Thanks to Northern Cheapskate’s post “Don’t Let Target Deny Their Coupons!” I was inspired to make a phone call to Target Customer Service 1-800-440-0680 to ask a question about my last Target shopping experience. The last time I went to Target the cashier told me that they no longer accept both a Target coupon and a manufacturer’s coupon on one item. After calling Target customer service, I found out that the store is in error and that they will be reminded that Target does accept these coupons.
I will admit that I don’t like shopping at Target because it seems like very time I shop there I have a bad experience trying to use coupons. I know enough about using coupons at Target that I know they should accept the coupons I try to use – but they usually have a problem with at least one of them. Usually I will ask to speak to the store manager, because they often will accept my coupons – but the last time I went to Target the store was about to close and I didn’t have time to wait to speak to the Store Manager. So, the cashier would not accept my stacked Target coupon and manufacturer’s coupon (both from the Sunday ad insert) for one item. So I simply did not buy the item.
Unfortunately Target does not have a written coupon policy on their website – but please call their customer service number if you encounter any problems using coupons there. Save your receipt so they know which store you went to and which cashier checked you out. Be specific about what problem you had – what coupons they would not take and why the cashier said they would not take them. You’ve got to be outspoken about any coupon problems you encounter, because you have the right to use your coupons! The individual Target stores can not arbitrarily set their own policies, according to my conversation today with a Target customer service representative.
I'm getting ready to go on vacation and I went to Target to purchase the travel sized items. I closely read the language on the coupons to ensure that the coupons I was going to use to make sure that they not say that they were not good for travel sized items, so I thought that the transaction would go smoothly. The cashier did not even try to scan the coupons – just looked at them and said that she would not ring up the items because they would be free with the coupon. I gave her a copy of Target's coupon policy and she said that she had never seen that before so she called the manager over. The manager said that she had never seen that policy before either and would not adhere to it because she thought that I could have just typed it up myself. I left her my printed copy and asked her to contact Corporate herself and get familiar with the policy so that it would not be an issue during my next shopping trip. I wonder if she will…..
On a recent trip to Target I was told that they were no longer accepting coupons on trial sized items, even if the coupon scans without issue and there are no size or ounce exclusions. I asked for a manager, who came over and said the same thing. Her exact words were, "We can't do that because then the item would be free." It was ridiculous. Apparently she thought she could arbitrarily decide how much of a discount a customer should get from using coupons.
I am a Target cashier and an avid couponer. There are some very strict guidelines to couponing and I have seen first hand how underhanded some shoppers are. A B1G1 is meant for you to pay full price for the one item you buy in order to get one for free. We do accept stacked coupons, but if you read the bottom of your coupon it's meant for one item per transaction. We'll have a customer come through and want to buy 50 of one item because w/ a coupon it's free or near free and that's not what coupons are meant for. It's like the advice given for samples. You don't need 100 packs of band-aids so don't try to use 100 coupons to get them.
My local Target won't let me stack Target coupons with manufacturer coupons because the Target coupons say "limit one offer per transaction". Their interpretation of that statement is that you can only use one coupon per item per transaction. I called corporate and they said that they back whatever the local store says in that situation. Does anyone know how to get around this? I always have trouble when I try to use coupons at Target so I rarely shop there.
I tried to redeem an internet coupon printed from the manufacturer’s website on 7/28/08 at Target for $5 off a skincare product. The cashier refused it, saying they do not accept internet coupons. I had her remove the item from my total.
I work for target and its not that we can’t take any Internet coupons, its specifically the $5 off toy and $5 off $25 purchase ones. They are fraudulent. 85,000 coupons were sent out by target, and someone took the liberty of scanning it in and sharing it online, so people were redeeming copies of the original coupon. Then someone also altered it and took out the word toy so it just said 5 off 25 purchase. I run the front end at my store and I just keep reminding people that if you dont print the coupon DIRECTLY from target.com you run the risk of them being fraudulent and not being accepted.
`I tried yesterday to use my $2 off Purina One and the store would not accept it! I personally called the 800# for Target and asked the representative about the coupon situation. She said that the stores were supposed to accept the Target web coupons and if I were ever at a store again and they would not accept them, to call the customer service 800# and they would handle the problem. She also called the store that I visited and explained to the store manager that we the consumer were allowed to use our Target web coupons there!! Speak up and don’t be afraid!! The Target representative is sending me a coupon in the mail for my trouble : )
Last week I went to Target to pick up a few things. I had several Target coupons, which was the whole point of going there. At check out the cashier politely told me that they are no longer accepting online coupons because they “got out”. The manager suddenly showed up and told me the same thing but without the politeness. I calmly told them that I didn’t want any of it ($50 worth). My thought is that if they are willing to let a $50 transaction go for a $5 coupon, then they obviously do not need or want my business. I can get the same things at places that DO accept coupons. I no longer shop at Target.
I had a coupone for every item in my cart. 6 with target and manufacter items. I also had a coupon if I spent for than $50 in baby items I got $5.00 off. I also had a coupon for a $5.00 (3) gift cards for purchasing diapers and wipes. The cashier said she would not give me the $5.00 off or the giftcards becuase I used TOO MANY coupons already.
I went to Target 7/9 and the young male cashier did not ring up my coupons right (if they didn’t ring up he just placed it on the stack anyway, without doing anything). I didn’t notice until I got home (10 miles away)I sent an email to customer service and got a response “sorry, nothing we can do about it here, go back to the store” Umm ok that would cost me $4 in gas for a $3 error. I then called them and was promised 2 $3 coupons by mail. So, if you have problems, call them, don’t email.
Like another commenter said, I have a lot of problems with Wal-Mart taking my coupons but Target is always great about it. I went in today and used a huge stack of both Target and Manufacturer’s coupons. I brought my total down from $113 to $48! I’ve even been complimented on my savings by the cashiers. It’s too bad that you can’t feel the Target love too. :(
I have worked for Target for going on 6 years and I have to say that I feel bad that there is such inconsistency with how coupons are accepted. The coupon policy should be stated clearly. The real kicker is that all it takes is a few frauds to ruin everything for all the regular shoppers using their coupons to make ends meet. I am a notorious coupon user myself, and I know the newer cashiers are going to give me strange looks when I am using a manufacturer and a store coupon together, but it is perfectly legit and acceptable. Target tries hard to give good service, but sometimes the newer people need time to learn the ropes!
Yes, you can print more than one Target coupon. But sometimes you may be limited to one coupon per transaction – you need to read the fine print on the coupon. If you are using 2 or 3 coupons it shouldn’t be a problem as long as you have the correct number of items.
With the Target coupons, can you print them more than once and use them at seperate vists? I am new to coupon shopping and don’t want to be seen as using coupon fraud. I do want to get the best prices though.
I could’ve written your blog post! I’m pretty much at the point as the pp Jessica. I pretty much avoid Target b/c they treat me terriby & I just do not have time to argue my coupons on every visit. I will go there when they pay me, but will take my oop deals elsewhere.
I have given up on Target. It just isn’t worth it to me to shop there anymore after numerous bad experiences. I know that the goal is to save money, but I would much rather pay more and get better customer service. I recently walked away without my purchase because of both the cashier and manager arguing with me over my coupons (which I knew to be valid and combinable). So I left my entire cart full for them to put back…they lost a $100+ sale over a $1 coupon. When I called back to get the customer service number it took 8 minutes and 3 people to find it. There’s nothing at Target that I can’t buy somewhere else!
I had a problem today with the pampers coupons, and a few other printable ones. I told the cashier that there was a problem with the toy coupon, but I was not using that one. The front end manager would not budge so I just walked away without buying anything. When I came home I called cs and let them know what had happened. THey are sending me an aplogy and clarifying things with the store managers. It is frustrating that a few unethical people are ruining the legitimate shoppers experiences.
I had a $5 off coupon for any toy purchase over $25 at Target that I tried to redeem last night and was told 1) the coupon had expired, to which I politely said, “No it says it expires in 10/08: and then she gets another cahsier over who tells me they don’t accept coupons from the internet because of too many fake ones…which I know to be false. So they have to get a manager over and she accepts it and gives the $5 off to me. It’s so annoying to never know if your coupons will work. It makes me want to do my shopping elsewhere or online with coupon codes. Glad to know I’m not the only one with problems at Target.
Although I love Target (and consider it my 2nd home), sometimes the cashiers make t seem like the coupon amount is coming straight out of their pocket. This one girl insisted that I could not use Super Target coupons but that she would do me the favor of taking it this one time. Huh?
The last time I was at Target (July 4th), they had a sign up saying they weren’t accepting internet coupons.Also I had a bunch of manufacturer’s coupons, which I used on trial size items (within the limits of the coupon description). The cashier was really snotty and said to me “I hope you got all these items because it doesn’t like your coupons.”Recently I had trouble with CVS coupons, so I wrote to CVS customer care and they credited me with $5ECB for my hassle.
I just went Target shopping yesterday and I must say I had a very pleasant experience checking out. The cashier I had rang up each and every coupon with no problems and did adjustments herself when it scanned “product not found” or something similar as she saw i did indeed purchase it. She scrolled up the list for the correct prices to use on the coupons where necessary. all in all a most pleasureable experience. The only drawback, I went in intending to use my my points fifty dollar gift card and internet plus manufacturer coupons and left spending way more !
Today at my Target actually-there were signs on all the registers saying they will no longer accept the printed out coupons because of the chance of fradulant coupons. I dont know if it was for the specific examples they were showing or in general but it definitely caught my attention!
I shop at Target several times a week, and I have never had any problems with any of the store or manufacturer coupons. And we have 4 local Target stores that I frequent! They have all been great! Give them a chance!
So far so good at my store. The cashiers seem to be informed as to the exact Target coupon policy. That is a sign of good management and cashier training. When I read what some folks go through to use legal coupons, my stomach does flip flops. As Lorelei posted, I have the official Target coupon policy posted on my site. I dug up every copy I could find and they all read almost to the letter identically. You would think that when corporate is inundated with calls and emails wanting to know what the coupon policy is and request a copy they would fire off a corporate training email and blast every store in the nation. To all of you who have problems, thanks for fighting the good fight. When you write corporate, ask them if you can be a corporate trainer and be paid for services rendered or if they are hiring corporate trainers. Gee… you guys do their work for them. Ginger
I guess it depends on the area! I have more problems with Wal-Mart than Target. I just quit shopping at Wal-mart because the managers and cashier were rude when I questioned them on the coupon policy. It is frustrating!
Has anyone else had a problem using the Target printable coupons? At my last trip to target there were signs up everywhere that due to fraud they will no longer accept coupons printed off the internet.My printer isn’t working anyway, but I was sad to see that the coupons will no longer be accepted.
Here’s a link to Target’s coupon policy.
Fortunately I’ve always had good experiences with our local Target and using coupons. Today I used both a manufacturer’s coupon and a store coupon on one item and they had no problem with it. Which is good, because I’d probably be too chicken to talk to a store manager… : )
True of all stores…if you have issues please call their 800 number. The only way to “educate” these cashiers and managers is through their own corporate offices! Target, Walgreens, etc! The more we call the more we’ll make a difference!
I have had problems at Target using all valid coupons on numerous occasions. One time, the lady from customer service even denied my coupons that were good on any product (no exclusions) because the product was less than the coupon amount. I even told the cashier the product price ahead of time so there weren’t any problems. Their policy says they will just take off the product price in that case. Nope, sorry loyal shopper.Sometimes I hate Target. Other times, I am excited to be walking away with some bargains. Did anyone try using the $5 off 3 coupon Target coupon found in the Sunday paper a few weeks ago? It was on several different brands of health and beauty products. With manufacturer’s coupons, I got 5 boxes of band-aids and a bottle of Tylenol for free! So, I guess I’ll keep plugging away.
About 2 weeks ago Target had an ad out that said I can get a $5 gift card for buying 5 cereals for $11. Since I buy these cereals anyway, I was excited and went to Target to get them. The cashier had no idea what I was talking about when I asked for my gift card. She also did not seem to know how to ring up my purchases. After many failed attempts and a long line forming behind me, she gave up and told me to leave! She said the cereals were her gift to me and that I didn’t have to pay for them! I was confused and didn’t know what to do but I wasn’t about to walk out of a store with unpaid merchandise and no receipt! I went to customer service and they rang everything up with no problem and gave me my gift card. I wonder what ever happened to that cashier?
I saw a really great deal in the Target ad that no one has mentioned. Buy 10 sobe life waters and get a $5 gift card. Use (5) b1g1 coupons and that makes all 10 free!
I went to Target just yesterday, and with much trepidation, handed the cashier 5 coupons (all of which were manufacturer’s coupons, not store coupons) and prepared myself to point out the fine print on all of them and detail how they were all valid on the items I was buying. Thankfully it wasn’t necessary – the great young lady scanned them all without batting an eye. On two of them, she had to enter the amount of the coupon herself, which is where I’ve run into trouble before. But again, she just entered it all in like a pro. I am lucky to have my choice of Targets to shop at – one is a 1/4 mile farther than the other from where I live, but they are the store that usually takes coupons without too much fuss (that’s the one I was at yesterday). So if I know I am going to use coupons, I make it a point to go to that specific Target. That’s good to know that they do infact take stacked coupons!
I had the same problem the last time I shopped Target. The cashier said they couldn’t take the coupons, and asked me if it was alright with me. I said no, of course it wasen’t, and asked if he could call a manager. The manager showed up and explained to the cashier, not me, that they do indeed take both store and manufacturer’s coupons. Of course, the cashier, as well as the long line of people were ticked off, but I did my homework and spent alot of time shopping and I feel like the managers should explain to everyone that works for the store what is going on. I did however find a coupon policy for target, printed it up and pull it out like a badge whenever I have a problem now…. lol.
As a Target cashier, I am sorry for your experience. It is thanks to a coupons savvy shopper that I first got into couponing. She had a fishing tackle box full of coupons, and she told me about a few web site. The rest is history. I personally enjoy when I see a fist full of coupons when I am cashering. I make a point to tell them the pre-coupon total, then how great they did with their coupons. My fellow workers all run when they see me coming with my coupons. They tease, but I am laughing all the way to the bank!Michelle