Bottled Water Hair Rinse - An Extreme Couponer

You know you're an extreme couponer when you..... rinse your hair in bottled water you stockpiled with coupons!  

Well, then call me an Extremely SMART Couponer because on Friday that's just what I did and it may have been the best rinse I have ever had!

Friday evening started like most nights at my house, whining children, teeth brushing, vitamins, stories, luvs and tucking kids in to bed, then off to the store to find hidden deals at my local grocery store.  After arriving home at around 11pm and working on the computer for about a half hour I decided to jump in the shower.  I had just finished rinsing the conditioner from my hair when I spontaneously decided to condition my crazy mob of curly red hair yet one more time (with you guessed it, my favorite conditioner... which is?).  I slathered on the conditioner and was massaging it through my hair when... the power went out.

"Tim, turn the lights back on, you jerk!" was my first reaction.  You see, my sweet Macgyver husband is quite the joker.  Even the nieces and nephews have named him "Uncle Teaser Tim".  But when I called my dear hubby he very clearly was startled from slumber to answer me.

What to do!?! No power = no water and I was dripping with soap.  Sweet Macgyver (yes, notice the change in tone) said I should just wait it out and the power would come back on soon.  Seriously?  You want me to stand here slimy and cold for what could be hours until the lights miraculously reappear?  That option clearly wasn't even viable in this lifetime so option #2 - the Nestle bottled water rinse event began.

I certainly was grateful for an amazing food storage at that moment!!!  Tim ran for a 24 pack of bottled water from the pantry and I put some pots on the gas stove which we lit manually.  Once the water was warm enough, Tim gently poured the water over my head into the sink via a battery powered lantern.  Ahhhhhhhhhhh - sweet relief!  Surprisingly 24 bottles of Nestle Pure Life Water is just the right amount of water needed to rinse conditioner from my hair.  (Note to self:  Always keep bottled water in the pantry and stock up the next time it's on sale!)

Thanks to my hubby and my food storage a serious hair crisis was successfully managed and peace was restored.  FYI - the lights came on 3 hours later, as did the blaring TV!

Why Couponers Cheat

 I've been seriously disturbed lately at what I perceive to be an increase of deal seekers using coupons to rip off grocers and retailers.  It makes me sick to see shoppers purposely profiling checkers they think will not "look too closely" at the bad coupon match ups or won't haggle with a shopper at what they know to be unethical coupon use.  I have heard of shoppers driving to stores 25 minutes out of their way (from Orem to Payson) just for these reasons.

So why do couponers cheat?  Why, in essence, steal from a store for personal gain?  I have a couple guesses:

#1.  They don't know any better.  Though I think this is the least likely of all unethical coupon use instances, I'm sure there are shoppers out there who have been told that reading bar codes or lying about ad matching prices is ok to do.  Um, it's not.  You may have seen a television show recently or even read a blog detailing how to read bar codes for the purpose of cheating a store.  Some teach these practices and claim it's to help shoppers know what products they can use their coupons on.  Baloney!  It is my personal belief that there is no legitimate need for any person to understand how to read a bar code other that to cheat and ultimately steal potential revenue from a store.  All a shopper has to do is read the wording on a coupon to know what products they can apply it to - period!  If a coupon says "Save $3.00 on Huggies 60 ct diapers"  you buy 60 ct diapers, not a smaller pack, not wipes, not any other baby product.  To use that coupon in any other manner is unethical and fraudulent!

#2.  They feel entitled.  We live in a day and age when people feel entitled.  They deserve to be given whatever they've set their minds to.  I've heard of shoppers who felt like they were overcharged at a store on a previous shopping trip so the deserve the extra (and unethical) savings on their current shopping trip.  If you were over charged it's your responsibility alone to correct the situation once you've noticed the error.  Don't pad your next bill with savings to compensate.

#3.  They think it doesn't hurt anyone.  Wrong!  Cheating stores by using incorrect coupons or lying about pricing is theft - plain and simple.  Ask your local grocery manager, the next time you shop, how many coupons they had rejected last month and what the total dollar value was and you'll be amazed at their coupon losses.  Couponers say all the time, well they get an extra $0.08 every time I give them a coupon so they're making money on the deal.  Not necessarily true.  That extra $0.08 goes towards redemption costs, mailing cost etc...  The coupons aren't redeemed for free.  Stores have to hire companies to manage the redemption process for them and guess what - they have to pay for those services.

#4.  Addiction.  I'm the 1st one to admit that shopping with coupons and saving the kind of money that couponing provides is addicting.  It's like a drug free coupon high!  You walk in to a store and walk out saving 60%-90% on your bill and you're grinning ear to ear at what you've accomplished.  Bravo!!  But that rush can sometimes be akin to gambling fever, when you'll do anything to save that much money again. (Seriously, I'm likely never going to use those Shout Wipes that are Free after double coupons but I did indeed buy them simply because they were free.  FYI - I'm not buying any more even if we get more coupons!)

#5.  Their Family is more important that any one person or retailer.  Hey, I love my family as well, but I also try to keep in mind that I should only buy what we really need.  In Utah County, Walmart doubles coupons every Tuesday.  But just go into the store on Monday at 5pm and you'll see lines of shoppers willing to wait 7+ hours to empty their overflowing 5 carts onto the conveyor belt.  Why clear shelves of products you won't use?  I think it's a combination of some of the reasons above, but I also think we try so hard to give our family the best that we forget everyone else in the picture.  They have to be first, and fast, so that if they beat someone else to the store and can get all the goods, they've won some sort of prize.  Not a great prize to win, IMO.  Using coupons unethically to obtain these savings shouldn't make anyone's family proud.

#6.  They're just thieves with no moral code.  No explanation required.

Why be so harsh about coupon cheaters?  Why not just let them be?  First, I hate that shoppers are using my name and website to provide justification for their unethical tactics.  I have heard from multiple cashiers claiming that shoppers will say, "Amy/SavvyShopperDeals.com, said we could.  I went to her class."  Fortunately most cashiers know me or the site and know that's a lie and one you will called to the mat for!  Cashiers have told countless shoppers to email me if they think they're right.  I've yet to receive one of those emails.  Why? Because they know they've lied.

I feel like I have now been assigned to be the Utah coupon police, a job I don't want!  But it seems that now, along with my weekly email to Walmart stores of the hot double coupon items that they need to stock up on for Tuesday double coupons, I'm going to start sending them out a cheater list as well.  Ie... coupons which shoppers will try to use on incorrect ounce sizes etc.  FYI - I've already been asked to take in Sunday Ads asap to try and prevent all the cheating with Rite Aid and Walgreens Up or Register Reward price match attempts.  I'd like to just go shopping and not have to worry about all the cheaters out there, but I guess that's not going to happen.  And, FYI I'm already hearing rumors about double coupons ending due to theft and cheating.  Keep it up and we'll all suffer.

Bring on the comments.....

Best Coupon Practices - CIC Release

The CIC (Coupon Information Corporation) is a not-for-profit association of consumer product manufacturers dedicated to fighting coupon misredemption and fraud.  They have just released a voluntary best coupon practice policy for all retailers with whom they work. 

Suggested Voluntary Best Practices:
Retailer Coupon Acceptance Policy

As a customer friendly retailer, we encourage the use of coupons by our guests in our retail stores, in accordance with the following guidelines.

GENERAL

1. All valid coupons should be presented to the cashier at the time of checkout.
2. We accept only coupons that scan accurately at the register.
3. We do not accept expired coupons.
4. Coupons cannot be exchanged for cash or gift cards.
5. We do not accept coupons for items not carried in our stores.
6. The number of manufacturer coupons may not exceed the number of items in the transaction.
7. The total value of the coupons may not exceed the value of the transaction.
8. Use of 40 or more coupons per transaction, a transaction involving more than $100 in coupons, or coupons totaling more than 20% of the gross sales price will require approval by a Manager.
9. Any applicable sales tax must be paid by the consumer.
10. We reserve the right to reject any coupon or to limit the number of coupons being used in a transaction.

FREE PRODUCT COUPONS

We check for the CIC Hologram when a free product coupon with no separate purchase requirements is presented (i.e., Buy One, Get One Free coupons generally don’t feature the CIC Hologram).

SALE ITEMS

We will accept a manufacturer coupon for an item that is on sale.

BUY ONE, GET ONE FREE COUPONS (BOGO)

1. BOGO coupons cannot be “chained” (i.e., two BOGO coupons cannot be used to on two items to get both for free). Unless stated otherwise on the coupon, the use of one BOGO coupon requires that two of the valid items are presented at checkout; one item will be charged to the consumer and the second item will be discounted by its full retail price.
2. In a BOGO transaction, a second cents-off coupon cannot be counted towards the purchase price of the first (buy one) product.

INTERNET/PRINT-AT-HOME COUPONS

1. We accept valid Internet/Print-at-Home coupons. Note: There are currently no valid Internet Print-at- Home coupons that provide a 100% discount or free product.
2. Internet Print-at-Home coupons feature unique serial numbers (often referred to as Pin Numbers) printed on them and follow an industry-standard format. Coupons printed on home or office equipment without these features will NOT be accepted.
3. We do not accept Internet Print-at-Home coupons valued in excess of 75% of the sale price of the product.

COUNTERFEIT COUPONS

1. We will reject coupons if they appear to be copied, distorted, blurry, or altered.
2. We monitor the CIC web site for announcements of new counterfeit coupons.
3. We will work with law enforcement authorities to prosecute individuals using counterfeit coupons.

RETURNS

If a consumer returns a product purchased with a coupon, the value of the coupon will be retained by store so the funds can be refunded to the manufacturer. The coupon will not be returned to the consumer. The cash refund to the consumer will be the consumer’s out-of-pocket cost, taking the coupon into account.

MY OPINION:

I have always supported the BOGO coupon policy and have no problem with it as I think it is the proper way to use BOGO coupons.  However, there are two points that I don't fully understand:

#1. We do not accept Internet Print-at-Home coupons valued in excess of 75% of the sale price of the product.  I have never heard this before in my life.  If a newspaper mfr. cpn can make a product free then why can't a printable coupon make a product free?

#2. The total value of the coupons may not exceed the value of the transaction.  I take this to mean no overage.  While I am more than happy to simply get a product for free, it has always been my understanding that the retailers will always get the full face value of the coupon back regardless of the purchase price.  Therefore I would imagine that the overage should be due a customer. 

I plan on contacting the CIC for a response to these two points and I'll let you know what I hear back.  What are your thoughts about these new policies? 

Of course these are voluntary practices so whether you choose to support them or not is up to you at this point.  In saying that, I believe many retailers will also move to support these policies as well.

A Savvy Binder: Coupon Organization

Talk about an extreme couponer!  That's one massive coupon binder ......... LOL!  I'm thinking about upgrading my binder to this one.  How many trading card pages do you think that would be? :)

A Savvy Comment: CIC Extreme Couponing Ethics

While I have been vocal about my opposition to the show Extreme Couponing, I thought you all might be interested in hearing what the CIC has to say!

CIC Position on Extreme Couponing

The Coupon Information Corporation (CIC) expresses our great disappointment with TLC’s current series, Extreme Couponing, and hereby offers our expertise and other assistance to TLC and Sharp Entertainment (which produces the show) to enhance the program with more accurate and realistic information. In addition, we hope they address potentially illegal acts that appear to have been portrayed on the show.

Professionals in the coupon industry believe this show creates unrealistic expectations about how coupons work and promotes the misuse of coupons. For example, the show appears to portray coupons being used in violation of the terms and conditions printed on the coupons, such as using coupons to obtain products other than those specified by the coupon offer, and focuses on consumers who have procured large quantities of coupon inserts from unknown sources, which may raise civil and/or criminal issues.

In real life, individuals attempting to use such large quantities of coupons or attempting to use them in violation of the terms stated on the coupons would most likely have their coupons refused at the register or, depending on the circumstances, be investigated by law enforcement. According to media reports, TLC recently stated,

“While the series documents extreme couponing strategies, we take any concerns about specific tactics seriously and are looking into the situation.” We look forward to hearing what TLC discovers.

The CIC’s and other industry experts’ previous offers of assistance to the producers to make this an educational show were previously turned down. Nevertheless, we stand ready to help in the event the producers or TLC reconsider their path and seek to turn this into a show that accurately reflects appropriate coupon strategies and use, which would result in real benefits for TLC’s viewing audience. (May 5th 2011)"

 
In addition, last week, newspapers across the country received notification from News America/Smart Source as to their response to Extreme Couponing.  In part the notification reads:

"Due to the show Extreme Couponing, there has been a significantly increased interest by the public in couponing recently. While we welcome the promotion of coupon usage, some episodes appear to portray shoppers using illegal methods to obtain and use coupons, including going to newspapers to obtain multiple copies of our SmartSource coupon inserts."  "It is illegal for any inserts not distributed in newspapers to be taken, given away or donated. Failure to comply will result in prosecution."

As a result, newspaper security guidelines will be more strictly enforced or the offending newspapers risk being dropped from carrying coupon inserts at all!  Do you really want your newspaper to lose their coupon inserts?  If not, then stop asking carriers to give you extras, taking them from vending machines, dumpster diving for them or buying them online (where do you think they're getting those inserts to sell from folks?)

So what's next?  It's already coming!  

Have you noticed that there have been several recent coupons that now limit the number of coupons you can use in a transaction?  Coupons typically limit how many coupons you can use on one product, ie... one manufacturer coupon per product, but now they are limiting how many products you can actually buy at a time!  I believe Extreme Couponing will bring even more unwelcome changes for the couponing community.  As you know, I have no problem getting a great storage room full of products your family needs, but there is a point when it becomes wasteful and greedy! Buying 5-10 of something is totally different than buying 50-100 or even 500-1,000!

It's truly unfortunate that a television network would seek to undermine the community it professes to promote!

I am proud to say I am NOT an Extreme Couponer!

UPDATE - I am NOT an Extreme Couponer!!!

 

Ok couponers, I have to say I wasn't surprised by the volume of callers today who asked if we could please deliver all the "extra" coupon inserts to their homes.  In fact, I am prepared for groups of dumpster diving coupon clubs meeting up at midnight on Sunday to scour through piles of trash for as many inserts as they can possibly get their hands on.  So let me explain to all of you how coupon insert delivery works. (I should probably preface this, for those of you who don't know, by saying that I am the official deal representative for The Daily Herald and the Standard Examiner newspapers (more to come soon ;) and work hand in hand with them on a daily basis.)

Newspaper policy is that they ONLY sell Sunday papers, as required by SmartSource (News America) and Valassis, and actually have to sign a legal affidavit verifying that they destroy any remaining coupons. This is required of them by the coupon manufacturers. They do not and CAN NOT give them away or throw them away.  And don't even think about dumpster diving for coupons as it is illegal, and considered criminal trespassing, in most cities. And FYI - they are actually required to destroy and bale the coupons after all subscriber homes have received their inserts.

The shoppers you may have seen on Extreme Couponing not only encouraged newspaper carriers to break legal contracts, but quite obviously were given significant leeway by the stores in which they shopped for publicity's sake, again, not so legal.  The shopper in Bethesda MD who showed extra newspaper coupons being delivered to her home has just put the coupon contract of her newspaper in serious jeopardy.  I'd be surprised if News America and Valassis haven't started an audit process already.  My guess is that every newspaper in America will soon have an audit to verify that all contracts are being strictly enforced.

Do you like receiving coupons in your  Sunday paper?  If the answer is yes then don't ask newspapers to bend the rules for you or find "unethical" ways to acquire more.  If you do any of these things, it is within the legal right of the insert companies to pull all inserts out of a newspaper on a moments notice or refuse to renew contracts at the end of the quarter.  I love couponing and never want to see the savings end (the reasonable savings that is) so please, please, please stop this madness.

Madness I say, because while I certainly believe in being prepared in your own homes with a good amount of food storage, I also know that almost every item in every store goes on sale at least once every 3 months.  That means you never need to buy a years worth of anything (or a 15 year supply of mustard) in one shopping trip.  Shopping for your family in 3 month increments is not only doable physically, but also financially.  If you'd like to learn how to save 50-80% over retail prices at the grocery store, in a common sense and realistic way, come to my Free Savvy Shopping 101 Class in Provo on April 28th or contact one of my awesome Savvy Shopper Instructors to help you find a free class throughout the state of Utah.

Your interest may be peaked in watching this television show just to gawk at the "crazies", but even watching the show once helps the television network make money.  Just stay away and watch some healthy, and even uplifting, television instead.  It's not worth wasting your time or lining the pockets of a show which reflects negatively on all of us ethical couponers.

Finally, a shout out to my friend Kellene from PreparednessPro who stood up to the producers of this show when they asked her if she would be filmed for a segment and then act in a way that wasn't in her character.  Bravo Kellene for trying to portray couponers in a positive light - even when it was a fight to do so!

(P.S. I can appreciate that after their segments aired that many of these couponers claimed to have given their purchases away to charity. I believe this could be true in some cases, but how many do you think are just trying to save face after the negative push back they've felt or only gave it away to avoid looking overly greedy?

Also, while I absolutely support donating excess products to the needy, I also don't believe one person has the right to determine what everyone in the store gets to buy and when.  Meaning, if these shoppers cleared the shelves for whatever reason, regular shoppers are now out of luck in getting an item they actually needed for their own families.  If you intend to buy large quantities of product, for whatever reason, please special order it from customer service so the rest of us can find some product still on the shelf!)

I am NOT an Extreme Couponer!!!

While I consider myself to be a coupon master, having couponed for over 19 years, I am not, and hope to NEVER be, an extreme couponer!  I may have a great food storage "stockpile" but it has never been at the expense of others nor has it taken the excessive amount of time some shoppers waste on an almost daily basis!

Tonight, for the 1st time, I watched Extreme Couponing on television.  Honestly, I was appalled by much of what I saw!  Let's just say I will not be watching again.  From buying over 60 bottles of mustard (and purposely taking all but one on the shelf) which her husband doesn't even eat, to spending over 5 hours in the store and calling friends to stand in line for you just so you can save $10 is beyond ridiculous.  Or how about the woman who did 18 transactions at the store which took her over 1 hour just so she could double 3 Albertsons coupons in each transaction!  They had to close the checkout line behind this woman because she took so long.  I actually yelled at the t.v. when a woman bought over 30 bottles of Maalox and she didn't even get them for free.  Either you and your husband have some serious stomach issues and need to see a doctor asap or you need to see a psychologist!  I don't even know what to say about the woman who said her stockpile was almost as beautiful as her children - how can that even come close?!  What ever happened to customer courtesy?  This isn't savings for their families, it's savings IN SPITE of other families!

You will rarely hear me be critical of others, but in this instance I cannot hold my tongue.  I believe these women (and men) have real shopping addictions and need to seek professional help.  I'm absolutely serious in that.  It's interesting that this television series runs in between Hoarding and My Strange Addiction shows don't you think?

This show gives couponers a bad name as overbearing, almost maniacal shoppers.  Not only that, but I believe this show could have serious ramifications for the rest of the couponing world.  It's absolutely possible that stores may start limiting the number of coupons shoppers can use in transactions and coupon values can also be dramatically reduced.  The way coupons are distributed may also come into question, like the woman who had all the extra coupons delivered to her home by her carrier - this  directly violates newspaper contract policy!  Or the woman who had her young children and pregnant friend dumpster diving for extra coupon inserts.  What!?!

I have taught shoppers how to coupon for almost 2 decades to ensure that everyone can save and have fun shopping.  This show makes this couponer "extreme"ly frustrated as it undermines all I've tried to do! The last time this show aired I got several emails asking me to teach them how to be extreme shoppers.  I will never teach someone how to be a greedy, obsessive, addicted shopper.   I believe it's fundamentally wrong on so many different levels and absolutely disturbing!  Will the real couponing community step up and call this show out for what it is - garbage!

I hope none of you watch this show and that they take it off the air soon! (FYI - They actually emailed me with clips of the show to help promote it to all of you - well... Hollywood can forget it!)

I'd love to know what you think.  Please comment below with your thoughts. (More comments here)