Amazon135 asked that very question over on the Deal Seeking Mom forum.
How do you handle it when you go up to the register with a basketful of products and a huge stack of coupons (where many products may end up free), how do you handle it when the cashier stands there giving you and your coupons the hairy eyeball for 5 minutes?
Or if they start calling managers over or questioning you and your coupons?
My reply:
Many couponers refuse to use a ton of coupons at one time so they can “fly under the radar” and prevent the exact situation you are describing.
Still, many people do not have the luxury of frequent shopping trips due to either time or distance constraints. So, as you asked, what to do?
Well, you can grin and bear it. If a manager is called over and all your coupons are legitimate and correct, there shouldn’t be a problem. But, what happens if there is a problem in spite of everything you did being correct? Well, a call to customer service while standing in line is helpful. A request to speak to the STORE manager as opposed to the front end manager usually produces results (mainly because the store manager does not want an unhappy customer and will not bother to come to the floor, the result will be “just this one time”).
You can take steps to engage the cashier before your checkout starts. Tell the clerk you have a lot of coupons and ask if the clerk would like you to fill in the price on the free items. Cordial conversation with the clerk also goes a long way as cashier are human beings and like being treated like one. “Hi, how are you?” can pay dividends later in the transaction.
When all else fails and your check out is a disaster, ask for your coupons back and leave the entire order. Two days later, while the incident is still fresh but you have had time to calm down, write a clear, concise, PROFESSIONAL letter to customer service. Letters that are unemotional, free of typos, misspellings and glaring grammatical errors usually produce the best results. Read the letter out loud to someone else before mailing it. That is the best way to determine if you are making sense or still riding on emotion.
In case your incident involves being accused of coupon fraud, here’s a post I wrote a while back dealing with that subject:
What could you do if you are accused of coupon fraud at the register?
What would YOU suggest? How have you handled that situation? Please post your responses below, or join the DSM forum and respond to Amazon135.
{ 3 comments… read them below or add one }
Great post. I’ve also had great luck being friendly with cashiers. Say hello and ask how they’re doing. Strike up a conversation. If they are busy chatting they are less likely to scrutinize every coupon.
Being really new to this couponing, price matching and freebies thing….I look to freely and liberally chat w/ my fellow like-minded shoppers as I wait in line about their tips, techniques etc.
One of the things that was an almaost universal theme is to use the same cashier(s) regularly. I asked a cashier about her opinion and she said that they (the cashiers) get to know their regular customers-and they’re smart enough to remember which ones ‘do their homework’ and are well organized. (It was almost as if she were implying that a customer can have a good or bad reputation-but this was IMPLIED not expressed.)
I have begun to put this in practice and find that having a friendly rapport/relationship w/ the cashiers goes MILES toward smoothing the checkout experience. Although this won’t work for everyone or all the time-I thought I’d share what I have learned.
Another thing I have learned: Couponers are the NICEST people! When I see a fellow couponer in line ahead of me in line-nothing passes the time better than chatting about deals, techniques and website gems (cough, cough) that you may have found. I look forward to seeing you in the check-out line someday!
*cough*I gotta send you a stack of business cards Barbee.*cough*
Thanks so much for spreading the word, I really appreciate it!
Ann