Let's talk couponing 'etiquette'

[khaski]

What do you find to be big 'no-no's' for couponers, either yourself or others? Some of my personal coupon pet-peeves:
-People who 'clear out' all/almost all items on a shelf, leaving none for other bargain seekers
-People who do the same with tear-off coupons you find in the store
-People who pick the moment they arrive at the cash register to double-check their purchases in the circular, organize a zillion coupons, or run back into the store for more items...while holding up the line (I know, we've all at one point forgotten that ONE LAST THING we left the line and made a mad dash for, I mean those people who think we all thrive on waiting for THEM to finish ORGANIZING their bargains, at check out).
-Ditto people who wish to do 3+ transactions, with people waiting behind them. I have done mult. transcations before, if I will be holding up the line, I move the the back of it or wait til it's a little quieter to tie up a cashier for a few.

I am NOT against shelf/coupon clearing within reason- if you see there are 5 items left, and planned to buy 5, fine. If there are 25 items left, and you planned on buying 25 and take them all instead of saying, 'Gee, I'll get 15 today and leave 10 for others', I'm annoyed. Clearing out when there's only a few left is acceptable in my book, taking everything when there's plenty left for multiple people buying multiple items, no. I guess to me it's the line between stockpiling and hoarding. I am always irritated if a hoarder buying 30 of one item leaves it so I can't purchase the 2 of the same item I planned on.

And yes, I actually was behind someone in a drugstore recently flipping through the circular, digging through their coupons for any matches, then running back into the store to grab another 3-4 items...while those behind them waited (some of us with ornery little ones). RUDE, in my book- though the store did open another lane about 2-3 minutes later, and this person was still in la-la land.

So what are you couponing etiquette 'no-no's'?

[Contrary Housewife]

IMO if you have the coupons and the store has the items I don't see a problem taking as many as you want to buy. The store probably has more in the back, and I always ask a clerk or department manager to get more if the shelf is bare. Or I ask for a raincheck. I know you probably think this isn't "fair", but there is no fairness in retail sales unless the store is placing limits. I'll buy as many as I can and there is no obligation for me to save any for anyone else.

I do abhor waste, though, and I agree with you on people cleaning out the coupon dispenser, or worse, letting their kids pull coupon after coupon and throw them on the floor. What gets me is folks who sort through the flyers at the store, tear out the coupons and then put the ragged flyers back into the pile. What good is that to anyone? Half the pages are ripped out and the good coupons are gone, just put it in the trash when you're done with it.

A lot of the rest of what you mention is just plain inconsideration... people too wrapped up in themselves to pay attention to how they inconvenience other people, whether or not they have coupons.

[Rhayne]

If i have coupons and want to double check my circular before check out...i stand in the front of the store and check my whole cart before I even go near a register. I hate it when people run back to get something and don't even apologize when they know they are taking FOREVER! 99% of the time I go through self check out but even there I won't take a long time or hold up the machine.

[eris]

I was once behind a massive-coupons lady, she had taped a paper sign to the handle of the grocery cart "Warning: I have lots of coupons."

I thought it was a GREAT idea, so people knew right away that they could move to another line if they didn't want to get stuck behind her. I was in no rush, and had nothing better to do..so I just stood and watched her save money in envy

[nuisance26]

~I also don't think it's rude to buy out a shelf of something. The grocery store is a business. Customers buy things. It's not a party at someone's house where you have to be sure everyone gets a cupcake before you have seconds.
I only have a problem when couponers bend or break the rules printed on the coupons. I feel like it's dishonest to the company providing the coupon to purchase 10 coupons on Ebay when the coupon clearly says not to sell or transfer them. I know people get around this by saying they are selling the time to cut the coupons. Well if I'm buying their "time" then any coupon I get from them is just as good as another. They list their coupons by product not by how many minutes they spent on it so they're clearly selling coupons, not time.
I wonder how much the companies will tolerate before they stop offering coupons altogether.~

[Dancing Lotus]

I think it rude to take an entire tear pad of coupons, I take 4 at most.

This goes for all shoppers Don't put your cart in line and then go to get something you forgot. GET OUT OF LINE IF YOU ARE NOT DONE SHOPPING.

I also think it rude to clear a shelf IF you are buying an unreasonable amount. Look, if you planned to buy 4 and they only have 4 then by all means take them. But if the store has 64 bottles of mayo I don't think you really need to take all 64!On second thought I don't think my issue is with taking the last one , it's with hoarding. Carry on

[HappyMama]

I was once behind a massive-coupons lady, she had taped a paper sign to the handle of the grocery cart "Warning: I have lots of coupons."

I had a sign printed and used it once in awhile when I use to use lots of coupons....LOL This post made me laugh and brought back memories. Thanks!

[Dancing Lotus]

And maybe this is a bit off topic but I wanted to add. Please let me have my turn just as I do you. When you are checking out I do not stand behind you huffing and puffing because you have a large order and it's taking too long. Just because I have a lot of coupons doesn't mean I am not entitled to the full amount of time it takes to complete my transaction.

[krbshappy71]

I'll clear a shelf if its an awesome deal and I actually have the money at the time. I have no expectations from the previous person to 'save me some', I kinda relate it to "early bird gets the worm".

I will leave a line but I will take my cart WITH me because I feel it was my fault forgetting whatever it was, the person behind me should not have to wait.

An exception to that rule is I will send my kid to go grab something but not if I'm too close to the cashier. But then, I'm generally afraid of upsetting people.

I don't mind waiting for super-coupon people as I generally have all day to do my shopping when I choose to do it. My kids and I just talk, chill out. I should probably coupon more than I do.

I tend to do all my planning at home, taking notes as to what the "rules" are of each coupon so I don't end up at the register with the wrong sized item, have to buy 2 to get 1 free but I only wanted one, etc. I try not to hold up the line that way.

[NikoSan999]

IMO if you have the coupons and the store has the items I don't see a problem taking as many as you want to buy. The store probably has more in the back, and I always ask a clerk or department manager to get more if the shelf is bare. Or I ask for a raincheck. I know you probably think this isn't "fair", but there is no fairness in retail sales unless the store is placing limits. I'll buy as many as I can and there is no obligation for me to save any for anyone else.

I do abhor waste, though, and I agree with you on people cleaning out the coupon dispenser, or worse, letting their kids pull coupon after coupon and throw them on the floor. What gets me is folks who sort through the flyers at the store, tear out the coupons and then put the ragged flyers back into the pile. What good is that to anyone? Half the pages are ripped out and the good coupons are gone, just put it in the trash when you're done with it.

A lot of the rest of what you mention is just plain inconsideration... people too wrapped up in themselves to pay attention to how they inconvenience other people, whether or not they have coupons.

Pretty much sums it up for me with one addition..if I have cartfull and someone behind me has only a few items I'll let them go ahead of me. I'd appreciate it if someone did that for me although seldom do they. But especially if they are elderly.

[rachelleshops]

It's hard to say what is stocking up and what is hoarding. I think that Extreme Couponing is showing some people with problems. No one needs 10 years worth of deodorant! That being said, if these people are happy doing what they do, hopefully they pass some on to those in need as well. I have been focusing on having a nice supply of food in the garage and had not been couponing recently. Now that I am back at it I can see how obsessive a person can become. I agree that if I have the money and find the deal I just might buy 30 bottles of sports drinks. Where I live the local markets frequently run out of sale items and I take advantage of rain checks. I just look at it as someone beat me to it!

[Ramona]

I won't take the last few of anything, coupon or not. Today I had 4 coupons for $1.00 off a personal item. The first store had 4 items on the shelf, I took 2.

The second store had only a ripped bag. I passed.

My coupons are still good until June. I'll get them before then.

[frugalwarrior2]

Rude
Shopping w/ tons of coupons at the stores peak time.

Tearing coupons off products you are not buying right then.

Dividing your order into more than about 3 sections to get a deal.

I have cleared the shelves but have never bought tons of 1 item. If you want 64 you should call ahead.

[khaski]

Perhaps I am especially sensitive to 'shelf clearing' as I live in a rural area and it's a good 25+ minutes to most stores I shop, so it's not like I can pop in the next day easily to see if they've restocked. Have no problem with it if you're taking reasonable numbers, but find it rude if your hoarding prevents others from getting their deals too (like the 64 jars of mayo someone used as an example). Also, perhaps I'm wrong, but I assume if the shelf has LOTS of things, they -just- restocked and will not have another shipment for a day or two, whereas if there are only a few left, the shelf is probably going to be restocked shortly. Anytime I've asked for more of an item out back, I seem to get a rain check- which is fine, EXCEPT when I have coupons about to expire shortly, then I'm bummed. I think shelf clearing (past a few items) is greedy and rude, but then again, I don't have a problem with shopping at peak times with tons of coupons, if that's what you're doing and then when it's their time to shop. No, it's not a party, and it's not about 'fair' to me, it's about common courtesy, but I'm sure some things I don't think twice about probably drive others nuts sometimes! Interesting to see our different opinions on 'etiquette'!

[nuisance26]

Perhaps I am especially sensitive to 'shelf clearing' as I live in a rural area and it's a good 25+ minutes to most stores I shop, so it's not like I can pop in the next day easily to see if they've restocked. Have no problem with it if you're taking reasonable numbers, but find it rude if your hoarding prevents others from getting their deals too (like the 64 jars of mayo someone used as an example). Also, perhaps I'm wrong, but I assume if the shelf has LOTS of things, they -just- restocked and will not have another shipment for a day or two, whereas if there are only a few left, the shelf is probably going to be restocked shortly. Anytime I've asked for more of an item out back, I seem to get a rain check- which is fine, EXCEPT when I have coupons about to expire shortly, then I'm bummed. I think shelf clearing (past a few items) is greedy and rude, but then again, I don't have a problem with shopping at peak times with tons of coupons, if that's what you're doing and then when it's their time to shop. No, it's not a party, and it's not about 'fair' to me, it's about common courtesy, but I'm sure some things I don't think twice about probably drive others nuts sometimes! Interesting to see our different opinions on 'etiquette'!

~Just want to preface this with a discalimer that I'm not attacking you with this post. I'm dealing with a cranky baby. I tend to be cryptic when I'm distracted and I don't have time to rewrite this whole thing just now.

64 jars of Mayo is extreme(what is that, 5 years worth or more?)but I'm still baffled how anyone can think this is rude. The product is available for sale, the customer has the money and it's a private transaction between the customer and the store.
People buy food to eat.
Customer #1 buys 4 jars of peanut butter for a month of use, every month for 12 months.
Customer #2 buys 48 jars on one trip to last the entire year.
Both customers bough the same amount of PB. I just don't understand how buying food you're going to eat is greedy? The basis of your argument is what a "reasonable" amount is. It's nobody's business but my own what a reasonable amount is.
Every grocery store I've ever shopped at has offered rainchecks on sale items good for 30-90 days. Others buying in bulk will not prevent anyone from getting a good deal.
I feel no responsibility to make sure a hypothetical fellow shopper is able to take advantage of a hypothetical B1G1F sale with their hypothetical expiring coupons.
The early bird gets the worm! ~