What Would YOU Do in this Situation?
I received the email below from a reader and thought that all of you could offer her some great advice and encouragement!
[h2s_box]Hello Collin,
I’m reaching out to you because I am really concerned and angry with my area Walgreens, Walmart, and other stores in general. I don’t know if it is because I live in a highly touristy area or just because extreme couponing in Fort Lauderdale, FL is a bit hard… especially at Walgreens! Where do I begin??
First of all, I’m a paralegal and I have a deep experience on policy analyst. I’m mentioning this because I want you to know that I understand Walgreens policy completely, but the cashiers & managers (assistant manager in general) are so ignorant when it comes to the coupon policy of the store! It doesn’t matter how many times I explain it to them and show them their own coupon policy, they refuse to do it.
At first I thought maybe it was my attitude, so I approached in a more friendly way, but I realized it’s not. I used to enjoy extreme couponing and it was a stress reliever, but now I get really stressed just by walking into the store knowing that I have to deal with them. At the end they always end up saying ” I won’t accept this coupon because it is not going through” or ” I don’t want to lose my job” or ” typing the coupon manually is illegal”. HOW DO YOU WIN THE WHO IS RIGHT BATTLE ON COUPON POLICIES?[/h2s_box]
What would YOU do in this situation?
I don’t shop at Walgreens for this reason. I think that trying to coupon there is too stressful. I exclusively shop at CVS because I always have a great experience. The cashiers are never rude and are often very helpful. So my advice is to give up on Walgreens. Other drugstores have great deals and in the end it just isn’t worth the stress. There is no winning with people who refuse to learn and don’t care. It isn’t worth the battle. It isn’t worth it for me to be belittled just because I want to save money. I live in SC and I thought it might just be my local stores but it seems to be a problem at a lot of locations.
see, this is why i stay out of Walgreens! They are so ignorant and rude. I have emailed their customer service center; which when I had recieved a call back from the manager at the local store, she was so wrong in trying to tell me that the way I was coupon was not in in compliance with the coupon policy! I was so frustrated at how she handled the phone call, I decided to never waste another second on the store from that moment on, period. It has been probably two years since I set foor in any of their stores. I am CVS all the way. Everyone is kind and helpful. No wonder CVS reported a higher revenue last year than Walgreens. There is definitely a reason for that.
Me too! Gave up on walgreens years ago! CVS gets all my business now!
I agree, avoid the stores that aren’t coupon friendly!! I also agree that Walgreens is the worst!!! They’re always out of sale items and the managers are very rude!! We should send this thread to corporate so they can see this is a problem all over the U.S. lol!!!
100% agree——–i avoid walgreens completely because of them being horrible w/ coupons, always out of things, clueless about their own polices as well as rude. [[and i hope that somehow corportate walgreens gets wind of how many of us skip them because of how shotty they all are!!]]
about 3yrs ago, i evaluated my couponing & in the event of doing it for the thrill 🙂 and savings, i decided for me that cvs was the drugstore to go to.
across the whole USA there is never more than a block or a few miles separating the 2……go to cvs and be the couponista there!
i have picked 1 grocery store and target in our area as well. it simplifies things to know your store, the people, their sales cycles and to not drive yourself batty running to 8 different stores for a deal or 2 at each one.
my mantra is any “wal-” store is a waste of my couponing energy and enthusiasm. shop where you are appreciated!!!
OMG! I couldn’t agree more with you. I only shop at Target and FredMeyer, because that’s all I have in my city. I live in WA state and we don’t have CVS here, bummer! We have Walgreens (waste of time) and Rite Aid which is not as bad, but I pretty much must stick to only two stores.
I believe the issue at Walgreens is the verbiage on their coupon policy. The policy states exacting rules, then puts a loophole in stating that managers can override the coupon policy. This completely nullifies the entire policy.
I would have to agree with the other ladies, just don’t shop there anymore, I have over 50k in points saved up at Walgreens but refuse to look at deals for them and will just slowly use up my points buying cheap newspapers for inserts. I have a Rite Aid near me that are amazing with coupons, they never give me a hard time and are friendly. I’ve traded Walgreens for Rite Aid and Walmart for Target lol and I find I am a much happier couponer.
I live in Delray beach Florida and Stopped going to Walgreens completely. if there is a good deal in Walgreens this week it will be on CVS come other week too…
I love CVS!!!!!!!!
The employees and managers are very nice and they know their coupon policies
It really does seem to be a Walgreens thing. They advertise and hype up using coupons so much with circulars and monthly coupon book, but it is the hardest place to use coupons. Ive seen this complaint about them sooooo many times, (icluding myself).
We should see how many comments this post gets and all band TOGETHER and email corporate. Maybe we can all change this problem, once and for all.
Maybe that’s what we should do! Hipsters to the rescue! They won’t know what to do if 100’s and 100’s of letters saying they are impossible and need to up their game with coupons!
Wow! I don’t shop at Walgreens and now I’m glad I don’t. I’ll continue to go to CVS and earn my extra bucks ;o)
Maybe it’s because I live in a small city in OH with a Walgreen’s, Rite Aid, and CVS all within a block of each other. The Rite Aid is across the street from the Wags and the CVS is a block down. All 3 are very coupon friendly, nice, and go the extra mile to help as long as you aren’t doing anything out of policy. Shoot the cashiers at Wags even try to help if someone has coupons or is trying to earn points to make sure they are doing it right!
I am from Dillon, SC. Walgreens here is pathetic! CVS all the way everyday!
I was having that issue with my local walmart. I stopped going there and sent a message to corporate. A couple of weeks later, they called and apologize and said they would retell their cashiers the coupon policy. I went back and didn’t have any issues.
I feel like I am repeating what many people above have said, but have had problems with Walgreens in my area as well. Initially, I tried to explain and, if necessary, do the math for the cashiers; if that did not work, tried a couple of other stores. Finally, I gave up and now rarely shop at Walgreens. CVS is so much better. I find that even cashiers at Macy’s have problems with their own advertised sales. I am increasingly less inclined to argue over coupons.
Ehh I don’t go to walgreens anymore anyway after that whole investigation about how their registers always overcharge and do sheisty stuff, i like going to stores that tell me the price and I have the choice to buy it or not..
Whenever I buy stuff from the clearance section the register almost always overcharges me. I have had to go back to the store to get a refund because of that. It is extremely frustrating especially since I have my two kiddos with me. I watch the register like a hawk now if I buy from the clearance section.
Here’s what I do: When theres deals I see and people comment that the coupon beeps– I don’t buy that. If the coupon has to be adjusted down– I don’t buy that. I usually try and wait a day and see how people respond to deals ex. worked or didn’t work. I miss out on deals but it is so not worth the hassle.
I would contact Walgreens headquarters and let them know that the store is not handling the coupon policy correctly (let them know the whole story), hopefully this will resolve your issue. I would also contact Walmart’s corporate office. Hopefully this will help.
Hi Hon, here in Philly, I have the same problems with Walgreens. Life is too short to stress oneself, I stopped shopping there. Sometimes it is simply not worth it to reason with people who simply refuse to apply logic.
I haven’t couponed at our local Walgreens in two years. I found them to be clueless about their own coupon policy, unfriendly to customers in general, but the last straw was the time the store manager call the cashier during a transaction and tell her NOT to sell me a bottle of nail polish because I had bought “too much Revlon stuff this week”. No joke! In reality, I had purchased a single Revlon item several days earlier. I felt like I was being accused of robbing the store when I was buying nail polish using a coupon. It was so strange! I am not a fighter, so I just called headquarters, but they were no help. It was an easy decision to take my business elsewhere.
Apparently Walgreens is a trend of not being coupon friendly at all. I have had the same problem with Walgreens. I refuse to shop there after an indicident where I explain the coupon policy, was right and the manager flat out told me because “he’s manager he can deny whatever coupon he wants”. I never got an ill attitude towards him and explained it in a very polite matter. I haven’t been back since it occurred and I even quit getting my prescriptions filled there.
I agree walgreens are usually the most difficult. CVS is always helpful and pleasant. Rite aid too although the one by me closed so I don’t go to Riteaid now
Just tweeted this thread to https://twitter.com/Walgreens
hopefully they read it!
Just me or does that picture of the woman? have a mustache going on.
YES!!!! LMAO and Eww. My very first thought to the heading here: “What Would YOU do in this Situation” was: “bleach or wax my mustache” *dies giggling*
I quit shopping Walgreen’s a year ago. They were always out of the items that made me go to the store in the first place. Who wants to work out the deals and then walk into an empty stock? Thanks but no thanks.
That is precisely the reason I don’t go! It is a waste of my time, because we have one or two couponers here who wipe the shelves clean on Sunday nights during early activation. How do you let 2 or 3 people purchase ALL of the sale stock? And here, once it is gone, it is not restocked.
I ditched Wags and WM a LOOOOOONG time ago. They are both horrid here as well. Target is a close 3rd, so I only deal with them when it’s just too good to pass up. It’s just not worth it. You vote with your money – if it’s a crappy store, don’t go there.
To be honest the customer is always right. That’s what your taught working at whatever type of store. Therefore I’d complain to the companies if it were me because to avoid your own coupon policy is very weird.
I had a similar experience at Walgreens. Recently, a cashier refused to even scan my coupon on a deal that was B1G1 50%, and proceeded to inform me that because they were printed, that I must have photocopied and created these coupons. This was despite my coupon policy being in-hand. I too, am currently both a paralegal and a graduate student, I also work for a law office. Normally I am polite to cashiers, but that particular day I lost it. I looked the cashier square in the eye, thanked him for the compliment, as I must be brilliant that I am not only able to extreme coupon, but also manufacturer my own coupons. I told the cashier that I was going to leave the store and contemplate how I would turn my criminal couponing ring into a legitimate FBI career, and while I was figuring out how to get to Quantico, he could use that time to put my purchases back on the shelves for me. I then went across the street to CVS!
Lol!
I pass right by Walgreens after my delightful CVS shopping trip 🙂
I search which stores are best for me! Even if sometimes that means driving extra, it is so worth it! My target which is 20 minutes away ( Have 2 more way closer) has a manager that goes above and beyond whenever I run into problems! & the cashiers are always helpful! So worth the extra gas just to leave the store with some awesome deals but also in a good mood! Same with wags I tried 4 different ones before I found “the one” lol! ( I had one manager tell me “couponers” were the reason the economy was bad and refused to let me use a manufacture coupon with a wags coupon! I said see ya later! So don’t give up!
I have a question concerning the Glutino and Free Milk coupons. I won a $4.00 coupon off Glutino crackers in their sweepstakes. Walmart would not accept it. I entered the Got Milk Buy One Get One contest and won a coupon for that. Walmart would not accept it. Walgreens EVENTUALLY accepted it but doubted if it was legit. Are these coupons legitimate? The Walgreens people could not get the milk coupon to scan nor would the computer accept the numbers. It is so frustrating. I have NO problems with coupons from Red Plum, SmartSource, or Coupons.com. Are the companies passing out bogus coupons? It really isn’t Walgreens fault. It is the people giving out these coupons. They are missing a series of numbers and bar codes (so I have been told by Walmart several times) so they won’t accept them. Any advice?
I assume they are legit but walmart wldnt accept my milk coupon either. didnt even give a reason.
Babs, my BOGO free milk coupon wouldn’t scan at Walgreens either. I also had a problem with the BOGO Nutella coupon there. Both coupons readily scanned at my Target. Now I don’t even try to use printable SmartSource coupons at Walgreens.
I never shop at Walmart anymore, even if the items are free, nothing’s worth the trouble. For Wags, I stopped shopping there as well, but have found one store near my area where they really make an effort to make customers happy. I only go there if I really need something. I choose peace over some stuff. CVS and RiteAid seem to be more reasonable and customer friendly. (I hope the stores can read the comments here and take some note)
Have not been to wallgreens for months , same problem every time.
Yesterday I had a similar experience at the Walgreens here. I was nice as pie but still didn’t get the help that I deserved. BTW I live in Jacksonville, FL.
I’m not sure what part of Jax you live in but I shop at the Walgreens at New Berlin and Yellow Bluff all the time and have never once had an issue – they are so friendly and helpful and never argue coupons with me. The CVS at Main and Duval Station Rd on the other hand argues all the time even when I go in with their coupon policy in hand. Just my two cents for anyone in the Oceanway area.
I had an incident at my Fort Lauderdale, FL Walgreens a couple years ago, too. There was a woman cashier, who was of a different race than me. There was a customer (a couponer) in front of me who was her same race and I watched her cheerfully check her out with a whole bunch of coupons, some the same as I was going to use. Well, now its my turn and this lady refused to let me use my coupons, the same ones the lady in front of me just used but only 2 vs. the whole bunch the other lady had. She was so rude to me, too! Gee… I bet I know why!! I wrote to corporate, never heard back from them. I have not stepped foot into a Walgreens since, I would much rather pay for something elsewhere than go there and be treated like that!
I face that everytime…im Asian and most cashiers i meet esp at Walgreens have some preconcieved notions about my race…they have a smirk and are waiting to deny a coupon the minute it beeps…or they search for a printed manufacture coupon for a logo just to deny it.
Same issue- different race. Everyone assumes I’m hispanic by looking at me and I have had a few cashiers ask do you know how much this will be momma? Like hispanic people can’t buy groceries!!!!!! OMG!!!!!!! Then when I smile sweetly and say yes, yes I do! So Rude!!!!!!!!!
Hi there. Trust me you are not alone. I live in Wellington Fl. I am german and what get’s me the most is the as a foreigner I understand the policy language better than the people who grew up with this language. I can’t count the times I have called corporate to complain about the rudeness and the managers and cashiers not knowing their own policy. I seldomly shop in walgreens or walmart. I enjoy shopping at cvs and publix. I rather spend a couple of more cents for better service
Maybe its just me but why would you want to do extreme couponing? I also use coupons a lot and I am constantly looking for good deals, do buy an extras so I don’t run out. But never “extreme coupon” in the literal sense but then maybe extreme couponing was just being used to describe using a lot of coupons in one transaction 🙂
I do not like shopping at Walgreens because they hire really incompetent and rude people. The pharmacy people will stand around and chat with each other while you wait to be helped/acknowledged for 15 minutes. Then they are even ruder when they actually help you and they act like YOU are inconveniencing them! Unbelievable. It also took me 2 hours to get a passport photo printed even though the two idiots at the photo center had nothing to do accept flirt with each other, they even asked me to stop waiting by the photo center because they would call or text me when my photo was ready. Then one of them had nothing else to do so he started ringing up people at the front registers. After shopping around and waiting two hours, I had finally had it and went and asked if my photo was ready yet. The girl told me that she had literally just finished it. And to top it all off, they put it under another person’s account, even though I repeated my number to the guy 4 times. My husband was shocked and asked if there was a manager we could speak to. And yup! the dopey guy WAS the assistant manager. Ugh, Walgreens you stink!
Although I prefer CVS, sometimes Walgreens has a deal or two I can’t pass up. I find that by going to shop early on Sunday morning, when there are few people in the store and everyone is less stressed, the cashiers are more likely to be flexible. In addition, I have a favorite Walgreens that I shop at when I think there will be an issue with a coupon deal.
re:” I used to enjoy extreme couponing and it was a stress reliever, but now I get really stressed just by walking into the store knowing that I have to deal with them.”
I am not sure how the writer defines “extreme couponing”. Maybe she simply means to be following some of the deals and getting some bargains. Or maybe she means how it is defined on that tv show. While I understand having frustrating experiences at times while using coupons, I am not terribly sympathetic with those who classify themselves as “extreme couponers”. IMO, couponing has become much more difficult since that obnoxious show was aired. The deals are not as good as they used to be. Stores can only carry so much merchandise. Extreme couponers tend to scoop up the deals without leaving anything for others. Stores then have to deal with their other customers who complain that the advertised items are not available.
I have had frustrating experiences myself at times. It has been my experience that most of the employees at stores such as Walgreens and Target are ignorant of the actual coupon policies. Or they are so afraid of making a mistake and getting in trouble for it. But most of the time things go smoothly. If the writer is truly one of the “extreme couponers” maybe that is why she is having such problems.
Very good point. I’d be interested to see a reply to this.
Well Tilly, it looks to me that either the majority of people responding are ignoring the “extreme couponing” element of the writer’s post and just taking the time to vent their couponing frustrations or they really don’t have a problem with the “extreme couponer” that you and I object to. I think out of all of the posts I have read only a couple even address it.
You need to have a talk with yourself first.
You said you do this because it was a positive thing in your life. Then you said with these certain stores that’s no longer the case. It’s your life, what means more? The deal? Or the positivity? If it’s the deal then you should, as others have suggested, utilize all avenues available to you. If it’s the positivity, I’m sorry but it sounds like you’ve already lost that and it’s time to let it go.
Unfortunately it sounds like your Walgreens/Walmart has turned your hobby into a “you can’t have your cake and eat it too” situation. The cake being the deal and the positivity being the ability to eat it.
Once you’ve decided what direction you’re going to go in, dig your heels in and don’t back down. Doesn’t matter which direction you choose.
Ultimately it’s not going to matter what people here say. You need to figure out what’s most important to you.
There’s going to be a little tension either way. Either in your disappointment of letting it go or your disappointment of having to re-explain yourself to each new cashier or the angst between you and management.
I am lucky enough to have two Walgreens in the Milwaukee area that have amazing women that working at the cosmetic counters who are very coupon friendly. At one of these Walgreens the manager of that department even clips coupons that are kept behind the counter and will look to see if she has any for the items you are buying. She has saved me more money several time.
Fawn im moving from CT to Milwaukee this week..im soo upset that there are no Rite Aids in WI and i hate the thought of couponing at Walgreens…but u have given me hope:)
im moving to Hales Corners btw…are the walgreens u mentioned anywhere close?
I have found in cases like this where I am not getting customer satisfaction at the store level, I pick up the phone and call the corporate customer service number and talk to someone there, or send the compamy an email explaining all of the details of everywhere situation with names and dates if possible. I have found this way I always end up being satisfied in the end, because ultimately a corporation does not want to lose a customer. If the store management has not been helpful, go direclty up the ladder and see if you get results. If you don’t, then at least you tried and feel good about yourself and then definitely move on to another store, there is so much competition out there these days that it’s really the company’s loss, not yours. Good luck!
Yes ladies and gentlemen I agree totally. Walgreens is terrible they need to update there system to agree with there coupon policy or at least update there coupon policy, but yes I have given up all hope in Walgreens and avoid them totally. My local Walmart is also often a problem so thanks but no thanks Walgreens and Walmart, I will be doing my shopping at CVS and Kroger, Meijer or my other local stores!
I am envious to those of you who have the option to go to a CVS or to Target. I live in Iowa, therefore, my closest CVS and Target are 45 minutes away. I have no other option other than to coupon at Walgreens and Wal-Mart, unfortunately.
You don’t. Why would you want to give money to people you have to argue with anyway? Go someplace else or do without
Seems like Walgreens should get a clue. This CANT be good for business.
I live in Missouri and the only places we have to coupon is Wal-Mart and Walgreens! Our Walgreens, everyone is super friendly! Most of the cashiers are couponers them selves, so they know the policies inside and out! Unfortunately our Wal-Mart only price matches 50 Mile radius, and no good stores with in that space. First place I always go to do my couponing is Walgreens! Now because we only have these stores, they do run out of the items fast 🙁
My solution to most couponing now is I don’t do it. When Collin started her blog/website I learn to coupon and coupon hard. In the end, most of the stuff I did not use and/or did not like. I had enough toothpaste to last my whole life. I donated all most of it to our homeless shelter along with all the extra items I had bought. I just did not want a store house in my garage any more. With that said, I only coupon strictly for items I need and do not keep a “Walgreens” in my garage. I changed the way I feed my family and my shopping. I fed a family for 5 for $50 a week five years ago and I still do today.
I personally got good and bad treatment at all the stores but never took the bad stuff personally, I just didn’t buy the products. I still look at Collin’s postings on the stores every Saturday and may pick out a few items every once in a great while. I like the newest posts on items at CVS or Wags that do not require a coupon. I like the cooking tips on the postings. I also like the Whole Foods deals that are posted because they are usually extremely coupon friendly.
I feed my family items from the garden, fruits and veggies from Farmer’s Market and stores. I completely changed how we eat a few years back and couponing became a thing of the past.
I still love Collin’s site for ALL the deals posted particularly Black Friday and Xmas time. I will still run and get some of the fantastic deals posted here but for the most I skip the drugstores.
I do a little shopping at Walgreens as I get points for prescriptions and walking so items are usually free.
Just my take on the drugstore thing. Target scares me now.
Wow!!! Yes, that’s a triple exclamation point!
This has only been posted for 40 minutes. And it already has over 100 comments. The vast majority of these comments are negative.
I have had similar circumstances with local Walmart and Walgreens not even remotely living up to their coupon policy. And the same as the previous commenters, I too seldom shop at these places because of these unfortunate experiences.
In my opinion, these comments should be forwarded to the stores in question. How else will they understand why their business is dropping off? There is much to be learned from frugal shoppers like us.
Thank you, Collin, for providing us with a forum to speak our minds on such a frustrating subject. You work tirelessly to provide us with deals that help us live within our means. And when the stores don’t live up to their end of the bargain…
I am very fortunate to live in an area, Ann Arbor, Michigan where we have 2 stores and all the managers and assistant managers actually know and follow Walgreens coupon policy. Here’s how I would approach this. I would be nice and when they were incorrect about their policy, I would immediately say, I don’t want to argue, please get the manager. If the manager refused to go by the policy, I would then let them know that not only would I be calling corporate because the manager clearly didn’t do his job, I would also let them know that I would be completing the WAGS survey on a receipt and giving their names and detailing their incompetence. WAGS takes these surveys extremely seriously. It is a much better way of making changes in your area’s stores than calling corporate.
Well, I hate to go against the grain but I’ve never had a problem at the 3 Wags that I go to in the Portland, Or area.
Maybe its a regional area issue? If all the issues are in a specific section of the US then I would say that area’s Regional Manager may be instructing their District Managers and in turn their Store Managers to be stricter on coupons than other regional Managers in the US.
I have a friend who worked at Walgreen’s and it’s not always the cashiers. They are cajoled and abused about the coupon policy by the managers and assistant managers. When they say they don’t want to get fired, what they mean is they don’t want to tick off the manager who can make their life utterly miserable.
I find Walgreen’s and CVS to be way too high and the deals way too complicated for the couple of cents I may save over a Target deal to be worth it.
I work retail, and have extreme couponers shop here. I am a couponer myself (hence why I’m on this site!) so I always love helping out the couponers that are doing it right and know what they’re doing. I’m not saying you’re doing anything wrong because I just don’t know…however in retail we deal with a lot of scammers and people that just aren’t so nice. And of course I can’t say this to the customers that like to use the line “Well this store does it for me” that maybe they should go to another store….but maybe that’s the solution to your problem. If one particular store is giving you crap, shop at another one.
I’m sorry you’re having to deal with so much frustration just to try and use coupons. I stopped shopping at Walgreens about 2 years ago because trying to coupon there is too stressful for me and not worth the hassle. I have always had great service and no problems with couponing at CVS and Rite Aid. I also rarely shop at Walmart as well because if I have any internet coupons that won’t scan then they won’t accept the coupon and therefore I end up having to go through all my shopping bags and removing the items that the coupon didn’t scan correctly and it ends up holding everyone else up in line and I just don’t like the hassle. I’d rather use my coupons at stores that don’t make it so difficult.