A new campaign - I hope :)

squeaky

Hi all,

I'm a recent convert to using coupons. My first effort was a whole one pound and twenty five pence worth.

GREAT I thought.

So I went in with twenty something vouchers this time (my second) and the girl at the till spent ages reading them. She was looking for the "valid until" date which is usually written in tiny print pretty much anywhere at all.

I felt like a right plonker.

The whole queue waiting on me...

..so please...

..can we start a campaign asking the LOVELY KIND AND GENEROUS companies that do coupons to put their date in a readable size and in a commonly acceptable postion on their coupons?

Or should I just go and drink my 25p off cup of coffee and call it a day?

suzique

Hi squeaky,
I have had exactly the same thing happen to me before in my local Tesco,there was a queue behind me and the checkout girl proceded to shout across to the girl on another till about whether they accept internet vouchers,I told her I have had an e-mail from Tesco head office,all was ok then.

Dormouse

Hi Squeaky,

Well done on joining us coupon people! Using coupons is a great hobby (way of life even! ), but as you have found out for yourself, it's definitely not hassle-free.

Having slightly thick skin is a bit of a requirement when using coupons. I'm afraid feeling like a plonker is in the job description (but you do get used to it, a bit!). There always is going to be a tutting queue behind you, even when two minutes before the store was like a ghost town - it's one of those unexplicable coupon-related phenomena!

Yes, it would be great if coupons were easy-to-read etc, you're right, there definitely is a lot of room for improvement there. However, some stores/cashiers just have a problem with vouchers, and I don't think anything will change that. They will scrutinise the expiry date, look for multiples, try to work out the 10% (ususally incorrectly :rolleyes: ), make up their own rules, and so on.

I've been lucky to find a store that are (usually) great with vouchers. If you find a young guy on the till, he will usually scan all the coupons and not at all bother about silly things like expiry dates. Another one of my local supermarkets, however, are real pains in the neck, who will spend hours looking at the smallprint.

Anyway, what I'm trying to say is, it's a great idea, but am just not sure if it would really make that much of a difference. Don't worry about the annoyed people behind you in the queue and enjoy seeing the look on their faces when they've realised how much money you're saving!

squeaky

Oh well, it was just a thought.

I checked my bill and they worked out to £7.73 thanks to all the people who posted into the printable vouchers thread, so I'm definitely going to develop a thick skin for that kind of saving!

As for hobbies... I already have a full time one over in Old Style

bluep

I usually say nicely to people when they come up behind me (before they start unloading their shopping) "oh I shoudl warn you! I've got quite a few coupons so it might take a while" and they either say its ok and stay (they can't really complain later on then) or say "oh thanks for warning me" and go to another till.

squeaky

Good idea. I just looked all sheepish and apologetic. I'll speak out next time.

suzique

Hello again Squeaky,
Another thing I do is hand the checkout person my money off coupons before they scan my shopping and then at the end they seem ok,but it does depend who you get,I usually hand them a big wad of coupons and say that I have checked that you sell all these items and that they are all in date.
Waitrose is brilliant at accepting coupons,my local Waitrose don't scan the barcode they just minus the value of the coupon from the total of the bill.

squeaky

Hiya,

Yep. I gave the check out girl my coupons as I arrived. She looked a bit goggle eyed at them but took them all anyway

I did say that I had checked dates but she still looked at them all and she typed in the amounts for the odd few that wouldn't scan.

Is there any way I could use a highlighter on them to make the cashier's job easier or would that invalidate the coupon?

Caixta

Well done Squeaky! :T You have found a great method of Moneysaving to add to your collection.

I don't think I'd write on the coupons with anything, just in case it looked like it had already been used before. I don't know what they do with them in their cash offices, but maybe they write on them, to "cancel" them in some way. Better be on the safe side.

I'll be thinking of you next time I'm gritting my teeth and waiting for the checkout person to give me the all clear for my coupons. It's worth it. If you can find a favourite, trusted, checkout person, then it makes things a lot easier. Maybe not quicker, but at least you feel a bit more relaxed about handing them over.

We_Laugh_Indoors

i started using coupons but keep getting messed around by checkout assistants who do not know their own stores policy.

i know somebody who works in asda and there they don't tell their checkout girls they are supposed to accept vouchers from other stores etc.

Dormouse

I wouldn't write on the coupons or mark them either - it would make sense to us to highlight the date, but the supermarket could use that as yet another pathetic excuse not to accept it.