yesterday’s announcement, in addition to comments on the wall…
I am in the test area and I don’t mind the add to card, but the wait another day – no way!
Corporate told me there was an opt out – but no one knows how to opt out. I am in a test area!! My store said their book they received on it says the system will prompt them at the register for an opt out, but they have not seen an option yet – probably a computer glitch. I have complained to corporate -and told them I would not shop Rite Aid with this. Oh – my Rite Aid also said that the UPS come off first, then coupons – so if you have a 10.00 purchase with 5.00 in coupons, and 9 UPS then 9 ups come off first, then you can only use 1.00 coupon. Also I was told that the largest Ups come off first, in descending order NOT by expiration date. Seriously??!! Are they trying to drive people away?
This is a BIG step backwards for RIteAid. CVS used to operate this way and they listened when their customers complained that this didn’t work. UGH, no more shpg at RiteAid when this policy starts.
really cool idea, but i like to be able to make sure that the up prints (sometimes either i make a mistake or rite aid does and it doesnt). also stink that you wont be able to use them the same day, sometimes ill do multiple transactions on the same trip and reuse my ups. does anyone know if they print on the receipt to tell you how many ups you got in that transaction that are now on the wellness card… also can you choose when to spend the ups for your next trip and how much of them? for example if you get a $4 up and have a transaction that you want to use $2 of that, can you or do you need to use it like it was a paper up? I dont live in these areas but im sure if this works out well they will apply it to all the stores so im just curious.
Here in Northern Ca They started this in Jan 2012 Love that the rewards are loaded to the card but…. I think it is unfair we can not use the RR in the same day…… Here in Northern Ca in my county we have 3 Rite Aids…. the nearest to my home is 10 miles away…… When I do go to Rite Aide I like making one trip….. I use the RR to get items with no coupons such as milk, eggs, and bread just to name a few….. As I do not go to Rite Aide but once a month the RR expire before I can get back for a deal. Thanks
what part of Northern CA do you live in? I live in a tiny town half hour from Turlock and our local Rite Aid allows me to use the UPs right away
I am in Nor Cal near SF and I can no longer use up reward to buy milk anymore. It will go through but the amount redeem will be $0 instead of the amount on my up reward.
you should be able to use the same day – looks like im gonna have to hide stuff in the store..lol
I did email Rite Aide and stated how difficult the new RR policy is… Please if you feel that this new policy is difficult for you let them know. The only way we can change their minds is to let them know… I also spoke with the manager of my Rite Aide. I also informed them all I will not be shopping at the store until they fix this issue.
I am in the test area and am not shopping at Rite Aid until they let me opt out, as people in the test area can’t. I have heard too many people not getting their UPs loaded onto their cards. It is not worth the hassle!! I hope this testing ends soon!!
Exactly. I want to be able to see the UP print right there and then in the store, so I can make sure they honor their promotions correctly. This is a way for Rite Aid to cheat people out of UPS. If they do this in MD… I will not shop there anymore.
This is a hot mess! Do I want this company managing my money, NO! There are already reports of the wrong amount of ups being loaded to the cards. I fear my love, RA is going away.
Everyone should go to their facebook page and complain! No more rolling transactions! People in the testing areas have already been trying this out, and it is not working. They are very frustrated and wanting to take their business elsewhere. Riteaid is the only pharmacy near me for over an hour so these changes will be hard to swallow! It’s hard for people who don’t live close to go back the next day and use their rewards.
I loathe this new policy & hope it fails!
No one wants to wait to the following day to receive their reward esp those of us who break up our purchases to that we can use the reward to help with our OOP expense. CVS used to this & I hated it! They changed their policy after customer complaints so that the reward printed at the bottom of the receipt.
Another reason I hate this policy is that I will NOT remember the expiration of a reward if it loads to my card. I much prefer to have a hardcopy coupon in front of me because I will FOR SURE use it before it expires.
So as it stands right now: Customers receive their reward on their card the day after their transaction & then get 14 days to use it with no notification of an expiration date? That may have sounded great in theory but now that it’s being executed, it’s not such a grand idea.
I DO NOT like this idea at all! I stopped shopping at RA quite awhile ago because their computers never can figure out how to do proper math (For example, total is $6 after coupons and UPs, I hand them a $6Ups and I am still told I owe $2? I have to explain to them that $6-$6= zero. They try to tell me it’s tax, but I do that math in front of them and it doesn’t come close to what tax would’ve been. This is going to put them 6 feet under.
tax is figured pre-coupon. So if your total before taxes is $18, that is what the tax is calculated on (here’ its 8.75% , which would be $1.58), so even if I handed over a $6 UP, I’d have to pay $1.58 for tax.
hmm… but if the cashier tells you the total is $6 WITH tax, that might be the problem, b/c the UP has to be adj down to pre-tax, and it messes everything up. I always ask the cashier for the pre-tax total b/c I want to use every penny I’ve earned from my UPs!
@Mel…how tax is figured depends on where you live. Some states calculate it pre-coupon and other states require it be calculated post-coupon (lucky ducks 🙂 ).
I like the idea! I hate keeping track of all the receipts. Plus it will cut down on all the wasted paper.
I don’t know why so many people are complaining.
And then the empty threats to never shop there again…. *rolls eyes*
Don’t be so sure the threats are empty. I haven’t shopped there in well over 6 months because of the changes & steady decline of my once favorite drug store. :/
me too lauren, in 2010 I did all of my coupon shopping for household and hygeine products at Rite Aid, I didn’t do any there in the last 10 months of 2011. I do get our perscriptions filled there, but only because my husbands would be difficult to move..thank goodness they have a drive thru and I don’t have to step foot inside!
Boycotting is the most powerful tool we consumers have. Rest Assured, I will boycott Rite Aid since this will affect me negatively. We vote with our money. Never forget that!
I agree re the threats not being empty. The deals have not been as amazing this year as last year overall. I went to RA not too long ago to get an item that was on sale & free after coupons. One of the managers commented, “I haven’t seen you in here in a long time!” (I used to go several times a week) I replied, “Well you have to have deals worth coming in for!” I’m also very hesitant to even get some of the deals lately as I don’t want to get stuck with +ups that I’m forced to use up on expensive items. I definitely don’t like the idea of not being able to immediately use the +ups, hoping that doesn’t go national.
I’m upset by the fact that I won’t be able to roll transactions anymore. That’s how many of us save money shopping at Riteaid. If your not saving as much there anymore, why not go elsewhere?
Waste of paper really my receipt with no ups on it was three feet long after all the surveys and crap it Prints out honestly I wouldn’t care if they could be used right away and I had a way to manage them it takes the fun out of it. It is not an empty threat for most they have other drugstore choices like the walgreens across the street I really wish I had a cvs after this nonsense I have a large stockpile and will be living off that except I am getting lotion and a few sticks of deodorant in 13 days. I feel bad for the store employees dealing with angry customers I have to go this week to get some centrum to get the 10 up on 25 by the way it’s a monthly deal and then all try it in two weeks if t totally sucks two weeks later all use my ups up and be done hoping go replace them with kmart doubles
I agree, I would like it better if the rewards were loaded immediately, maybe they will change that. Test markets are done for a reason. Either way, I like rite aid and the video values, rebates, ups, etc. I save so much money. Waiting a day for ups wont be a deal breaker for me shopping there. I just think people are going nuts about this (facebook page.) At my company we used to have an old reward program that involved punch cards for free items. People ended up taking those and selling them on ebay. And there were employees scams. Eventually it was replaced by a swipe card program. Before people even tried it out, they were “outraged” Eventually they figured out it is a pretty good program. Talk to a rite aid employee, you’ll find that there are a lot of problems with ups. (Multiple cards, employee stealing from customers, etc) For all the money we are saving, the company may be losing money on this. Who knows? Maybe they have to find a way to control it better. Its not as if they are getting rid of ups completely. I’m sure they will work out all the bugs before or if they roll it out company wide. Just my opinions …..
these are not empty threats…I will NOT shop at Rite aid if this happens in my area…I never shopped there before the UPS reward program because I could get the same stuff cheaper at walmart with no coupons…I shop there BECAUSE I have control in rolling my UPS that I earned for shopping there…and can get items i need cheaper than walmart but if it changes…I will shop walmart and save my family money, time and hassle of stressing if rite aid gave me back the money they promised they would if I spent it there in the first place…
That sucks!! I live 45 min away from my rite aid. I only go if its a really good week so, i roll my up rewards and make sure to use them all that day because I never know when I will get a chance to come back. I go out of my way to shop at rite aid but with this…. I don’t think it will be worth it for me at all! They will expire before i get a chance to use them! Too bad… rite aid is one of my fav drug stores. 🙁
I’m the same way. The only stores in my tiny town is dollar general and a little mom and pop grocery store (that doesnt accept ANY coupons and has over priced items for example a simple item like bread is nearly $4 no matter the brand where as dollar general sells bread for as cheap as .89) so i do a weekly shopping trip thats about an 45-1hr away and i do my rite aid shopping while im out. if they switch to this idea then they will lose those of us who don’t have the pleasure of just up and going every day to use those rewards. i hope they think this out and realize that a lot of people are not going to like it.
IDK… I think the one main question/downside is HOW will the UPs be used? What I mean is, I have a purchase of $5.xx before taxes, and my card is loaded with (1) $10 UP, will I need to use the FULL $10 value or will the remainder still be on the card ($4.xx?)
I;m sure the cashier will have to ask if you want UPs applied to your order, but you know some cashiers don’t pay attention. I don’t see this being a good thing. Thats why CVS decided to pull the plug on loading ECBs to the card.
I live in the test market and cause of new rules I will try it and shop every 1; days I always roll my ups and that is what makes shopping there fun. The store told me the test is permanent oh and u have to have your card ut takes a day to load so if there’s a problem u font know tell the next day and I font know how to check ut without going back it’s a 20 minute drive for me each week
I live in Richmond and I’m thrilled, so long as there’s a way to confirm Ups and expiration dates. I stopped shopping there pretty much after the Ups program began and shelves started getting cleared. I saw greedy people rolling carts full of merchandise while their babies cried in the cart. Sickening. I don’t think customers should be able to roll; it encourages greed and isn’t fair to others who might like one product. This will make people make a choice to lay the money out upfront if they really want the products, attempt to roll another day when there may be nothing left, or to go elsewhere, in which case there may actually be some deals on the shelf and I’ll go back.
Ricmond, ??? There are several states that have this named city so which one?
VA
I feel sorry for the people in Richmond. First they have to deal with being in the test area for Wal-greens and their really bad card. Now they have to wait till the next day to use their UP. Too much work!! I would start shopping CVS.
You are just right I am so fed up with all this. Rite aid is really closed to me but forget it I will shop cvs or walgreens
Yup, it’s been pretty bad in Richmond as far as being the guinea pig for everyone… Actually, now that Walgreens has gotten rid of their ill-conceived bonus point program, they’re the best drugstore to shop at.
Same here. I just started shopping at Walgreens again. So happy the points are gone. Looks like I won’t be shopping at Rite Aid, seeing as I usually roll UP rewards.
Random question/rant about Walgreens. I know the rule of 1 mfr coupon per item, but if the coupon states $ 1/2 does that that mean that if I have only those 2 items in my cart and 1 RR (along with the coupon) to use I need to buy a filler item because the mfr coupon states 2 items so the 2 items technically ‘uses’ the 1 coupon forcing me to buy something else to use the RR? My store pulled this on me the last time I was there. I had never had this happen before so I was mad.
The main problem from what I hear, is that you don’t get to decide when you use your ups. They automatically come off. We all know that you may be waiting for that sale next week to get free items, but if you get that item now it will be used. You have no control .
That is what my Rite Aid told me, I am in a test area. If you have a 10.00 purchase 5.00 in coupons and 9ups for instance – they will take off all 9 ups first, then they will only accept 1.00 coupon!!! They also said the largest ups come off first, they do not come off in order of expiration dates. So you have a greater chance of loosing ups due to expiring ups if they are smaller amounts. You will have no control over how your ups are used, the system makes that decision for you. NOT good.
The rolling UPs is not really a big deal. It will only increase your OOP expense one time. Then you’ll just have more UPs and can roll them week to week instead of trans to trans. My bigger concern is that you won’t be able to see and manage expiration dates. If I have a $19 transaction and I have a $20UP expiring the next day, I’ll add a bottle of soda or something and spend the $20 so I don’t lose it. On the card system, you won’t be able to see expiration dates, so you’ll never know if you need to do that
Susan, I agree. I don’t roll my UPs daily but weekly. My concern is knowing when they expire. For example I have $60 in UPs right now with three different exp dates. I need to know which ones expire when so I don’t lose them. If we can determine which get used and can track when they expire, I’m good. My other concern is being able to make sure we get credit for them. I have had to call CS two weeks in a row because my UPs didn’t print. How will I know if they are on my card instead of my receipt?
When I spoke to Rite Aid about this I was told you could go into load 2 card feature, unload what ups you don’t want to use, go to the store, then reload them back on. Seriously? You never know what will be in stock, so how can I know what ups to have on my card. If I have all of them on my card, it will deduct whatever it can, so it will really mess me up!! Hate this feature, and have already complained. I was also told I could opt out starting Sunday, but when I went to opt out – they had no idea how I could do it. Keep complaining – hopefully they will stop this, Richmond already had to put up with the Walgreens register reward change – stopped shopping there for the entire year. Now this? Yuck
There is a petition on change dot org against Rite Aid doing this. I encourage everyone to sign it!! I heard the ups will be deducted not according to date of expiration, but according to largest ups used first. RAs computer systems are already not really reliable. I would not trust them loading my ups onto my card. It will be more of a hassle to shop there because I will need to double check everything when I get home. It has already been reported not working right in test markets. Sign the petition!!
iam so upset about this program. I am from the Richmond area and last year Walgreens had us on a test area. They listen and finished it this year but knoe this Rite aid I went this morning to the pharmacy and I had to do only 1 transaction because everithyng else was send to the card I have 3 kids you think I have time for that. no
Amen – Richmond here also – I did not shop at Walgreens last year at all because of the test market. I told Rite Aid corp this was a horrible idea – I shop with kids also – he told me I could go into my account on line, unload the ups I did not want to use, scan my card then reload my unused ups. I laughed and told him seriously -I shop with small kids, I get in and out as quickly as possible – who has time to do this. Call and complain to corp – hopefully they will change back. I was also told I could opt out of this and print to my receipt again. But when I called corp to opt out, they did not know how I could do it yet. She said this is new and we don’t know how we are going to do everything yet. Please stop implementing new things if you don’t know how you are going to do it!!!
I live in the Richmond area. I do not roll ups, however we have a large number of shelf clearers here so I am hoping this stops their hoarding ways. The Walgreens points system was horrible because it took forever to get any type of reward. I do not think that this will be a problem for most Richmonders because we have a bunch of Rite Aids so they can go back later in the week if need be. If you manage your rewards well, then you should not have much out of pocket expenses.
If you go back later in the week, you won’t find anything left and most of the time it has nothing to do with shelf-clearers. Rite Aid keeps a low stock for a lot of stuff.
I agree. They always have low stock. If you go back in 24 hours, chances are the items will be gone.
I’m with you, Ellie. We should shop together 🙂
Richmond has gotten seriously cutthroat over the past two or three years. I rarely get more than two of any one items; I’ve witnessed others not being that considerate, to say the least. I used to share deals on local blogs, but not anymore. When I did, shelves would be empty the next time I stopped. Recently I found a great easy freebie, and lo and behold, not a single store sold out over the three or four weeks it was available. Hate to be like that, but it tells me that it’s not several savvy individuals scoring one each, but more probably one (or two or three) scoring many.
How are people shelf clearing when there is a limit on UP rewards one could receive? Rite Aid is bad at keeping enough stock. There is only one Rite Aid right by me and the others are pretty far away. There is a lot more Walgreens and CVS than Rite Aid.
I stopped in for a couple of the free after Ups antibacterial gel on a Sunday morning, and they were wiped out. The limit was four, and the manager told me that someone came in with a handful of RA cards and said they were shopping for family members and wiped out the freebies and moneymakers. The manager knew darn well it wasn’t true, but there’s nothing they could do. Ups used to work on any card, so they could then redeem them all on one card if they chose. Likewise, the limit isn’t always one. The antibacterial gel was a limit of four free after Ups, and someone had the nerve to buy them up using multiple cards?!?! They probably “needed” them to roll expiring Ups. That said, Rite Aid doesn’t carry a ton of stock, only what they think the hot deals are. (Clearly, they need to read these blogs, LOL!) No drug store carries stock like grocery stores or Target and Walmart; I don’t think drugstores ever foresaw the popularity of couponing and drug store shopping when they designed their programs. The idea is to keep shoppers coming back and spending money–not just store rewards.
I agree with you Erin. I was at CVS five minutes after they opened yesterday and could hear the sound of items hitting the cart. A woman had all of the Suave deodorant in her cart (over 50)…I just wanted 3. Well she checked out with multiple cards. I’ve also seen a local coupon Blogger and her husband in CVS and each of them had two cards. People like this has caused these new rules. As for Rite Aid being stocked poorly, I did not shop last week until Saturday and the shelves were well stocked and I got all of Collin’s deals that I wanted and my family will use.
I agree Ellie. I have four RAs in my area and they are always well stocked. I get all my deals at one store, no matter which one I go to. CVS on the other hand never has all the deals and I end up having to go to two or three stores in one day.
The people that have 27 cards are….
It isn’t hoarding if it is a quantity your family will use before the item expires. Do I think people overbuy beyond their needs? Yes. Are some people greedy? Yes. Even with that, it’s not our place to judge others, especially when we don’t know their needs. I think it is wrong to have multiple cards just for the sake of it, but if someone has a large family then maybe they need a few cards. I don’t understand why someone would have multiple cards if they didn’t “need” the stuff because it is a lot of headache to keep it all straight and with Rite Aid I don’t see how they could get all the deals with multiple cards, especially with the single check rebates. The cards would have to be in someone’s name that they trust to give them the money because isn’t the single check rebate issued as a check? I’ve never done one so I wouldn’t know. I only have 1 RA card as I do not shop there often but I have 2 CVS cards and I buy for myself, my elderly parents in which my mom is disabled, and my sister and her family of 4 because she I live with her and she has allowed me to do so rent free while I attended nursing school. I feel I owe her something in return and this is my way of doing something for her that costs me little and she is unable to do for herself as she has no patience or time for couponing. If anyone out there feels that is wrong then that is your problem, not mine, and no one has the right to judge me. Ellie, you may have known the person who bought the 50 deodorants and knew she didn’t need that many, but if you don’t know her, then how do you know she doesn’t have a large family? If she has 5 people in her family, then she would need at least 30 to have enough for a 6 month period if you allot each person 1 deodorant per month. If she is like me and is stocking up for preparedness, then maybe it was needed to put her back where she needed to be to be prepared if she had a large family. Any preparedness website out there will tell you that you need at least 3-6 months of supplies to sustain your family in case of an emergency, job loss, sickness, etc., and in this economy it would be unwise to not do so. I know a lady who is about to have her 6th child which will make her have a family of 8. One or 2 of any item will not meet her family’s needs and I feel it would be wrong for someone to judge her when she buys a large quantity of something. Why should she forego buying what she needs on sale (if it will meet her family’s needs) and pay full price just so someone won’t judge her as a hoarder? I get what you all are saying and I know there are some very greedy people in this world, but not everyone is and I guess my point is that if you don’t know the person or their needs, please don’t judge them as a hoarder. I would have taken offense to being judged as that when I shopped for myself and my family this past weekend because I purchased 8 deodorants….but there are 4 men/boys in my family that I buy for. I don’t think that 2 per person should be considered as hoarding but to not know me and see me in a store doing that I’m sure someone thought I was a hoarder and if someone had made a comment to where I could hear it, I would have informed them otherwise. I ran into the same problem that a lot of you have with the shelves being cleared and I know it is frustrating. Some of it I am sure was due to greedy people, but a lot of it has to do with poor stocking on the stores part. In the town closest to where I live the CVS and Walgreens are terrible. I went to CVS closest to me to get what I needed that was included in the ECB’s and was going to use those ECB’s to get the Pampers for a shower gift for a dear friend who is having her first baby, but my store was wiped clean of most everything on sale. I took a chance and drove to the one 30 minutes away in hopes to get what I needed as it was Saturday and the last day of the sale. It is a larger town and I have seen quite a few couponers in there before buying quite a bit of quantity but to my surprise the store still had some of all of the sale items and in decent quantity. The only thing they lacked was women’s speed stick deodorant….all they had were men’s. I was able to get my diapers and was very pleased. The Walgreens nearest to me is notorious for not putting out stock. If you ask them if they have an item in the back the answer will always be no but when you turn around and ask for a raincheck, the item mysteriously appears from the stock room. It is not just “shelf clearers” and “hoarders” that contribute to items not being on the shelves. The stores themselves at times plan poorly or just do not put the stock out.
It isn’t Rite Aid’s (or CVS or Wag’s) responsibility to support large families. If the limit is two, it’s two, not multiples of two based upon how many loyalty cards I’m going to apply for.
Fifty deodorant from CVS is completely unreasonable because (1) drug stores are not mass merchandisers and (2) deodorant deals come around frequently. Leave some for others.
I agree…50 deodorants is more than drastic and it is something I personally would not do….but you are missing the point. My point is it is not your place to judge others and it is not always the “shelf clearers” fault that stock is not available. Just because you go in a store and see the shelf is empty or bare, does not always mean that someone came and bought it all up. Around here, sometimes the employees are either to lazy to put out the stock or they may be putting it back for friends/family to come and purchase. To me that is more irritating than anything.
You are undermining your own premise by judging the employees. Maybe they had a bad day. Maybe they were sick. Maybe they are understaffed and underpaid. Maybe their boss is a jerk. Maybe they are saving the stock for their disabled parents or neighbor with six children or to donate to the women’s shelter. My point is that there are a lot of excuses that people use to justify their own behavior and “not judging others” is usually invoked to mask one’s own behavior or feelings of guilt. The readers above are simply commenting factually on what was experienced firsthand: we actually saw shelf clearers in action (and were told about others from RA managers). That is fact, not judgment. On the other hand, assuming the employees are too lazy to put out the stock or that they “may be” putting it in the back for friends and family is not only speculation but judgmental, as well.
I agree with Erin 100%. I will always coupon and bargain hunt. But it seems to me like instead of having an attitude of gratitude for all the free and close to free items we get, nowadays there is such an overwhelming attitude of entitlement. I’m sorry, but I just can’t agree with the “outrage” over this. I think Rite Aid has every right to do with their rewards program as they see fit. If the changes make Rite Aid a place where some people decide not to shop anymore, that is understandable. But I don’t understand the hostility. I’m not speaking to anyone specifically on this blog, btw, just a general feeling I see on all the blogs and the Rite Aid facebook page.
And I love Erin’s point about judgment. It is very true.
You said that you were not being judgmental because you witnessed the shelf clearing, so that means I was not judging either. When I’ve asked an employee if they have more of an item that isn’t on the shelf the answer has been no with out them even going to look but then when I get to the register and ask for a rain check the item magically appears from the stock room. You forget that the employees are getting paid to do a job. If the boss is a jerk or if they had a bad day, they still have a job to do. If this were the case, I would be much more understanding though because I have worked retail and I know how hard it can be. At the particular store I am referring to, this is not a one time occurrence and they are absolutely not understaffed. Your point about the lady taking 50 deodorants is that it is unethical. For an employee to put back stock before offering it to customers is also unethical due to the fact that they have knowledge before the customers do of what is going to be on sale. When I worked retail, employees were not allowed to do this for this reason alone. If you are trying to imply that my telling you to not judge is due to me being guilty for doing something as the lady you are talking about did, you are quite wrong. I have never cleared a shelf and the most of any one item on sale that I have purchased were the 8 deodorants I referred to in my previous post and I didn’t even get them at the same store or in the same trip. I won’t apologize for having 2 cards because as I said, one is for me and one is for my disabled parents who do live in a separate household, which is what most of the limits are…..limit x per household. What I purchase and get in rewards for them is no different than if they were standing there at the counter buying it themselves, I just happen to be the middle man. The items are still going to separate households. Erin, you are correct when you said that drugstores probably never foresaw the popularity of couponers and that the programs are designed to bring customers back to spend money and not just the rewards so we all know that is the ethical way to use the program….so, how many in here are ethically shopping there regularly and paying the full price when there is no sale or reward? I would bet few to none. I agree with Christen, the reward programs are a privilege and not a right and the store should be able to do with it what they want. If they want to completely get rid of it, that is their right to do so. I’m just tired of hearing adults whining like a bunch of two year olds with the “she got more than me” and what have you’s. No, it isn’t fair that the lady got 50 and the others got none, but there is nothing you can do about it. The only ones that can change it is the company and now that they are trying to make a change to stop the unfairness and they are getting hated on. There will never be a solution to please everyone.
I love what Christen said….ditto!
I don’t know why Rite Aid insists on turning people off with stupid changes. They used to be the best . Now I don’t even want to bother with them*sigh*.
Also , My last 3 or 4 shopping trips at Rite Aid have been terrible because some of my ups didn’t print and I didn’t get the sale prices. I don’t want to have to wait to the next day to know if I got the correct ups. Oh well, I already stopped shopping there 5 months ago. If this goes national it wil just make my ”boycott” official.
They are listed on your receipt – check out my post 27.
I found at least four different Richmond cities in USA. Are all of them affected?
Richmond, Virginia
it’s such a horrible idea, in my opinion. i have an online coupon buddy that’s in a test area and she says it’s not going as well. since for me to shop at rite aid i have to drive atleast an hour (usually when i do my weekly grocery shopping) it will not be worth it sadly. i like being able to roll my rewards and know they are all there, rather then trust it to load to my card (she says only one reward is loading even if the limit is 2-4) i hope this doesn’t go national i’ll have to stop going to rite aid. 🙁
It’s funny, I was on Coupon Connections and the comments were the complete opposite. And yes, many were in a test market. I was able to see a picture of a receipt and it does indicate that your UP rewards were loaded – so where is the saving paper in that?
https://couponconnections.com/2012/02/rite-aid-policy-change-now-in-effect-in-test-market-seattle-richmond-salt-lake-city/
Go to comment – Amy February 5, 2012 at 12:58 pm
I shop at the same RA you shop, SavvyShopper (so the cashiers tell me), and I’m personally disgusted by this change. They are taking away my freedom of choice. I’m capable of cutting my UPs just like I cut my coupons, and I’m a big girl who won’t lose them. Also, I want them immediately, not 20 min. later or the next day! Ridiculous.
YA ok so..I am in the test market, UPs being loaded to card, great IDEA. Not being able to roll into the next transaction, super lame. No more rite aid for me! Love that I have a Walgreens right across the street from the Rite aid!
I like the up reward on my receipt so I have a tangible reminder to use it b4 expiration. I don’t like the 24 hour waiting period either. Please don’t go nationwide with this.
I am in the Richmond test area and I will not be shopping at Rite Aid anymore. I like to do my UPS in one transaction and then roll immediately for my non UPS things. I also like to see that my UPS printed correctly. I guess I’ll be sticking with CVS. Maybe I’ll start doing some wags since we just came off of there test market in January. That was awful also.
Another thing… if I have a paper UP expired by one day… sometimes managers at Rite Aid will accept them, as long as they are not expired by a long time. They understand people get sick and such and sometimes can’t get to the store before the date. And most CVS take almost any expired EB. So if Rite Aid does UPS on the card and the expire… POOF… YOUR LOSS. As well, you won’t get to manage the UPS by expiration date, as you have no control over how they will be deducted.
And if you have an item you want to pay full price for, and save your UPS for something else… too bad… you will have no control to do that.
I live in the test area and my cashier told me that the Up Reward comes off the total before coupons so if I buy $10 of merchandise and have $5 in coupons and a $10 up reward than I won’t be able to use the coupons at all. Has this happened to anyone else?
That’s horrible! If that happens (UP comes off before coupons), I won’t be shopping Rite Aid at all.
As much as I hate the proposed changes, I do know that Rite Aid is a business, and its interest is to make money. With extreme couponers (and moderate couponers, like me – I “buy” about $20-25 worth items a week by couponing), they are hardly making any money on us! Sure, they will get money for their manufacturer coupons, but not for their +UP rewards…that probably comes off their bottom line. I suspect that the rewards program was started to build a loyal customer base that will go and buy a lot of other things that are not on sale as well as use +UP rewards…it wasn’t really meant to be used by extreme couponers to get most things for free.
If Rite Aid is trying to keep a loyal “paying” customer base and lose all the extreme couponers, these changes just might work. And if Rite Aid loses less money as a company by doing so, they absolutely should make the changes.
As much as I dislike the proposed changes (and I will keep whining about it), the +UP rewards program is up to Rite Aid to change…or they can get rid of it if they want to. I don’t feel that I’m “entitled” to this program at all. It’s a perk that Rite Aid chooses to offer me, and it’s theirs to take away if they wish!
I am in a test market and that is what my Rite Aid told me too. It will make VV coupons and manufacturer q’s harder to use, also they will come off in order of largest to smallest, not by expiration date. These two reasons alone will keep me from shopping at Rite Aid.
I am in Richmond, va and hate the idea 🙁 Sometimes you want to make more purchases in a day with UP’s and not to go back the next day, and the idea with loading it to the card not working for me. I like all my coupons to have in hand before the transaction begins. I was never a big Rite Aid shopper but now I will be one shopper less.
Nothing is preventing you from buying those items without Ups.
good point erin.
To me it sounds like a terrible idea. I like having the actual paper receipts so that I can keep track of them and when they expire. Plus I like being able to use them the same day. I would hate for them to be automatically applied. Fortunately I don’t live in the test areas.
I wish I had been warned that this was going to happen before it came … I’m in Richmond, and have already tried to come back next-day to use +up rewards & they were NOT loaded on my card and now I have no proof that I should have them! I am looking for a corporate email or number to call because I should have $8 +up from doing two Revlon deals on Sunday. Over this already && it’s only day 1.
Occupy Rite Aid!!!!!!! Lol
I think that the rolling ups and multiple transactions is probably what rite aid is trying to prevent. I don’t think it was a big deal originally, but ups started BEFORE extreme couponing. I’m sure they had no idea that people were going to buy 20 bottles of sanitizer in 5 transactions with
5 different cards and then use those to buy 20 deodorants…. I understand that people are upset, but I appreciate that rite aid needs to make money. Rite Aid has been on the brink of bankruptcy for years. And I don’t mind the changes. I don’t shop in a way that it would affect me.
It probably also had to do with credit card fees. All those transactions cost more credit card fees to rite aid which are not a trifle.
However, I would say that Rite aid needs to boost their pharmacies. It’s what keeps drugstores in business, not deodorant or shampoos. Their pharmacists are horrible (I have tried 3 different locations). Not only are they not helpful, but downright rude and seem to not understand that they deal with people who are sick…. They must not make the investment to pay them enough to attract the better pharmacists. So I went somewhere else. You don’t want your prescriptions messed up. I have liked all of my Rite Aid cashiers though.
I agree with Christen…my one transaction per UP+ per week isn’t affected by any program changes Rite Aid makes. I will continue to support them and my local Rite Aid has made strides to keep more stock on hand, which is a huge improvement.
I saw on Rite aid’s facebook page today :
Rite Aid Hi, Carrie. We’re glad to tell you that based on all of the feedback we have received requesting that we maintain the register receipt +UPs, we are working on a way to let members choose what format works best – +UPs on register receipts or Load2Card +UPs. Redemption would still be on or after 6 a.m. the day after your +UP is earned. We hope to have more on this later in the week.
22 hours ago · Like · 1
Rite Aid Hi, Tevtiv. As with any test, we continually explore different program options. We are currently exploring a way to allow members to choose the +UP format that works best for them – register receipt +UPs or Load2Card +UPs. In these test markets, +UP activation will still be at 6 a.m. the day after the +UP is earned. We hope to have more on this later in the week.
10 minutes ago · Like.
They arent doing them in those stores. I live in Allentown, PA and i wasn’t allowed to use my +up rewards right away. and a reader of mine in Buffalo, NY had the same thing happened to her. Apparently the stores everywhere are stating that they aren’t allowed to.