Reader Amy let me know to be on the lookout for a new coupon policy from Rite Aid and I just got it in an email from them this morning.
Here is the big change that they made:
Buy One Get One Free coupons cannot be used in conjunction with a Buy One Get One Free promotion
So that is a bummer. Now you better sit down for this one:
Rite Aid may accept up to 4 identical coupons for the same number of qualifying items as long as there is sufficient stock to satisfy other customers within the store manager’s sole discretion.
I am going to post the entire coupon policy below for you to see. You can print a copy of the Rite Aid Coupon Policy here. If you want to cross reference the previous Rite Aid Coupon Policy– I will leave it up here for a few more days.
Does anyone else see any other big changes?
Click below to see the entire Coupon Policy for Rite Aid in full.
To Our Valued Customers:
Rite Aid gladly accepts the following coupon types as detailed in the coupon acceptance guidelines listed below:
COUPON TYPES:
Manufacturer Coupons
*Manufacturer coupons are found in newspapers, magazines and even affixed to products. The UPC on these coupons
begins with a “5.”
Rite Aid Manufacturer Coupons
Rite Aid Manufacturer coupons generally appear in our weekly circular, on our website and are sent to customers via
email. These coupons are labeled “manufacturer coupon” and have a UPC that begins with “49.”
Rite Aid Valuable Coupons
Rite Aid coupons are labeled “Valuable Coupon” and have a UPC that begins with “48.”
Internet/Print at Home coupons
Rite Aid will accept internet / print at home coupons up to the equivalent value of $5.00 off.
A Rite Aid coupon (with the Rite Aid logo) is NOT considered an internet coupon (even if printed off the internet) and is
therefore not subject to the $5.00 maximum.
+UP Reward Coupons
+UP Reward coupons are special coupons earned by a customer in a prior purchase that can be used for any nonprescription purchase with a small number of exclusions that are listed on the +UP coupon. Multiple +UP coupons can
be used (subject to the printed exclusions) up to the amount of purchase before sales tax.
Buy One, Get One Free
Rite Aid accepts Buy One, Get One Free coupons, however only one coupon can be used for each pair of items
purchased. A customer can use one “cents off” coupon in conjunction with the item they are purchasing on a Buy One
Get One Free promotion (or with a Buy One Get One Free coupon), although the value of the cents off coupon cannot
exceed the selling price of the item.
Buy One Get One Free coupons cannot be used in conjunction with a Buy One Get One Free promotion.
Total Purchase Coupons
Rite Aid may feature total purchase coupons which discount the total purchase amount based upon meeting specific
requirements. For example, $5 off a $25 purchase price threshold coupon.
These coupons are accepted under the following conditions:
o The coupon is valid and in date; only one total purchase coupon per transaction.
o Total purchase equals or exceeds $25 before tax (before any coupons are applied).
o Coupons for individual items can also be used including another “48” coupon that is tied to an item in the
transaction.
o Provided the total of items purchased is equal to or greater than the purchase requirement, other coupons can
be used in conjunction with the total purchase coupon.
ACCEPTANCE GUIDELINES:
General Guidelines:
Coupons must be valid and in date; Coupons cannot be exchanged for cash.
Register will validate coupon through scanning or keyed entry of the coupon UPC number.
In the event that any item’s selling price is less than the value of the coupon, Rite Aid will accept the coupon in exchange
for the selling price of the item. Coupon redemption can never exceed the selling price of an item and no cash back is
allowed.
When making a return for a product that had a coupon attached, Rite Aid cannot refund cash for the value of the
coupon and cannot return the coupon that was used.
Rite Aid reserves the right to not accept any coupon where the validity or the coupon cannot be established.
Multiple Coupons
More than one coupon can be used on the purchase of a single item under the following conditions:
o All coupons match the item being purchased.
o The total of the coupons is equal to or less than the selling price of the item before sales tax.
No more than one “48” Rite Aid Valuable coupon, one “49” Rite Aid Manufacturer coupon, and one “5” Manufacturer
coupon can be used on a single item. Rite Aid may accept up to 4 identical coupons for the same number of qualifying
items as long as there is sufficient stock to satisfy other customers within the store manager’s sole discretion.
Revised May 201
Anna says
“Rite Aid may accept up to 4 identical coupons for the same number of qualifying items as long as there is sufficient stock to satisfy other customers within the store manager’s sole discretion.”
The manager can limit you to one item. Up to 4 identical coupons is not such a big deal for moderate shoppers. May be there will be more items left in stock for those of us who do not shop early Sunday morning.
cheryl says
well iguess more shopping at walgreens then huh.
Charlene says
Yeah that is a big one. I will update that in just a bit.
JenB says
Noooooooooo! I never once participated in a BOGO promotion plus BOGO coupon. I missed out. 🙁
Kris says
This is a RELIEF to me!!! I spend SO MUCH TIME clipping coupons and finding the “deals” and some LUNATIC in my town clears the shelves Sunday morning-and I mean at ALL the Rite-Aid stores in a 20 mile radius!!!! (Some people do still go to church and can’t get there at the “crack of dawn”). Then this same LUNATIC has a garage sale and tries to re-sell the products she gets!! INSANE!! Also, this new “Exteme Coupon Show” is ruining coupons for everyone! Those people are just greedy!!! The stores will catch on to this!!!
Melissa says
Amen to that, Kris!
Randi says
Really we all should have been expecting this, and should continue to expect it from Wags and CVS. The Extreme Couponing show has made stockpiling the “in thing” and everyone wants a piece of it. The one thing that I don’t like is that they are leaving more up to the manager now. This can be a good thing or a bad thing, just depends on your store manager and their appriciation of your awesome couponing skills. 😉
connie says
ahhh-bummer. I’ve never, ever been an extreme couponer. Only coupon for what I need. So all this new restrictions and changes to make it harder to coupon is definitely not good for folks who coupons to manage their family finances. For sure, the extreme couponing show is not a good example of how “normal gracious couponing folks” shops. Oh well. Either case, I’ll still continue to coupon like before – only buy what I need, when I have coupons.
Amy B. says
Another bummer is being able to use 2 coupons on a bogo sale…now u can only use one 🙁
Lisa G. says
Ditto what Melissa said 🙂
Charlene says
Ya’ll. Walgreens is the least friendly of the drugstores. I’d expect something yucky from them soon too.
Renee says
Of the big 3 CVS, RA and WAGS, I shop the least at RA. Why? Because the store near me NEVER has anything in stock that is on sale and this is with them imposing their own limits months ago! I have only been there in the past month to get the Duracell battery deal-they had those only because no one knew about it.
Mary says
Can we still use 8 or 6 coupons per transsaction, but only 4 of the same product?
When there is a deal of get $5 up RR when you spend $15. Does the Up RR print if I purchase the total of $15 in two diferent transactions?
Charlene says
Mary- yes it should accumulate on the bottom of your receipt and when you hit the total it will print. Now keep in mind that managers have the ability to regulate. So if you have 10 items and the same coupon for each- this policy allows them to let you have 4 and tell you to go away basically. You may not be able to do multiple transactions on the same day. This only applies to like coupons- so identical coupons are the ones they are limiting. For those people buying 82 BBQ sauces because they are free 😉
Ronni says
Well as they say, All good things must come to an end….it was to be expected.
Meredith says
Thanks for posting this Charlene!
I have a question that one of you more Rite Aid savvy shoppers may be able to answer for me before I head to back to the store:
Last week (5/21) at RA, I purchased the Crest Pro Clinical toothpaste and received the $2 RR. Later that day, I was in a different RA and used that $2 RR towards the purchase of some other items, including an Oral-B Cross Action toothbrush, but received no RR on my receipt (the ad listed that OB X-Action a $2 RR item). The ad listed a limit of 2 rewards per customer, so I thought that I would receive the additional RR and didn’t even think to look at my receipt until later. Not the smartest move ever, but not the end of the world either.
So, did I not receive the RR because I rolled them onto a purchase in the same “family”? Or is there some other explanation that I haven’t thought of?
Thanks in advance to anyone who attempts this one – I realize that this isn’t exactly the proper forum for such a specific question. 😉
Charlene says
Meredith- if you mean +Up and the limit was 2 and you are certain you bought the right item, you can call RA corp and they can get you the +Up. it should print. If you mean you went to Walgreens and got a RR you are right- the next one won’t print because those are from the same company.
Meredith says
Leave it to me to confuse +Up’s and RR’s – rookie mistake! It was indeed Rite Aid and not Wags, and I checked the ad (I still have a copy) and the toothbrush was definitely listed.
I will get in touch with RA corp. I’m mostly curious as to why the 2 +Up didn’t print so I can keep from making the same mistake again, but if it was the computer’s error, I’d love the extra +Up’s.
Thanks for your quick reply.
Kelly says
I think some of you may be overreacting. We have no idea why RA changed their coupon policy. They could have just changed it because they don’t want their cashiers to spend their time looking up the price of the item for the B1G1 coupon. There could be a million reasons why these corporations change their policies. I honestly don’t know whether or not it has anything to do with the TLC show but I never assume it does just because something has changed and neither should you.
Also, I’m always skeptical when someone posts that another shopper is “clearing” the shelves all over town. Have you actually seen this person and followed them from store to store for at least a month or are you just guessing? There are several (think at least 20) couponers in my area that are just as savvy as I am and they all hit the stores on Sunday morning so that they can ensure that they are able to obtain the deals that they want. There is nothing wrong with this. Nothing. I actually smile when this happens because I know that the deals are hot and I’m just thankful to obtain what I can; if they are out of stock I just get a raincheck.
CouponNinja says
@ my frugal adventures and anyone else upset with the policy change.
I just want to put this out there. The whole bogo change with Rite Aid really sucks, but more then that I am worried that the other drug stores will eventually follow their lead.
My boyfriend is a real techy guy and he knows a lot about computers/cell phones. Anyway HTC one of the leaders in the cell phone industry announced that they were going to be locking their phones a couple days ago. This would mean that all of the techy guys all over the world would not be able to customize their phones. As a result the word got out and in a matter of minutes the HTC facebook page was FLOODED with comments expressing everyones dislike of the change. Within 2 Days the CEO posted a comment on the HTC wall:
”There has been overwhelmingly customer feedback that people want access to open bootloaders on HTC phones. I want you to know that we’ve listened. Today, I’m confirming we will no longer be locking the bootloaders on our devices. Thanks for your passion, support and patience, – Peter Chou, CEO of HTC”
You can see it yourself here:
https://www.facebook.com/HTC
*It’s easy to say “I just won’t shop Rite Aid anymore” I’ve said it too. But what happens when the other companies follow their lead? We won’t have any other options…
I just want to remind everyone that we have a say in these situations, and with the ease of using forums like facebook why not speak up?
http://www.facebook.com/riteaid
-Thanks for reading 🙂
Amy B. says
I can give u the answer to that…well…atleast what they told me anyway..lol…RA Corp told me that if u get +Ups for the same thing the very same day the register might not print it because it takes a day sometimes for it to register how many times uve done the same deal. It happened to me. There was 2 options…they mailed me 20 +Ups in 5.00 incriments…with a longer than usual expiration! (This is the best deal if u dont need the Ups+ right away as it takes about 7-10 business days to get them). Or they suggest waiting a day and going back to the store and making a small purchase and it might register then. I always try not to do multiple deals on the same merchandise in the same day. Good luck, hope that helps!
Jeff says
What do you all think that maybe we blew it when we filled out those surveys for the 3 off 15 on the RA receipt. I know I always said I was unsatisfied with the stock of the items advertised on sale. If enough of us answered it this way then may be this is RA way off rectifying the out of stock problem without spending extra money to stock their shelves with merchandise with little or no profit. After all the only reason they have these great sales is to draw us in and hope we buy items with 2x to 3x markups
Just a thought
Charlene says
Kelly- I don’t about every situation but I once heard from a manager of a Rite Aid store. She emailed for help because she reads MFA so she knows what to order in bulk. She said two ladies were waiting the day of the toilet paper sale in the parking lot for the store to open. It opened and they each grabbed two carts and filled them with almost the entire supply of TP. A third lady arrived and apparently got angry and someone was shoved. I guess a small child was with one of the first two and the kid wound up getting knocked over. She had to break it up and all 3 ladies divided the entire supply they had on the sales floor. I also saw the stockpile on Extreme Couponing of that lady with no children and floor to ceiling diapers from when walgreens had them for free. She had hundreds of packs which means she probably wiped out several stores… so anyway. I think in some cases you are right- several people get there and deplete inventory and in some cases Kris is right one stinker can ruin it for everyone 🙂
Sammy says
So I’m new to shopping at Rite Aid… in the part of the policy that says “No more than one “48” Rite Aid Valuable coupon, one “49” Rite Aid Manufacturer coupon, and one “5” Manufacturer
coupon can be used on a single item.”, does that mean theoretically you could have 3 coupons for the same item? (I’m sure they probably never have a ’48’ and a ’49’ at the same time, but you never know!)
Charlene says
Sammy actually there are occasions where that happens. Usually if there is an in ad coupon and an ad perk coupon.
Rose says
Does this affect B1G1 50% off sales in any way? For instance, this coming up week Rite Aid will have Stayfree pads on sale B1G1 50% off. Can I use a Buy one Get One Free coupon with this sale and if so, how much would the coupon take off – the lesser amount of the two items, or the full priced item?
Debbie says
I’m happy about the second change and sick of seeing empty shelves because of the deals.
Sarah says
As a former Rite Aid employee, I can tell you that the same people were the first in the door on Sunday morning week after week, buying nothing but “free after rebate” items or they would have a huge wad of coupons. One man in particular would hand you coupons for the wrong items, such as a Crest coupon when buying Colgate, or expired coupons. After repeatedly telling him I couldn’t take expired coupons, he’d start bringing them in with the expiration dates cut off.
And yes, people buy outrageous amounts of something on sale and wipe out the stock for the rest of the week. Then you’d have to be looking up the code to print rain checks all week.
trina says
I am a cashier at Rite Aid and yes it is the same couponers week after week.I believe its because of them our coupons are becoming less impressive.The dollar amounts are smaller then before.They do wipe out our supply which is not fair to all of our other customers.I believe coupons will come to an end and we all lose out.
Kacey says
Ok maybe I’m way behind the times here, but I’m still frustrated at the new change where you can’t get your rewards right away. They don’t even printout anymore, you just have to get them on your card. Now you can’t do more than one transaction at a time. You have to come back another day to use your rewards. I just stopped shopping there because I don’t have time to make multiple trips, I pay more than I save for gas. Anyone else have the problem?