PETSMART Brag: Free Science Diet, Beneful overage!

[rachellepeters]

If you have the $3/1 Beneful incredibites (at least 4, you're gonna love this!)

Yesterday I did a transaction and got several bags of the .99 trial size, and was a ditz and didn't use my overage the best way possible...I did get 2 busy bones and 13 bags for .30 total...but today it occurred to me! Free Science Diet, duh!

I had 4 left...so I bought 4 bags of the .99 Beneful trial bags (were hanging in the dog section) (and 2 more bags..used the $1 off q that came with the free sample from WalMart) so that left me 8.06 in overage. I needed SD cat food badly, and at hillspet.com/mynewcat (u can also use mynewdog) you can print a $5 q off any 3lb or larger bag. So I bought a 12.49 bag. Total was .05 after tax, cashier said, I need to get my subtotal above 0 (yesterday it worked with a negative sub) so I had my backup busybones just in case! B1G1 Free plus the $1 off.) Subtotal was .44, total OOP was 2.52!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Hope this helps someone

Oh and to make it even better, I did the 3 bag challenge, and am submitting for a 12.49 refund on my bag....a $10 MM!!!!!!!!!!!

[Moma]

by chance...do you know if it is a store policy to give overages at PetSmart? I have a ton of the benefuls. I would LOVE to be able to get these and donate...and get some kitty food for DD's fur babies....

[beadie07]

I'm sorry I am new to this and did not understand much of it.. I got the beneful coupons.. So I need to buy 4 of the trial size ones at PetSmart? How do I end up getting the overage?

[brokenangel]

The Petsmart I went to refused my coupons because they were more than the product price. I wanted the overage for my newfies Blue Buffalo... I was bummed because I've gotten overage there before.

[rachellepeters]

The store I went to allows overage. I did it 2 different days....and two different cashiers. Both knew that the q's were more than the item and didn't question it at all, it may depend on your cashier & store.

So to the previous post....if your store takes the q. Here's how it works

Item for the single pack trial size bag is .99 ...q is $3. Meaning every pack you buy, you come out 2.01 ahead to spend on other items. I hope that makes sense. IF you have 3 or 4 q's...you'll have $6-$8 overages to buy more items, and your total will still come out to a few cents plus tax. Good luck

[beadie07]

I hope my store does.. I have 5 Q's!! And thank you for the clarification!

[Doglover8180]

Does anyone know if they sell these at any other store, like kroger?

[kval07]

My petsmart allows overage.

Now I have a dilemma...get the boxes with 3 bags for free at another store to donate to the pet shelter, or get the single trial size bags for at Petsmart in order to use overage...Now that's a toughy.

[Doglover8180]

I don't want the overage - I just have an easier time using coupons at places like Kroger - so I was just wondering if they sold the small packs for 99 cents too - I would just buy 3 packs and get all 3 free instead of trying to do the overage thing.

[Doglover8180]

or Target?

[brokenangel]

I know Meijer had the .99 packages, havent seen them at Kroger and I havent been to Target.

[Doglover8180]

I don't have a Meijer....how about Walmart - anyone seen these packets at Wal-Mart?

[sdasilva27]

I don't have a Meijer....how about Walmart - anyone seen these packets at Wal-Mart?


I think someone mentioned in the Target forum getting the 3 pack for free with the $1 Target IP. I think they're $3.99

Not sure if they have the .99 bags.

[cheesecake]

I looked for them at Target on Wednesday and did not find any. I guess maybe only certain Targets got them.

[Doglover8180]

I guess Petsmart is the only place that has these things?

[Freeman36]

The one here does not allow overage,so I had to buy a water,but free dog food is awesome.

[peekaboosarah]

Well, I found the Beneful Incredible (trial size) and bought 24 bags. I had 24 coupons, so I was good to go, or so I thought. I also found the Purina Pro Plan (trial size) so I picked up 57 of those and had 57 coupons to match. I picked up enough "extras" (collar, leash, etc.) to cover the overage.

It didn't work out. The store director came out and saw what I had and my coupons and stopped me. After reading the coupons she told me I had to buy 3 bags of food for every coupon used. I tried to explain to her that each coupon states "on any one bag" not three bags. She told me she wasn't sure if the store would get their money if it was done that way.

I've never had a problem with overage at this PetSmart store before. Last year I loaded up on Chef Michael's (to donate) and never had a problem. The store manager at that time said that I bought what was stated on the coupon and I was good to go. He told me to clear the shelves if I wanted to.

Last week, when I went in the store I talked to a manager about using the coupon for the Purina pro plan and he told me I would get the overage, but I'd have to purchase other items to make up for it. I would not be given a refund. Which I already knew.

But, I go in today, and it's a different story. I told the store director that the current manager said it's allowed and when he came over he told me that if an item is $0.89 and the coupon is for $1, then the coupon would be adjusted down to $0.89.

But, even after using 1 coupon for every 3 bags of dog food I was still given the overage. The three bags that were $0.89 would of came to $2.67. Why was the coupon not adjusted down to that amount? Instead it was scanned for $3 and I still received $0.33 overage. And I didn't think overage was allowed?!?! Hypocrites:shrug7:.

Hmmm, I'm so frustrated. I still picked up all the dog food I had in my cart. But instead of using the 81 coupons I had planned on using, I could only use 27.

I'm not sure if contacting PetSmart through email is best or should I call them??

Why is it that no coupon policy is available in the store?

[Doglover8180]

If you contact the company - they may rig it so that their computers don't even take the coupon at all.... I think the reason the store director jumped on you the first time is because you "stood out" - 57 bags 24 bags - thats alot of coupons for 1 trip... I have learned I have more success at whatever store I am at - if I do smaller transactions and come back on different days - it makes you not stand out - and makes them more receptive to all couponers - that's just my opinion.

[motherofmolly]

agree with doglover8180...that is alot of coupons to use at once.

i just called the other day just to ask what their policy is...i got two different answers at two different stores...one manager called me back and said the coupon could not be adjusted down and i could not be given money back...after further conversation and a scenario ran by him, overage is allowed but i have to "purchase" enough to cover it...okay

second store..no overage, coupon adjusted...

this is always a hit and miss when it comes to these things. i can tell you that the lady at customer service told me that they would adjust the coupon down...and she was reading that from her manual...

at least you still got the items for free

[couponsmakecents]

calling corporate will do no good. The policy is for the store manager to decide. Flying under the radar is always a good thing...57 coupons is a big red flag to their loss prevention. Free is free and I never count on overage; I just have a few extra items in my cart in case I need it to make up overage.

[Doglover8180]

I just got 3 per coupon since they were 99 cents each and had no problems at all - plus it was free - so I was happy. But I also only used 3 coupons at once and I got a couple other items- cause I never want my total to come out to zero - doesn't make them feel good - so I always get a little something - pigs ear or something so that they feel better and don't feel cheated and I still feel good cause I got what I wanted for free without hassle or standing out. I hate standing out :shrug7:

[peekaboosarah]

Here is the response I received from corporate this evening:


Thank you for your e-mail and for bringing this to our attention.

We apologize for any confusion with using coupons in the store. Here
is a breif summary of our coupon policy as you requested.

We are not able to accept the following coupons:
-Mail-In rebates
-Coupon that exceed the price of the item.
-Advertisements for Coupons (including online ads)
-Coupons or discounts for online stores
-Expired Coupons
-Coupons for items not purchase in the transaction

Please note these are our basic guidelines for coupons. Other
restrictions may apply based on the terms and conditions of the coupon.

You had several other questions that I am not able to answer. I have
taken the liberty of entering a customer complaint on your behalf. Your
complaint will be addressed by a member of our Management Team within
3-5 business days, and you can expect a reply at that time.

We sincerely apologize for any inconvenience or frustration this may
have caused you, and we appreciate the opportunity you have given us to
set the matter right.

Sincerely,

XXXXX
PetSmart Customer Care


The first time I went into this PetSmart I showed the manager the coupon and he said it was the stores policy to take it, just to make sure I buy other items to make up for the overage. He told me to clear the shelves (I donate everything to local animal shelters) if I wanted/needed to, so I didn't have to make unnessasary trips to the store during the week. He said that when the next truck comes in (Tuesday), I could come in and get more if I wanted.

I don't even care about the overage. What bothers me is the inconsistency of PetSmart. The store director, store manager, operations manager, store associate, corporate, etc. have given me a completely different answer to the same question. If they can't answer something as simple as the proper use of a coupon, then how can I depend on them for anything else.

Each store can make up their own policy, but they can change it from day to day as they see fit. It's not fair. I don't appreciate being told one thing to "hook" me into coming into the store to purchase items. And then the next time I go in to purchase more, I'm told something completely different.

How can corporate give me a list of the basic coupon guidelines, when each store can make up their own coupon guidelines. When I asked if I could get a copy of the policy, the store director informed me that it's not written down anywhere. How is that possible? A nonexistent coupon policy? How does a customer follow that?

I hate when people say to just "shop around" for a cashier. Yes, I might of bought a lot of bags, but what's the difference. I bought 3 bags last week and used 3 coupons and they went through fine. 3, 30, 100 bags shouldn't make a difference. If a store allows it for 3 bags, why not 100? If it's allowed, it's allowed. If it's not allowed, it's not allowed. And this is not one of those YMMV incidences b/c I was getting great mileage last year. I was still getting decent mileage last week. Yet, today I'm running on fumes?

[Doglover8180]

I understand your frustration but I have to say - your complaint with Petsmart - can be said of every single store out there... Target, Kroger, Wal-Mart, their policy changes at the drop of hat - depending on the cashier you have - what one cashier/manager will take, the next won't. 90% of the time - cashiers, store managers, corporate is not going to want a single customer clearing the shelves. They put these high value coupons out there - when new products hit the market because they want people to get it in their home and try it, they don't intend for 100 coupons to be used by one person and certainly not in 1 or 2 transactions - even though it's totally legal- you can use as many coupons as you want, it will turn off the cashiers, the store managers, and corporate and the reality is, the company who put the coupon out - would ideally like those 100 coupons to make it into 100 different people's hands and to have them take the item home and try it and their dog like it and go back and buy more. Donating it to the shelter - although as giving as it is, isn't why these companies are in business... the shelter isn't going to go back and buy a big bag of that food because the dogs liked it so well... it's not the intended use when the company put the coupon out, even though it's totally okay to do that. When you check out with 57 of any item and 24 of another and are not having to pay a dime, it will red flag anyone, no matter the store you are at.

You say if they do it for 3, it shouldn't make a difference if you are buying 100 but the reality is, it does make a difference - no matter what the store is. If you go up to the register with 100 of the same item with 100 coupons for free things - it will raise a flag every time, whereas if you do 3 or 5, it probably won't. Every single store has the right to limit a customer at any time if they see fit. You say it's not fair, but others may say, it's not fair that the bags are totally gone because one person wiped the shelf clean and took 57 bags and someone may walk into the store an hour later with their 1 coupon for that item and can't even get one bag. My store had about 20 bags so I am shocked that your store even had that many bags but anytime you go check out with 70 coupons and aren't paying anything or next to nothing and have tons of the same item in your cart, it's going to trigger someone in that store, whether it be the manager or not - to raise a flag and question you. That is not unique to Petsmart.

Stores want to have the items on the shelf when a big coupon has hit the papers, because those good coupons will bring customers into the store who will likely buy something else why they are there and if the store gets a reputation for never having the item in stock when you go in with a coupon, it will deter customers.

I get that you have the coupons and you don't want to make 15 trips to various locations - but stores will allow alot with regards to coupons if you do it with ration. I wouldn't want to clear the shelves, wouldn't want to have a zero OOP and walk out with 80 bags, and I wouldn't want the store employees looking at me funny or watching me when I walk in thinking there's that woman with 100 coupons who never pays for anything. And now that corporate has gotten involved, the registers may totally throw out the coupon all together at all Petsmarts because of the incident.
I am not trying to jump on anyone - just giving my two cents.

[motherofmolly]

sticking out is a way for the policy to change...that is why lots of people say "fly under the radar"....
and yes you are doing a nice thing by donating to the shelter...but what about that person who is looking for a good deal to feed their dog and they went looking for the 5 coupons they had to get treats and there was none because someone came in and almost wiped them clean and now they cant get their 5? most shelters have a budget for food and will always provide, but there are plenty of people that can barely feed themselves let alone their dog/pet.

find the manager that said this was okay and ask when he is working or call before you go to see if he is working. then get your deals.

[mary1222]

Doglover, WOW. Thanks for the great explanation. I never have that many coupons and don't understand or need to know where a person can get that many. But your post was very helpful in so manys to me.

[neelia]

I agree with just getting the 3 packs. I don't want to even try getting the overage for fear of getting shut down and then wasting a trip to PetSmart.

[jwahlton]

I got 20 of the multi packs that were $2.99. I gave him 20 coupons, but it wouldn't take the last one since there was overage. I just said to give me that coupon back. I paid for 1 and got 19 for free.

I can't find the Science Diet for dogs anywhere

[neelia]

Does anyone know how long the 3 packs will be on sale for $2.99? I want to get some more coupons, but not if the sale is over soon.

[kremsh]

I got 15 of the .99 packs and 2 of the 40# ProPlan, used $3 coupons on all and 2 $5 coupons on the proplan and paid $35, essentially getting one proplan free. Cashier didn't even blink, in fact he was happy that all the coupons were lined up with the bar code in the same place. He just flipped through scanning them with his wand gun thing and didn't really even look at the coupons.

I'm going to go back and just do 15 at a time as long as I can find the incredibites and use the overage for more 40# proplan bags. I've never had any problems with this petsmart, they are always impressed when they see my totals. I guess I'm lucky to have such a great store close by!

I didn't know there was a 3 pack of incredibites, where are you finding them? I'm happy to get those free when they run out of the trial sizes.

[motherofmolly]

Does anyone know how long the 3 packs will be on sale for $2.99? I want to get some more coupons, but not if the sale is over soon.

there was no date at my store. and they havent restocked them since i purchased the last 4. i hope they get more in this week...but i am thinking they are not going to.

majority of petsmart's sales end the last week of the month...this month since thursday is the 30th, the sales end on the 2nd (skips to the saturday)....

[neelia]

Just kidding, I think they're regularly priced at $2.99. I glanced today and it didn't look like there was a "regular price".

I hope it doesn't end soon considering I just bought 20 more coupons lol. I hope they have enough for me. When I was in there today they probably had about 10 left, but they didn't seem to be going too fast since I was there about 3 days ago and there were only a few more missing since I had last been there.

If they run out of the $2.99 ones I may go for the .99 ones.

[nrpeace17]

No dice for me today. I had 10 coupons, they didn't carry the $2.99 multipacks, and the MOD said that even if they did, he couldn't take the coupon because it was more thatn the product price. I asked if I could use the coupons for the trial size packages up to the purchase price, he said that the mfr wouldn't reimburse them. I just asked for the store manager's card, and I'll go from there.:rolleyes24:

[rachellepeters]

How would the manufacturer even know what item was bought the q. I have no idea how it works, but I can't IMAGINE every store printing a receipt and attaching them to the coupons to show what item was bought with the q. That would take waaaaaaaaaaaaaaay to much effort. Anyone know the real details on how it's done. I assumed the stores just mailed the q's to the address on the coupon, in bulk with tons of others, but that was just my own little theory :)

[nrpeace17]

Oh they will get reimbursed for the full face value, they just don't understand how coupon redemption works.

[kbullsexy07]

i def agree... cashiers usally start scrutinizing the q's after like 5 or 6! much easier to pick up a couple each time!

If you contact the company - they may rig it so that their computers don't even take the coupon at all.... I think the reason the store director jumped on you the first time is because you "stood out" - 57 bags 24 bags - thats alot of coupons for 1 trip... I have learned I have more success at whatever store I am at - if I do smaller transactions and come back on different days - it makes you not stand out - and makes them more receptive to all couponers - that's just my opinion.

[mom23teens]

I know Meijer had the .99 packages, havent seen them at Kroger and I havent been to Target.



I looked in target they don't have them
:sad:

[nrpeace17]

i def agree... cashiers usally start scrutinizing the q's after like 5 or 6! much easier to pick up a couple each time!
It didn't matter how many at the store I went to. I gave them one coupon and they never even tried to scan it.

[Doglover8180]

More stores will probably get this in stock once it has been on the market longer and the coupon doesn't expire for a while - might be good to just hang on to it for a while and see if some other stores get it in stock. Just a thought.

[nrpeace17]

Exactly, that's what I decided to do. It's hardly worth it to me to go out of my way for a hassle.