Ethics of couponing

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Melancholic

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Hi,

I have been “super couponing” since December and have already saved my family a ton of money. Last year I would regularly save 30-40% on my grocery bills by shopping sales and using the occasional coupon, but now I have slashed that in half again or better and I am giving stuff away like never before, we have a huge stockpile - it’s really crazy. I am on couponing forums where people brainstorm about deals at stores which often let a person walk away with items for free or nearly free, and sometimes a person can actually make money by buying items. I feel like there are a lot of ethical gray areas with couponing and would love to start a discussion here with other people who do this. I don’t want to put all of my questions in this first post because I would go on forever. Are there members here who want to discuss this? Sometimes I feel like I’m walking a fine line between theft and purchasing products legitimately, but I tend towards the scrupulous side, so who knows…
 
I think merchants put out coupons to entice customers to shop at their stores. If they didn’t want to honor the product in question at said discount, they wouldn’t put it in a coupon flyer.

Unless you are counterfeiting them, threatening the clerk or storekeep with violence, I really don’t think there is a problem.
 
I think that for the most part, there is nothing wrong with couponing, even if you end up getting stuff for free. If you cut the expiration date off of expired coupons, that would be morally problematic, although I am not sure you could get away with it given the bar scanning technology.
 
Ok, let me put a couple of specific questions out there.
  1. Peelies. These are the coupons that are stuck to a product that you have to peel off to use. Some couponers simply gather these and wait for a sale to buy the product. Others (like me) have taken peelies on one product to use on a different product at the same visit (like I used peelies stuck on boxes of garlic toast when buying garlic bread - same company, same price). Then there’s the question of whether this is ethical when the product you are using the peelie on costs less than the product it was stuck to. Some feel there’s no ethical problem so long as you don’t take them all. But when taking peelies there is always a person who comes around later and buys the product, and notices the clear plastic film which once had a peelie attached to it, so perhaps it’s a question of stealing from the next customer. OTOH, there aren’t all that many people who coupon so maybe it’s likely that they won’t notice or care.
  2. Winetags. These are tags found in the liquor section, usually hanging around the neck of alcohol bottles. Sometimes these have language like this “Save $4 on meat now, no alcohol purchase necessary.” Some couponers gather these like peelies and don’t buy the alcohol. I don’t know if “no alcohol purchase” means you don’t have to buy the alcohol at all, or if you are free to use the coupon when you had bought the alcohol on a previous visit… What is extra confusing is that these are sometimes found as tearpads and not attached to the bottle at all, which makes it seem like any other coupon that a person can rip and take with them. I have heard stories that alcohol reps simply want people to take the winetags and the benefit for them is advertising, but I don’t know whether to believe it.
I’ll stop there for now.
 
I really think your over analyzing this (and your talking to an English major-we’re very good at that 😉 )

If it bothers you that much, don’t do it. But there is nothing unethical about saving money.
 
Rascalking said:
I really think your over analyzing this (and your talking to an English major-we’re very good at that 😉 )

If it bothers you that much, don’t do it. But there is nothing unethical about saving money.
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Taking one winetag for $4 off meat might seem like a little thing that doesn’t matter… what’s to stop me from picking up 50 of them and getting $200 of meat for free thanks to the alcohol company? I know people who do this. Or recently there was a peelie on chocolates for Valentines day, $20 off a 1-800-flowers order. When some people got their hands on multiples and tried to redeem them, the flowers company shut down the promotion and accused them of fraud. Is it fraud or is it a company screw-up?

www2.tbo.com/content/2010/feb/11/1-800-flowerscom-canceling-deliveries-breaking-hea/

If you think that winetags and peelies are fine, say so. Don’t make it sound like all of my concerns are baseless because “there’s nothing unethical about saving money.” I’ve barely scratched the surface here and that kind of response is very discouraging.
 
Do you read the fine print of the coupons? Many of them say, “only good for two weeks, cannot be combined with others.” If it doesn’t, than don’t go overboard…use one or two.

But remember-the retailer has the power-they can say , “No, I don’t accept it.” Your not going into the store brandishing a machine gun saying, “I demand you honor all of these!”

That might be wrong.
 
I thought coupons and tags would have a limit on it, like limit 2 per customers. Also, even if they do not, sometimes the store would have a sign to limit them. Are there no limits on this?
 
If you really want to be scrupulous, you probably shouldn’t take coupons off products you’re not actually buying. My guess would be if a coupon is attached to a product, it’s meant for you to get when you buy the product, not rip off the product and walk away with.

But then again, I really doubt most people use coupons. I’ve never bothered with coupons simply because of the hassle. So if don’t take them, they may well end up in the trash along with the packaging.

Also if you’re poor, I’d go ahead and use the coupons.
 
Melancholic said:
  1. Peelies. These are the coupons that are stuck to a product that you have to peel off to use. … Others (like me) have taken peelies on one product to use on a different product at the same visit (like I used peelies stuck on boxes of garlic toast when buying garlic bread - same company, same price). …But when taking peelies there is always a person who comes around later and buys the product, and notices the clear plastic film which once had a peelie attached to it, so perhaps it’s a question of stealing from the next customer. OTOH, there aren’t all that many people who coupon so maybe it’s likely that they won’t notice or care.
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Wait, you are taking the coupons attached to a product and using them, even though you aren’t buying the product?

Isn’t the implication here if you buy the product you get a reduction in price now or later based on purchasing the product? But you aren’t purchasing the product? How is that not stealing?
 
PaulinVA said:
Wait, you are taking the coupons attached to a product and using them, even though you aren’t buying the product?

Isn’t the implication here if you buy the product you get a reduction in price now or later based on purchasing the product? But you aren’t purchasing the product? How is that not stealing?
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I have the same question, Paul. If someone is walking through the store and peeling coupons off of products without buying the products, then it seems to me s/he’s stealing. It’s also unfair to the next shopper who comes along and buys a product without a peelie, not realizing that s/he’s missing out on a coupon that would normally be there.

To put it another way, would it be OK to take the spare buttons out of the pocket of a suit without buying the suit?

.
 
Melancholic said:
Ok, let me put a couple of specific questions out there.
  1. Peelies. These are the coupons that are stuck to a product that you have to peel off to use. Some couponers simply gather these and wait for a sale to buy the product. Others (like me) have taken peelies on one product to use on a different product at the same visit (like I used peelies stuck on boxes of garlic toast when buying garlic bread - same company, same price). Then there’s the question of whether this is ethical when the product you are using the peelie on costs less than the product it was stuck to. Some feel there’s no ethical problem so long as you don’t take them all. But when taking peelies there is always a person who comes around later and buys the product, and notices the clear plastic film which once had a peelie attached to it, so perhaps it’s a question of stealing from the next customer. OTOH, there aren’t all that many people who coupon so maybe it’s likely that they won’t notice or care.
  2. Winetags. These are tags found in the liquor section, usually hanging around the neck of alcohol bottles. Sometimes these have language like this “Save $4 on meat now, no alcohol purchase necessary.” Some couponers gather these like peelies and don’t buy the alcohol. I don’t know if “no alcohol purchase” means you don’t have to buy the alcohol at all, or if you are free to use the coupon when you had bought the alcohol on a previous visit… What is extra confusing is that these are sometimes found as tearpads and not attached to the bottle at all, which makes it seem like any other coupon that a person can rip and take with them. I have heard stories that alcohol reps simply want people to take the winetags and the benefit for them is advertising, but I don’t know whether to believe it.
I’ll stop there for now.
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Okay…that changes it in my book. As a guy who used to work in retail loss prevention years ago, this sounds like borderline theft by deception or alteration to me. Seems similar to someone refunding products they’ve never purchased-- for which I have clicked on the handcuffs in my LP days. Truth be known…it’s also very annoying behavior to the rest of us shoppers.

I think the other problem with “couponing” as you describe it is the mental focus it seems to encourage. Ultimately, one of the greatest problems with what you’re doing is you are ignoring important and real things which would be a better source for your energies.
 
Thanks for all the responses. It is nice to have an outlet to talk about this without anger.

Rascalking,

Yes, I (usually) read the fine print and try to follow what it says. I don’t know where the line of overboard is, and if something is not sinful then I can go overboard, right?

StillWondering,

No, no signs with things like winetags or peelies.

flyingfish,

It’s hard to know sometimes, because peelies often say “good on any X-brand product” – if I had handed you the the one off the garlic toast for instance, you wouldn’t have been able to tell me which of that brand’s products I got the coupon from.
I would not call us poor; we can pay our expenses but for years we have been struggling to save money and that’s with living frugally. Super couponing is allowing us to finally put some money in the bank.

PaulinVA,

I’m sorry, I don’t quite understand your train of thought? When I took the peelie from the garlic toast I used it right away on the garlic bread, and they were both same company, same price. The idea being if you are buying any product of the same value as the one the peelie is on, it is no loss to the company so it is fine. And I did not walk out of the store with the peelie and no product, though some people do this and say they will buy the product later when it is on sale. They figure that the company still sells its item eventually (where else are they going to use the coupon?) so it’s fine.

Langdell,

Looking at what I have done, it’s more like buying a different style suit that didn’t have any extra buttons and taking the extra buttons from the first style suit to go with it. Same company’s suits, same price suits. And yes I think a big part of my issue is taking the opportunity away from a future shopper to use a peelie.

Writer,

I wish you could be more specific. What changes it? Everything I wrote? I don’t understand the comparison to refunding products never purchased, at all.
Like I said above, super couponing is allowing us to save money for the first time in a long time. My questions about winetags and peelies are just a tiny part of it, and I’ve only used those things a handful of times. This is a lot of work but I view it as another part-time job, because it is paying like a part-time job. I would not say that it is a waste of time and focus. After all, I am now donating more to our church’s food pantry than ever before and I am helping some unemployed family members to stock their pantries for very little, so the work feels like service too.
 
Melancholic said:
Ok, let me put a couple of specific questions out there.
  1. Peelies. These are the coupons that are stuck to a product that you have to peel off to use. Some couponers simply gather these and wait for a sale to buy the product. Others (like me) have taken peelies on one product to use on a different product at the same visit (like I used peelies stuck on boxes of garlic toast when buying garlic bread - same company, same price). Then there’s the question of whether this is ethical when the product you are using the peelie on costs less than the product it was stuck to. Some feel there’s no ethical problem so long as you don’t take them all. But when taking peelies there is always a person who comes around later and buys the product, and notices the clear plastic film which once had a peelie attached to it, so perhaps it’s a question of stealing from the next customer. OTOH, there aren’t all that many people who coupon so maybe it’s likely that they won’t notice or care.
Click to expand...
Sounds iffy at best.
  1. Winetags. These are tags found in the liquor section, usually hanging around the neck of alcohol bottles. Sometimes these have language like this “Save $4 on meat now, no alcohol purchase necessary.” Some couponers gather these like peelies and don’t buy the alcohol. I don’t know if “no alcohol purchase” means you don’t have to buy the alcohol at all, or if you are free to use the coupon when you had bought the alcohol on a previous visit… What is extra confusing is that these are sometimes found as tearpads and not attached to the bottle at all, which makes it seem like any other coupon that a person can rip and take with them. I have heard stories that alcohol reps simply want people to take the winetags and the benefit for them is advertising, but I don’t know whether to believe it.
I’ll stop there for now.
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That’s way to complicated for me. But then again, I’m still waiting for beer coupons to come on to the scene.
 
Melancholic said:
PaulinVA,

I’m sorry, I don’t quite understand your train of thought? When I took the peelie from the garlic toast I used it right away on the garlic bread, and they were both same company, same price. The idea being if you are buying any product of the same value as the one the peelie is on, it is no loss to the company so it is fine. And I did not walk out of the store with the peelie and no product, though some people do this and say they will buy the product later when it is on sale. They figure that the company still sells its item eventually (where else are they going to use the coupon?) so it’s fine.
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What gives you the right to do this product switch? The company wants you to buy the garlic toast, and is giving you the coupon as an incentive. You are not buying the garlic toast. You are taking the coupon meant for the buyer off of the product and using it.

Do you not see the manufacturer’s intent? If they wanted you to take the coupon and buy the garlic bread, the peelie would have been on the garlic bread, or in one of those coupon dispensers on the aisle.

You are stealing the 35 cents or whatever the manufacturer meant to give the buyer of the garlic toast. You did not buy the garlic toast and have no right to take the coupon.
 
PaulinVA said:
What gives you the right to do this product switch? The company wants you to buy the garlic toast, and is giving you the coupon as an incentive. You are not buying the garlic toast. You are taking the coupon meant for the buyer off of the product and using it.

Do you not see the manufacturer’s intent? If they wanted you to take the coupon and buy the garlic bread, the peelie would have been on the garlic bread, or in one of those coupon dispensers on the aisle.
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Well, I’m not exactly sure what “rights” are when it comes to coupons. I would think that if the company was intending for me to buy the garlic toast, the peelie would say “$$ off garlic toast” and not say “off any product”… It seems like companies are usually pretty careful about wording when they are intending savings to be directed at one product only. I suppose they could have a huge stock of generic “any” coupons to be stuck onto one product line or another whenever it seems appropriate.

So what about taking the garlic toast peelie now and using it later when the store has a sale? That’s fine because I’m using it on garlic toast as it was intended?
 
Does anyone have an opinion about winetags? Most of the discussion has been directed at peelies.
 
Melancholic said:
It’s hard to know sometimes, because peelies often say “good on any X-brand product” – if I had handed you the the one off the garlic toast for instance, you wouldn’t have been able to tell me which of that brand’s products I got the coupon from.
I would not call us poor; we can pay our expenses but for years we have been struggling to save money and that’s with living frugally. Super couponing is allowing us to finally put some money in the bank.
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Oh, I see what you’re saying. It’s not as bad as I thought. I thought you would walk by bread and see a coupon on it saying “if you buy this bread you can buy that toast for less”, but you would just take the coupon and buy the toast for less without buying the bread.

If you’re really concerned, just ask a store employee if you can switch the coupon from one product to another.

The coupon is a marketing trick on their part, maybe they put the coupon on an overpriced product to give you incentive to buy it and still spend a lot of money. So in taking the coupon from a higher priced product and using it on a lower priced product you are beating the system in a way.

The question of ethics is complicated because you can also ask if it’s ethical for companies to charge as much as they do for their products. 🤷
 
I always use the peelies from the products I buy. If all the remaining cans of tomatoes had their peelies missing, with sad little empty squares of plastic remaining, this could be annoying.

Also, I’d find it rather frustrating if I were about to buy toilet paper and take a coupon out of the dispenser to buy it, but the person in front of me takes all 10 coupons out of the dispenser, and keeps them for another day.

I’d have to hope my spouse were not with me, or there might be some aggression in the aisle.

I don’t buy anything that has winetags on it, but if for some reason the sherry had a winetag on it (doubtful), I would be annoyed to see a customer removing them as I walked up to get a bottle of sherry. My once in a lifetime chance for a discount on the sherry would be walking away down the aisle. 😉
 
Pug said:
I don’t buy anything that has winetags on it, but if for some reason the sherry had a winetag on it (doubtful), I would be annoyed to see a customer removing them as I walked up to get a bottle of sherry. My once in a lifetime chance for a discount on the sherry would be walking away down the aisle. 😉
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The winetags I’m talking about don’t offer any discount on the alcohol itself. They say “save $$ on pizza” or “save $$ on meat” and in small print it says “no alcohol purchase necessary.”
 
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