Answers to 8 Questions About Walgreens' Easy Saver Rebate Program

As I have been participating in the Walgreens Easy Saver program for a year now, I feel like I have most of the finer nuances worked out. I have learned that some things work and some do not. Usually it only took once of doing it wrong to learn, but that is part of learning. When it comes to using coupons and some other details of the program, those new to shopping at Walgreens usually have some questions whose answers I have learned through these trial and errors, and with the help of others. Here are some of the more common questions I see new rebate shoppers ask about the program. Most of these revolve around using coupons in conjunction with Walgreen's rebate program. If you are just starting out or are looking to increase your knowledge hopefully these will help.

1. Will I still get an Easy Saver rebate if I use a coupon? Yes you will, as long as you still meet the wording requirements. If it says you must buy 1 widget to get the rebate, you may use a coupon on that widget and you have still met the requirement of buying that 1 widget. If it says that you must buy $5 worth of widgets then make sure that your total before coupons is at least $5. It can not be $4.99; it needs to be $5 or more. You can still use coupons to lower that price as long as you met the $5 limit before using them.

2. If the Easy Saver rebate says that I get $2 back when I buy 2, what happens if I paid less? (Or any of the many versions of this.) As long as you buy the 2 widgets you will get your rebate. Here is a scenario. Let us assume you were buying 2 widgets that normally cost $2 each. Your total would normally be $4. However, you happened upon 2 coupons for $1 off a widget and used those when paying for your 2 wonderfully new widgets. Now your total is only $2. ($2 per widget times 2, minus 2-$1 coupons equals $2.) What if those same widgets were also on sale that week for $1.75 each? Now, instead of paying $4, you would pay $3.50 for those widgets before coupons or $1.50 after using your 2-$1 coupons. Now you have a total out of pocket expense of $1.50 which is less than the $2 rebate. That is okay. Really. Since the wording of the rebate only specified that you had to buy 2 items, and not that you had to spend a minimum amount, you have meet the requirements and will get $2 back. Yes, that means you just "made" $.50.

3. Can I use a manufacturer's coupon and a Walgreen's coupon for the same item? Can I still get an Easy Saver rebate? Yes you may. The Walgreen's coupons are store coupons. This counts for their weekly advertised coupons, as well as those in their monthly booklets. You can actually use a manufacturer's coupons, a weekly coupon, and a monthly coupon all on the same item. It does not happen very often where you have one of all three to use on one item, but it does happen sometimes. Even if you use a manufacturer's coupon and store coupon, you can still submit for the monthly rebate. Some cashiers will not allow you to do this. As always call customer service if you have problems and need answers. If you ask for them to email you back, they can also send you a copy of their coupon policy.

4. I was not allowed to buy a widget because I would be getting it free after using a coupon. The manager said I could not get it without paying something for it. What do I do? If you read the fine print on the coupon, it says that the manufacturer will reimburse the store the value of the coupon plus a handling fee, usually around 8 cents. So, you are paying with the coupon and the store is still getting money back. You are not paying zero, you are just using the coupon to pay for the item. I would point this out to the manager. If that does not work, I would call customer service and talk to them. Make sure you note who you talked to (cashier's or manager's name) and what store this was at.

5. This month's rebate period overlaps with next month's. What do I do? What month do I send in the rebate for? What if a coupon and rebate overlap? As it so happens, the monthly rebates do overlap for a day or two. If this happens and you buy a product during that time which shows up on one of the rebate lists, then you would still mail in the receipt (or submit online) under the appropriate month's rebate period. It does not matter that there was an overlap of rebate periods. One good thing about the overlap is that sometimes one monthly booklet has a coupon in it that is for an item that the other month has a rebate for. So if month 1 has a $.50 off a widget coupon and month 2 has a $3 rebate on a widget, then you can use month 1's coupon and submit for the rebate under month 2's rebate program. It also works if it is switched and month 1 has the rebate and month 2 has the coupon. Again, you can still use a manufacturer's coupon for this item.

6. Oh no, I bought the wrong size for the rebate. Now what? If you have not opened it yet, return the item. If it is not too late to buy the correct item for the rebate program, then do so. Next time remember to double check the size and kind. Sometimes the wording on packages can be very similar. If unsure, ask a manager to check for you. If you have already opened the package, then you have just had your first lesson in remembering to read the fine print. Chalk it up as a learning moment and move on.

7. I bought the wrong item, while using a coupon, for the Easy Saver rebate. How much will I get back when I return it? If you are able to return the item and they still have your coupon, then you can ask for the money you paid and your coupon back. Since most stores put their coupons in their cash drawers it is hard to know which was your coupon. If the cashier has left, the coupon has been counted with their drawer's cash. Most times you should be refunded the amount you paid plus the amount of the coupon. Otherwise the store's amount will be off at the end of the day since coupons are counted into a drawer's total. The store will still be reimbursed for the coupon amount, whether they refund you or not, as long as they still have the coupon. If there were several items on your receipt, it is hard to know what coupon went with which product as the receipts do not say what the coupons were for. I have always received back the price of the item as shown to the right of the item description at the top of the receipt for the reasons I just stated. If you are not given back that amount ($$ plus coupon, or full $$) and feel you should be, you can always contact the customer service department. This being said, do not use a coupon on an item just so you can return it to get the cash back! If you begin to return too many items, the manager may begin to refuse a refund. The goal is not to get cash back, but to get the correct item for the Easy Saver rebate.

8. I used 4 coupons and a register reward to buy 4 items. The cash registered beeped and it would not let me use the register reward. What did I do wrong? The register reward is counted as another coupon. You need another item to go with it. If there is nothing you need, buy a cheap fiiler to make the items purchased equal to the coupons used. There are usually pencils that you can get 6 for $1 or something similar.
As always, these answers may vary depending on store, cashier, manager, etc. Sometimes it has been a learning experience for both me and the manager or cashier I am dealing with. Be patient and if needed write out the steps ahead of time so you do not get confused.