Cashier Wouldnt Accept My Coupon; tips and tricks
What if you get all the way to check-out and your cashier refuses to take your coupons! What?! Here’s how to deal with this, from first hand experiences
“We can’t accept this coupon for $2.00 since your item is only $1.89.”
Ask the cashier to adjust the coupon to the price of the item (first, call ahead and speak to a manager about this, as some managers will cooperate and some won’t).
“I can’t accept this coupon because it’s in French (and you’re not in Quebec).”
Reply that Canada is a bilingual country and French coupons are accepted everywhere in Canada. It helps if you bring the exact same coupon written in English so the cashier can compare them and understand what the French coupon says.
“I can’t accept more than one of this particular coupon, because it says ‘one per purchase.’”
That seems to makes sense, right? But you can talk your way out of this; it doesn’t have to be the final answer. You should say that one coupon per purchase means one coupon per ITEM, not one per transaction. While pointing to your one item, say, “This is a purchase,” then point to the rest of your items and say, “This is a transaction.” This tactic can work. And remember, it never hurts to try.
“I can’t accept this coupon because it’s been photocopied/it’s printed.”
Good point. NEVER PHOTOCOPY COUPONS. This is a cheap trick and you won’t get away with it.
As far as printed coupons go, call ahead to the store manager to make sure these coupons will be accepted. Once you get the manager’s okay, let the cashier know if they try to refuse your printed coupon(s). As a back-up, you can also carry the store’s coupon policy with you and show it to the cashier. Don’t assume the un-coupon educated cashier knows all the store policies. Be the informed shopper.
“I can’t apply this coupon because the item is already on sale/you price matched it, and the coupon states, ‘cannot be combined with any other offer.’”
Sounds fair enough, right? But again, this doesn’t have to be a show-stopper. Tell the cashier that “any other offer” means “any other coupon.” More than one coupon is considered “stacking,” and you it’s not allowed in Canada, except at London Drugs, and those are out West only :(
Bottom line advice: If a cashier rejects your coupon and the suggested responses above don’t work, ask to speak to a supervisor if you feel it’s worth your time. Explain the issue, and if they repeat what the cashier said, ask for a manager. Always feel free to elevate your issue to the next management level. Merchants want to keep your business and will often do whatever they need to do to fix the problem. Of course, you won’t always get the answer you want to hear, but again: it doesn’t hurt to try. If you just don’t want to take “no” for an answer, you can go so far as to ask for the manager’s full name (and the name of the cashier and supervisor), the store number, and tell them you will be contacting the head office about the matter. Going this far will often convince personnel to accept your coupons.
The most important thing is to be polite. Remember: the energy you give others will be the energy you get back one day.
Lately lots of stores have been coming out with concrete policies, print them off and use them! I'm hoping to post these all soon.
