A new coupon policy for Wal-Mart???

I just read that Wal-Mart changed their coupon policy again, and it is available here.

From a quick read thru, I'm not finding the changes, but wanted to pass thins along to you and also encourage you to print out a copy to carry with you. 

Walmart Coupon Policy

We gladly accept the following types of coupons*

• Print-at-home internet coupons
  • Must be legible
  • Must have "Manufacturer Coupon" printed on them
  • Must have a valid remit address for the manufacturer
  • Must have a valid expiration date
  • Must have a scannable bar code
  • Buy one, get one free (BOGO) coupons with a specified price
  • Are acceptable in black and white or color
  • May not be duplicated
• Manufacturers' coupons
  • For dollar/cents off
  • For free items (except those printed off the Internet)
  • Buy one, get one free (BOGO) coupons
  • Must have "Manufacturer Coupon" printed on them
  • Must have a valid remit address for the manufacturer
  • Must have a valid expiration date
  • Must have a scannable bar code
  • May not be duplicated
• Competitors' coupons
  
  • A specific item for a specified price, for example, $2.99
  • Buy one, get one free (BOGO) coupons for items with a specified price
  • Have a valid expiration date
  • Are acceptable in black and white
• Soft drink container caps
• Checkout coupons ("Catalinas")
  • Printed at our competitors' registers for dollar/cents off on a specific item
  • Must have "Manufacturer Coupon" with specific item requirements printed on them
  • Must have a valid remit address for the manufacturer
  • Must have a valid expiration date
  • Must have a scannable bar code
  • Are acceptable in black and white
  • May not be duplicated

We DO NOT accept the following coupons:

• Checkout coupons
  • Dollars/cents off the entire basket purchase
  • Percentage off the entire basket purchase
• Print-at-home Internet coupons that require no purchase
• Competitors' coupons
  • Dollars/cents off at a specific retailer
  • Percentage off
  • Buy one, get one free (BOGO) coupons without a specified price
  • Double- or triple-value coupons

*The following are guidelines and limitations:

• We only accepts coupons for merchandise that we sell.
• Coupons must be presented at the time of purchase.
• Only one coupon per item.
• Item purchased must be identical to the coupon (size, quantity, brand, flavor, color, etc).
• There is no limit on the number of coupons per transaction.
• Coupons must have an expiration date and be redeemed prior to expiration.
• If coupon value exceeds the price of the item, the excess may be given to the customer as cash or applied toward the basket purchase.
• SNAP items purchased in a SNAP transaction are ineligible for cash back.
• WIC items purchased in a WIC transaction are applied to the basket purchase and may not be eligible for cash back. Refer to state-specific WIC guidelines.
• Great Value, Marketside, Equate, Parents Choice, and World Table coupons have no cash value and are ineligible for cash back or application to the basket purchase.
• The system will prompt for supervisor verification for:
  • 40 coupons per transaction.
  • A coupon of $20 or greater on one item.
  • $50 or more in coupons in one transaction.

Couponing at Fareway

I was just looking over my blog and realized I have never addressed couponing at Fareway.  I suppose I skipped it because there just isn't a lot to say about Fareway?

Couponing at Fareway is very straight forward...match a sale with a coupon.  They do not offer any Catalina type promos or loyalty cards or anything like that, but they do have really low prices every day and offer some nice loss leaders.  I always look at their ad online on Tuesday morning, but it also comes in Tuesday's Gazette or Wednesday's penny saver, or is in the store. There just is not a lot to say about Fareway. You can stack a Fareway coupon and a MQ, the only place you'll find Fareway coupons is in the ad. They usually automatically price match Hy-Vee's ad, but will also price match other grocery stores if you bring them the ad. I have had them deny price matching other local stores that are not grocery store such as Hy-Vee Drugstore or KMart.

Their coupon  policy is available here.  It is very short and very vague.

Couponing at Dollar General

I haven't done a lot of couponing at Dollar General, but I have done enough and heard enough to know that they are not always real coupon friendly.  The actual concept of couponing at Dollar General is pretty straight forward, match a sale with an available coupon, but the methods are sometimes not so easy.  If you have a coupon that requires a multiple purchase such as $1.00/3, have them ring up 3, ring up the coupon, ring up the next 3, ring up the coupon, ring up the next 3...you're getting the picture here.  I am thinking back to this past Thanksgiving when they had Libby's canned vegetables on sale for 45c per can, and I had $1.00/3 coupons that I had gotten from ebay.  I had not realized this little nuance prior to this, so I had them ring up all my veggies, then handed over the coupons.  They came up with a million reasons why the coupons couldn't be accepted, and none of them was the "limit one per purchase" thing.  Finally the manager came up with the ring 3, ring coupon idea.  It worked like a charm...no further register problems.  From one of my friends on FB, I have heard that sometimes it just works best to always have them ring the coupon immediately after the product, you end up with a lot less headaches this way, and I think I may have to agree with this.  Dollar General doesn't always have an ad, and I rarely find a great deal even when they do, but I always at least look. Their ads come inside the coupon inserts of your Sunday paper.

common misconception about coupons: coupons are only for highly processed, unhealthy foods

While it is true, there does seem to be a lot of coupons for high sodium, processed foods such as Hamburger Helper and Yakisoba noodles, there are also a lot of coupons for healthy foods!  I see coupons for yogurt, Quaker oatmeal, eggs, milk, juice, canned tomatoes, cheese, and tuna among many others.  I've even seen coupons for strawberries, tomatoes, and bagged lettuce salads.  Every fall, a couple of different products put out coupons for $2.00 apples free when you buy their product.  And while it may be true that there aren't a lot of available coupons for fresh produce and meat items, they do exist.  If you coupon for the other items on your list, however, it frees up funds in your budget to buy produce and meat items!  Don't ever let anyone tell you that you can't coupon and still eat healthy, it simply isn't true, and is a comment you'll sometimes hear from a person who is uneducated on coupons.  Do I have Hamburger Helper in my stockpile?  a few Do I have fresh vegetables in my kitchen?  Lots of them!   

buy one, get one free scenerios

If your store has something on sale buy one, get one free, and you have a buy one, get one free coupon, you should be able to use that coupon to get both items for free...they pay for each other.  I know this will work at CVS and Walgreen's for sure, but YMMV (your mileage may vary) at our local grocery stores.

If you have a buy one, get one free coupon, you should be able to use a $$$ off coupon in addition to the BOGO coupon on the item which you are buying (paying for).  So, you'd be using 2 coupons on 2 items, just that one of them would be free.

If your store is having a buy one, get one free sale, you should be able to use 2 $$$ off coupons on the 2 items which they have scanned a UPC for...the register sees 2 items purchased, so 2 coupons can be used.

Clear as mud?