At approximately 3AM this morning, I thought about coupon fraud while I was vomiting over my toilet. You know, praying to the porcelain gods. Tossing my cookies. Actually, my first thought was what the hell was I thinking when I decided eating two boxes of Totino's pizza rolls (they're on sale right now for 60 cents each w/a coupon at Giant Eagle so I bought two today). Being the greedy, twenty-six year old I am, I ate both boxes in the course of one hour. This happened before I started watching Keeping up with the Kardashians and after I read online that Totino's pizza rolls contain a ton of trans fat. At first I was full, then I turned green, and then unlike my alarm clock this morning, my stomach woke me up to play a rousing game of toss the rolls back into the toilet. What the hell possessed me to eat both boxes in the first place? More importantly, why the hell did I let myself eat them all in one sitting? Not only did I get violently ill, I found myself experiencing an epiphany good enough to share with all of you.
Too much of a good thing, is definitely bad.
Yes, there are some exceptions to this rule, but for the most part, too much of a good thing is definitely bad. That's where coupon fraud comes in. Part of my disgust with Extreme Couponing are the acts of coupon fraud shown on national TV. Coupon fraud, in my opinion, happens when people want to get more than their fair share and take advantage of the flawed system to do so. They are taking advantage of a good thing (coupons) to achieve bad results for everyone else. Let me explain some basics before we get into walk down the techie brick road known as coupon fraud.
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| Thanks to Krazycouponlady.com for the pic, I couldn't find one on google... |
Anatomy of a Coupon:
Small black print- These are the terms of the agreement between you and the manufacturer. You, the store, and the manufacturer are entering into a contract. You promise to buy the right product, the manufacturer promises to give you a discount and the store is promised by the manufacturer to get the face value of the coupon AND 8 cents extra for shipping costs. Limit 1 coupon per transaction means that you can only use one of their coupons in a transaction. So if you want to buy two boxes of Similac, you'll need to split your transactions.
Bar Code- This is what the cashier uses to scan into the computer. The computer contains the store inventory and matches the coupon with what you've got in your cart, as well as letting the store keep track of coupon redemption. The barcode on the left is an old-style traditional barcode all of us should be used to, the other barcode is a much more sophisticated version stores are just beginning to use. Not to get too techie, but this barcode gives much more information than its predecessor. Try to buy Similac regular with this and that computer is going to beep at ya. Why? Because it's the wrong product.
Bar Code Numbers- These numbers correlate to the product in the picture. If something is wrong with the scanner, the cashier is able to type in the numbers.
Ok, so here's where the fraud comes in. Sophisticated couponers are able to tell from the bar code numbers whether or not a coupon will double. I can't help but scratch by head when manufacturers write "do not double", but then use a sequence that the computer will automatically double anyways.
Typically, bar code numbers starting with a "5" will double. I'm not going to go any further on this issue.
Here is where the fraud comes in. To get more than their fair share, many couponers will use the wrong coupon for the wrong product. How is this so? Let's go back to the Similac example. There's Similac advanced and Similac regular (I'm taking a wild guess, I have no children so I wouldn't know for sure). With all manufacturer product lines, the regular product tends to be cheaper than the "new and improved" or advanced product. So what many unscrupulous individuals will do is use the coupon for the advanced product to purchase the regular product. This often happens when a sale+ bad coupon= free. The computer might not beep because the product code is a reference to a family of the manufacturer's product (family in this sense means the code is similar enough to other product numbers in the manufacturer's line that it won't beep). For the most part, the computer will beep and often the poor, unsophisticated cashier will just push it through at the insistence of an irate customer. They only glance to see that the picture kind of looks like the product and to read the numbers to push the coupon through.
I hear what you're saying, "So what's the big deal right? Who cares if someone uses the wrong coupon!" Everyone should care. Even those who don't use coupons should care because when someone commits coupon fraud, everyone loses.
The store loses because they can't get reimbursed for a product they didn't sell. They have to show proof to the manufacturer that they sold the product within the guidelines set by the coupon. When you have someone who purchases 100 bottles of detergent for free using a bad coupon, that's a lot of money the poor store isn't going to see.
Consumers lose because the store will recoup the cost from your wallet. They'll raise prices or no longer offer the promotional deal because someone decided to screw over the system. Couponers definitely lose because the boss will yell at the cashiers and the cashiers will be more reluctant to take coupons. Manufacturers get pissed and they'll stop issuing coupons for the product or they will reduce the value of the coupon and set up draconian limitations (ex. P&G's "Like four coupons per shopping trip").
People have even gone to jail for coupon fraud: http://www.couponinformationcenter.com/Coupon_Guy_Arrested.php?st=93d32
So what can you do to prevent coupon fraud? Read your coupon carefully. Don't use expired coupons or coupons for the wrong product. Call others out on fraudulent behavior. If you see someone ahead of you in line using coupons incorrectly, get the balls to go up to the cashier and tell her that she's using the coupons incorrectly. The cashier will thank you for your honesty, but the customer will probably want to fight you. Well, they probably won't because in my opinion coupon frauders are whimps.
P. Manolos
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