I see a lot of bloggers posting about the CVS Brand $3 off coupon. Everyone is going in and getting a bunch of stuff for free with this coupon, and I’m sorry to say that I am going to have to step up and say something.
First off, this is an unauthorized reproduction of the coupon done online by a newspaper. I have heard straight from corporate that this is an illegal copy. And the wording on the coupon states: “CVS/pharmacy will not accept offers printed from unauthorized internet postings or reproductions, copies, or facsimiles of this offer.” So why are the stores still accepting these coupons if the printed ones are illegitimate? Can you imagine the confusion and chaos that would ensue with our cashiers and managers if corporate sent out a mass email to all CVS stores not to accept these printed CVS coupons? They would probably start refusing all of our legitimate coupons that we receive via email from CVS. Not to mention ALL couponers would be scrutinized and probably looked at like thieves. Not good for customer relations, right? I imagine this is why CVS is still accepting these coupons. They do not want the legitimate coupons to be refused, thus causing problems with honest customers.
My second issue with this is that everyone is printing multiple copies of this coupon and using it to get a bunch of stuff for free. CVS does NOT get reimbursed from a manufacturer for this $3 coupon. The same goes for all of the unauthorized $3/15, $4/20 coupons that get put out on the internet. Can you imagine if just 500 people used 10 of these $3 coupons? That is $15,000 that CVS is loosing. Imagine if you had your own business, and you put a coupon in a local newpsaper. Then that newspaper posted that coupon online without your permission, and thousands of customers came in trying to get you to honor the printed version.
Here’s my question for you: Do you want to continue to get deals at CVS? Then stop using these coupons! It’s only going to hurt CVS, and in turn make it harder for us to get deals there. They will become stricter with coupon usage, there will be less deals to be had and CVS will stop putting out coupons.
In the past, I have linked to and notified you when coupons like these come out, and I am sorry that I have. Newspapers are not authorized by CVS to put their coupons in the online form of the newspaper. Usually the coupons are just put in a local paper, and are not meant for mass distribution.
I am of the opinion that if you can’t get a deal honestly, then it is not worth doing. There are plenty of deals to be had by using coupons legitimately.
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{ 86 comments… read them below or add one }
I used a couple before I realize that it was an illegal copy and I will not use anymore after learning that they are! Thank you for posting this, I totally agree!
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You can ad that $1.50 colgate internet printable to this too. HCW contacted the manufacturer and this was an aunauthorized internet printable coupon.
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I totally agree with you! I actually printed this and read what it said, and didnt feel comfortable using it. I am glad there are honest people out there!
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I agree with you and I am glad someone finally said something. I have never use this coupon, because I never felt right about it. I like a good deal, but I don’t like it if the store is going to get hurt in the process. Good for you for speaking up. Thank you for all your great posting and God Bless. BR/BR/Michelle
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Right on. I wont lie, I did print the coupon but the bar code is so squished it’ll never scan so I tossed it. I heard that the stores are forcing the coupons though because they wont scan. The only x/xx coupons I’ve used are ones that were emailed to me.
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WOW! I had no clue it was an illegal copy. I just thought it was from an online newspaper so it was fine. Thanks for letting me know that it isn’t legit! I have used it several times and the cashiers don’t even bat an eye at it, I would prefer they say something.
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Great post—-not that I#39;m guilt free on this matter—-but that its important to stand up for what you think is right even if it may offend or affect traffic to your blog. You made excellent points and I#39;m convinced.
BR/BR/A CVS near my home town has started accepting ONLY internet coupons that have the FULL sheet of paper—-meaning you cannot cut them out until your in front of the cashier. Yikes. They#39;ve decided to take this matter seriously to prevent fraud. BBR/BR/But here#39;s my question???gt;gt;gt;gt;Why don#39;t they (CVS corp) only have coupons that are quot;copy proofquot;—-with the VOID writing behind the text that will appear when copied? Why do they keep having internet newspapers with copies of the coupon in PDF format? I think that they have created this problem—if they had so many issues with the last $2 off skincare coupon—–why did they do it again with a $3 off??!!!! BR/BR/Still on your side…..we shouldn#39;t take advantage of their inability to prevent their coupon issues. BR/BR/Thanks again for your informative and eye opening post. BR/BR/Julie
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Thank you for posting this. I’ve been on other boards and even though they claim to have the same stance, I still see plenty of people discussing the coupon. I know a few people got the real deal, but as far as I knew the real deal was a CRT ($3 off the CVS brand one). I’m all for saving a few bucks, but I want to feel good about it when I leave. My husband is laid off so every dollar counts but not when it’s “cheating”. Thanks!
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PrincessJulie – regarding the coupons in the newspaper, the actual newspaper company is taking their paper (the work they do on it before it is put in print) and just posting it online. Regarding making the others copy proof, I honestly have no idea how they could do that. But thanks so much for your input!BR/BR/Thank you Mercedes regarding that Colgate coupon! I will not post that one either.
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I completely agree. I like to think about how great I am doing just following the rules. It’s really not neccessary to cheat in oder to save tons of money.
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I agree. I saw this on another blog and read the fine print and asked about it being an unauthorized internet coupon. I printed it, intending to use it, then threw it out because it just didn’t feel right. Thanks for standing up and saying something!
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yes, THANK you for this post. its not a wonder i feel weird every time i use a coupon. there are many people out there that abuse coupons and WILL ruin it for us all, especially in today’s economic crisis.
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WOW!! I had no idea-i have used a couple but will not be using them anymore-Thanks sooo much for letting us know!
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I was wondering if you all still get the CVS coupons in your email box. The last one I got was in May. Same for my in-laws.
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Oh goodness, I’m new to couponing and I have relied on your site as well as others to get great deals. I didn’t realize that this wasn’t a legit offer. I thought since it was an online newspaper that it could be used however and whenever. I have used the coupon without any trouble from my CVS but I will stop using it now. I feel horrible. I wouldn’t have used it if I knew it was wrong. Thanks for standing up and letting people who have no clue about this understand what is happening!!!! On another note–it seems as if CVS mut undergo a lot of fraud. One of the CVS associates that I have got to know told me that some women known as the “coupon ladies” will get the free blood glucose monitors and free ecb’s and then return them to walmart to get the full amount of the monitor on a gift card. I just couldn’t imagine doing that. BR/Cheryl
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Thanks for posting this!! I am guilty of using it, but I did think it was ok!! I knew there were some un-authorized cvs q’s awhile back, but I too thought this was ok because you could print it direct from the newspaper link! Even though it expires soon, I had planned on using it again!! I will NOT be doing that now and now know to check into them better! There are also some new $/$$ q’s that I’ve seen but noticed those were definitely for intended recipient only and wasn’t going to use those for sure!! BR/BR/I love the tips on keeping it all legit!! We don’t want these q’s to go away for all of us!!
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I totally agree and thank you for posting this. I don’t have a CVS near me but the issue is nationwide regardless. I get looked at closely everytime I use a coupon for just this reason. I think people around here are abusing the system and the stores are just caught in the middle. Coupon abuse is no different than stealing and makes everything more expensive plus stores may quit accepting them like many Target stores refuse their own Target.com coupons.
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I never even thought of this!BR/I feel sooo bad-I used 3 of the $3 off coupons, never thinking that I couldn’t-and they didn’t say one word to me about them not being valid. Yikes.
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When the newspapers post their online editions, why don’t they simply cut out the barcode or stamp “void” over it? I can make pdfs (it’s not that hard) and I’m sure they could manage that.
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Anonymous – The newspapers are doing it without permission from CVS, and usually they don’t even think about the coupon when publishing an online version of their edition. CVS enforcement usually gets in contact with these companies that put up their coupons to take them down. BR/BR/Unfortunately, by the time CVS has the papers void out the coupon, copies have been mass distributed around the internet and everyone has their own personal copies to print at will from their computers. BR/BR/BR/To everyone else: If you have used the coupon, please don’t beat yourself up over it. Consider it a learning experience and move forward. Deals and freebies are coming our way, legitimately!
Thanks also everyone for being supportive. Sometimes I’m not very popular for my views, and it’s nice to have some encouraging comments.
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WoW, I used it but had no idea, thanks for the post, I will not use it anymore
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Crystal, thank you for the hindsight, the stepping up and speaking on it as well as the education on coupons – from behind as well. Between you and MSM, I’ve learned loads with the tips and lingo plus savings smart. My Mom has an all new appreciation when I come in with freebies (or close) thanks to the diligent work you put into this site.BR/BR/My sincere appreciation always!!
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Thanks for posting this, I know a lot of people will read this. I have tried to tell others on message boards that these coupons are not legal, but, that is all I can do. I do not use internet coupons from CVS unless they come in my email, and those usually have your name and Extra Card number included. Thanks again for spreading the news!
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I just wanted to 1st say I love you:) amp; so does my DH I found out about your blog from diaperswappers(I#39;m Roxyrocks) and you have changed the way I look at couponing and saving money your blog is the 1st thing I look at in the morning even before DS and THAT says something! BR/BR/We dont have a CVS in Denver but I have heard soooo much abou this coupon and it just didnt quot;seemquot; right. DH is a grocery manger for King Soopers and I had him look at it and he was like, quot;thats sooo not right!quot; BR/BR/I like how you are standing up for this I dont think people realize that companies WILL lose $$$ and shrinkage(stealing) does cause companies to mark prices up people think big companies have so much $$$ they dont but would be surprised I am always shocked when I hear about the shrinkage and Kroger
BR/BR/I had a question DH like I said is a Grocery Manager for King Soopers(we get 10% OFF storebrands and it saves up TONS of $$$!) and we also get special coupons but he was telling me that we can go onto the Kroger site and upload coupons on our club card have you ever done this or know anything about it? BR/BR/Thanks for doing this blog!!!
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Thank you for your integrity! I am wondering if coupon deals are going to be harder to come by in the near future now that there are SO many more people using (therefore more abusing too) coupons. You are right. If we want to enjoy the benefits of couponing we need to do it honestly! Otherwise it will be gone!BR/BR/I really appreciate your honesty and taking a stand. Even if it isn’t always the most popular road : )
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AYE! I had no idea – thankfully I only used it once – but I feel bad about even that! Thanks for posting this!
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thanks for the great post. i hadn’t heard of this coupon until now but i’m glad to read about it here first, because i probably would’ve thought it was legit. thanks for bringing up the point that people who purposefully abuse the rules of couponing are going to ruin it for everyone! so true! and thanks for your honesty, i’m sure it’s hard when you don’t want to make your readers mad…way to stand up for what’s right! i’m putting a link to this post on my site!
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Thank you for posting this. I appreciate your leadership in posting about these unauthorized q’s. You did the right thing.
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As a former newspaper gal, I think it would be really hard for news staffers to modify one page of a pdf. Yes, technically it’s simple to do, but the manpower just isn’t there. Have you heard about the layoffs and forced time off with Gannett?BR/BR/And how the NYT is approaching bankruptcy? Yeah.BR/BR/So, if CVS wants something special to happen to the pdfs, they’ll have to negotiate that with the ad staff, because I don’t see newspapers doing that on their own.
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ok…I’ll play devil’s advocate. They don’t want it in the on-line paper then they need to tell the paper not to include it, or have them void it. it’s the world wide web people, what do they expect? Once its out there its out there. Businesses are businesses. If they didn’t want it used and were losing thousands of dollars they would make the mistake once (ie. $2 cp) and then never again. They allow this because it is profitable to do so…the reason any business does anything. It creates buzz and it increases foot traffic. And the vast majority of people who frequent CVS have no idea any of this exists.
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Yes, thank you for your integrity, Crystal! I noticed that after I used the 2nd $3 off from the Baltimore Beacon and was wondering why people are linking to it. So now I have stopped using those…you get plenty of good Qs from CVS directly, no need to get greedy. Thank you so much!
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Thank you for posting this. BR/I thought I was being honest by printing/using only one when I find out about coupons like this. I read the fine print, but I still did not realize they were unauthorized copies. Thank you for setting the record straight.
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Amen!BR/BR/~LizBR/www.AGiveawayADay.blogspot.com
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I agree!! Good post!
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I guess I see this two ways. One, if you’re printing it from an online newspaper or magazine then technically it is legit, right? I’m not saying it should be printed 50 times, but still, what would make this not legit? Second, if you really look at the numbers, this is a savings of 20% or less (depending on how much you’re spending). CVS can certainly afford 20% off considering the sort of mark-up they have. I dunno, I really just think CVS needs to do more to stop this. For the magazine/newspaper coupons they really need to start saying “only good in Illinois” or “only good in the Chicagoland area”. I think this would drastically cut down on their illegal usea
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You’ve been nominated for the Lemonade Award… BR/http://frugalrimama.blogspot.com/2009/01/lemonade-award.html
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AMEN Sister!! I have thought the same thing every time I read about someone so excited about burning through their stash of 600 copies! I have not printed one off, nor will I. What makes me the most sad…these “rotten apples” are going to ruin the barrel for the rest of us. Fewer coupons going out. Few ECB’s being offered. Every time I run across a blog LOVING the use of their $3.00 coupon…I almost immediately click the “un-subscribe” button! Thanks for your post!
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Debbie – the savings is more than 20 %. It’s $3 off any CVS brand item. People are using multiple copies of this coupon on items that are $3 and under, some of the items are earning them ECBs as well, so that is even more of a profit they are taking away from CVS. I have seen a couple blogs running entire lists of all the items you can get for free with this coupon. BR/BR/Regarding CVS, I’m sure there are plenty of things that CVS can do to prevent/stop this. For example in their contracts with the newspapers they put the coupons in, they should have some kind of agreement that the coupon will not be posted online or something. I think CVS is just being really slow about making changes. Until that time, since I know it is not something CVS wants done, I will continue to not post or link to these coupons.
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Thank you for this post! I am sickened when I read people bragging about how they used 50 copies of a coupon like this and how much stuff they got for nothing. That’s why the deals aren’t what they used to be. I printed this coupon ONCE from the legitimate newspaper site and used it ONCE. I feel that is how the coupon is intended, and I’m not going to take advantage of CVS and ruin future offers. I quit subscribing to the Refund Cents online publication because I couldn’t stand reading people’s stories of how they cheated the system and how they had 200 bottles of shampoo or other obscene amounts of product. Those people are the very reason that stores don’t offer coupons like they used to. Greed is rampant, and it angers me greatly when people say they “sell their stuff” at a garage sale. It is so totally inappropriate to take advantage of a store and then sell their products for their own profit – nothing but disgusting, ridiculous GREED, and in my opinion, nothing more than stealing. I won’t participate in such things, and in no way support this type of behavior, especially when it’s KNOWN FRAUD – and that happens more than you want to realize.BR/BR/Those who use coupons legitimately and don’t take advantage, thank you! There are far too many who take all they can get and that makes it harder on those of us who are honest, decent people.
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I did print the coupon but I didn’t use it. It just didn’t feel right. It was set for the Baltimore area and I felt like it should be used there if that makes sense. I’m skittish enough about internet coupons! BR/BR/Now that Aetna is down, I won’t be using it anymore.
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Thank you for this post. I have used this coupon and the Colgate coupon. I’m new to couponing and having information like this is essential for us newbies. I had a little feeling that something wasn’t right and I should have went with my gut. I’m not blaming anyone but myself, but I’m so glad to see this happen and to learn to be more cautious and not trust every coupon blog that I read. Its irresponsible for seasoned bloggers to post illegal coupons. You have lots of people trusting your judgement. Illegal or unethical discounts takes all the fun out of a great deal. And couponing is fun!!! Thanks Crystal!
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I also printed the coupon but didn’t use it. I just didn’t feel right about it. BR/BR/Thank you for this post. I’m glad to see someone else who is being reasonable about CVS and understands that if we abuse the system they’ll stop doing some of the good stuff for us.
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I didn’t feel comfortable using it adn i didn’t even try. It looked like a scan or copy…
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Thank you for posting about this. I know a lot of people who have been using the CVS coupon multiple times per day since it was published and it just didn’t seem right to me. CVS is a VERY generous company and I would never want to do anything that would put their business in jeopardy.
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Thank you so much for this post. I looked at the coupon several weeks ago and it just didn’t seem right. I chose not to print it. I have lots coupons that I know are legitimate. I think honesty is very important when it comes to couponing. The use of illegal coupons or making multiple unauthorized coupons is the same as stealing. Thank you for taking a stand. I am posting a link to this on my blog!BR/http://www.cuttingcouponsinkc.blogspot.com
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Just adding my agreement to the pile of those who have commented. This is right up there with photocopying an insert or printable coupon, which is wrong/illegal. Manufacturers and retailers have every right to limit the quantity of their coupons, and to try to circumvent their limit is just plain wrong. Moreover, it’s harmful to honest coupon users. My local Kroger has stopped taking internet printables because they can’t tell the difference between an IP and a photocopy of an IP. This is how one person can ruin it for the rest.
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Thanks for pointing this out! I’ve printed one of these not realizing it wasn’t legit. I agree that coupons should not be abused and I need to start paying more attention to where the internet printable coupons come from!
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Awesome post, and thanks for the heads up. I did use the coupon.. but won’t again. CVS gives out great deals each week, and just yesterday I got $10/$50 coupon on their in store scanner/printer thing. Yeah!
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Thanks, I did not realize what I was doing was wrong. I won’t do it anymore! (And thanks to Mercedes for linking to this post.) I seriously thought it was okay — I mean it was not obtained illegally and I thought CVS was aware of the coupon. Anyway, thanks again.
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But now I have a question: what do you think about using two coupons on a B1G1?
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