Help! Tesco coupon policy? I've been banned!

ohreally

hobo28 wrote:

We've had a trained solicitor much earlier in the thread

Trained sadly does not equate to competent (neither does experienced for that matter).
I'm in no way questioning the competency or validity of the solicitor referred to however one must remain cautious of internet board claims.

igloo

Edinburghlass wrote:

.....Originally you state that they took you in with you saying nothing then later you said that on the way to the office you told them to forget it and keep your items. Why would you say that? Did you want them to keep your shopping and all those vouchers that you bought on Ebay?

From a few posts all of a sudden we have a witch hunt on a Tesco manager and a security guard (or manager, unclear which) who chose to ask you to go to an office so they could ban you from the store. You say they would not let you leave until you gave them your card, what exactly did "they" say?

Quite rightly you didn't give your name but you know perhaps they were being polite so they could address you by name .....

Right then..... Yes in my original post I did state that I "was too gobsmacked to say anything". I had been reading posts on this site about insurance/shopping/mortgages for a while but had never actually posted. When I signed up to this site and wrote my original post it was only about half an hour after leaving the store. I forgot that I had said anything in-between the checkout and the office. When I remembered that I had spoken in between the checkout and the office it was 3 am the following morning and I couldnt sleep. I went onto this site and then wrote what I had said. I told them to "forget it"...not because I felt I had done wrong with my coupons but because I didnt want to get taken to an office for doing nothing wrong.
They were pulling my trolley behind them and I had to go after it (I'd bought approx £11 of goods (with zero coupons)) for my elderly auntie which I had paid for immediately before I put my goods through. These were in the trolley with my bag, mobile and car keys.

Edinburghlass wrote:

.....

From a few posts all of a sudden we have a witch hunt on a Tesco manager and a security guard (or manager, unclear which) ......

It is not "unclear".......a security manager and a customer service manager both came to my checkout.

It sounds like you think they were asking my name to be polite. They were not being polite when asking for my name.

They told me that was abusing Tesco coupon policy. I said that I wasnt because I had contacted HO and they had told me what the policy was. When I asked them why their policy was different to HO they couldnt answer me.
Then they said that I was obtaining goods by deception. I asked them how they could say that when I was following HO policy to the letter. They said that I was not following HO policy to the letter and they didnt care.
Then they said that I was banned and if I ever went back there they would phone the police as I would be trespassing as it was a private building.
Then they asked me for my name. They had banned me and didnt even know my name!
I said I'm not giving you my name. (Bearing in mind my two children were standing behind me)
They said "give us your clubcard". I said no. He stood up, took a step towards me and said "you're not leaving until you give us your clubcard".

Some posters on here have said that this is perfectly acceptable. I DONT think it is. The room that we were in was about 10 foot by 6 foot so one step in my direction was one step too much.

hobo28 wrote:

.....
If Igloo had tried to leave and they had physically stopped her then I'd be completely on her side....

What should I have done? They didnt know my name so should I have just ran for the door?

thepearce

Roger_Rampant wrote:

... next thing you know they'll be dragging people off to the office that are buying too many Birds Eye beef ready-meals!

Well.... I wasn't dragged to an office but I did recently have a run-in with a till supervisor at my local Tesco extra. I'd been put off using coupons over the last few months by the grief suffered at tills and an argument at this store. In fact I'd spoken to HO several times to clarify where I stood. I had the email as many have, and also a copy on headed paper.

After reading some threads here & on another site I thought I'd try again, armed with my letter.

I'd gone on the hunt for the BE beef and managed to find about 20 (I didn't clear them out). I asked at the checkout about coupons and they said I could use one (total). I questioned this and was told policy had recently changed (sorry...but I've heard that one before). The checkout operator showed me a tatty piece of paper outling the "rules". I countered this with my (HO) version which differed in that it was on Tesco headed paper, and was dated.

No joy, so the supervisor was called. She stuck the one coupon rule, and misread my letter, which I disagreed with and so I asked to see someone more superior.

She didn't like that and seemed very happy to inform me of tesco's bulk buy policy which meant I could buy only 5....and went off to speak to someone more superior.

She came back and said I could use up to 50% in coupons. As I now only had 5 beef and one chicken...I decided to use a £2 coupon that expired that day. So, after more grief......I still only used one coupon. TBH I would consider 50% excessive normally, but in this case I wasn't bothered.

On my way out I asked customer service to show me the bulk buy policy. they had no signs, and apparently they did not have it written down at all. I questioned whether the limit was per day, per visit, or per transaction and was told it was per transaction. I suggested with a smile that I could buy 3, then 3, then 3 (hey maybe one coupon per time). I was told this would technically be possible but the reason policy existed was so there was stock for all customers. Fair enough.

I toyed with the idea of multiple purchases and walking past the supervisor each time..... but with things defrosting and fearing a pretty unfounded ban I decided not to.

Customer services (when explaining bulk buy) did state that they would happily do a special order for me. I took them up on that a few days later. A few days after that I went back to that same store, and bought over 1,000 of the damn things I even went through the 10 items or less queue with the cage of beef in tow. Sadly I didn't see that supervisor again.... but I may have a wry smile as I recall, next year when I'm enjoying my discounted holiday.

ROCKINGHAM

Poor Igloo - you were treated shamefully and should have no need to keep defending your actions which are well within Tecsos policy.

Last week, I asked if I could use a large number of Zing coupons which were about to go out of date. The CSM said Tescos will take any that are in date and that scan. He then went to the nearest cashier and told her if they scan - then no problem.

almond

HI all
I think this is getting a bit boring now so far we have had 256 posts and am I the only one missing out on what course of action igloo has taken? At first it was interesting and I feel sorry for the way she was dealt with, but lets face it anybody that has been warned for using large amount of coupons before is asking for trouble trying to past £20 worth of coupons against a £26 bill, why did'nt she use some of the coupons
for her aunties shop?

ben500

Picked up a few of the Tesco Mature Cheddar today pack price £5.29 per kilo shelf price £5.28 per kilo (awwww poor Tesco)

these are the large packs around the 900g mark, happy hunting

igloo

almond wrote:

HI all
I think this is getting a bit boring now so far we have had 256 posts and am I the only one missing out on what course of action igloo has taken? At first it was interesting and I feel sorry for the way she was dealt with, but lets face it anybody that has been warned for using large amount of coupons before is asking for trouble trying to past £20 worth of coupons against a £26 bill, why did'nt she use some of the coupons
for her aunties shop?

I didnt use coupons on my aunties goods because it wasnt my shopping.

I have posted an update which, so far, hasnt changed.

I phoned the police about the security manager who have logged it and that i could report if if I wanted to.

I have written to HO. I havent had a reply yet.....still waiting.

Some MSEers have had a reply from Tesco saying that they can use coupons for their entire shopping and have CHANGE if the coupons exceed the goods!

trafalgar_2

igloo wrote:

Some MSEers have had a reply from Tesco saying that they can use coupons for their entire shopping and have CHANGE if the coupons exceed the goods!

Really?,Tesco have said that to someone .....................this vouchers/coupons saga gets stranger by the day.


Sorry to hear of your experience Igloo,it must of been scarey for both you and your children

vansboy

Igloo, if you want a bit of independent advice, why not try talking to Stephen Rhodes on BBC ThreeCountiesRadio? He has a consumer programme weekdays 10am - 1pm.

It doesn't matter if you're out of our area (Beds Herts Bucks) & you won't find the task intimidating or patronising. The guy REALLY is good at his job, a little unusual, compared to most media people!!

He'll talk to Tesco, for you & he WON'T let go, without a fair & proper resolution, for his callers.

You need to call 08459455555 while he's on air, talk to his team &, MOST IMPORTANT, don't try to 'Name n Shame' Tesco, you can't say which company you have a grievence with, unless he asks you to say so.

It's 95.5 FM 630MW frequency.

Worth a call, even just to get another opinion!!

VB

wallace_3

I think both igloo and Tesco are in the wrong in this situation. Tesco don't make it easy for customers to know what the policy is, as it changes from store to store or even from one cashier to the next.

However, igloo had previously been spoken to about excessive coupon use, but still decided to try and pay for the majority of the shopping with coupons. (Despite having an email from Tesco, the fact remains that a manager in-store had 'cautioned' you).

Refusing to give your name only makes you look like you have something to hide. Again, refusing to give back the Clubcard did not help the situation. You were asked to return something that does not belong to you, and you refused.