Walmart’s Coupon Policy–They Do Give Cash Back

I went to Walmart today to pick up some items for the homeless shelter and used coupons.  After the cashier scanned all coupons, the total on the screen read –$0.60 (negative 60 cents).  This was not something I’d planned.  I usually try to get my total close to zero, but still keep it positive, since at most stores, anything else causes a fuss – they call the manager over and the poor folks in line behind you have to wait.

But today at Walmart, the cashier calmly handed me the bag with my items (free after coupons), and gave me the sixty cents back in cash.

This happened because Walmart’s new coupon policy now states “If coupon value exceeds the price or the item, the excess may be given to the customer as cash…”  As one example, I had coupons for $1.00 off Reach dental floss, and the Walmart price was only $0.88, which led to $0.12 cents "overage” for each dental floss.  Walmart will get reimbursed for the whole $1.00 from the manufacturer - they are now passing the excess back to the consumer, instead of keeping it for themselves.

The Walmart cashier today noted that she gave one lady $16 in cash back from coupon overage.  She also said that all cashiers have had to go through training for this new coupon policy.  I imagine a concern with this new Walmart coupon policy is that folks may try to scam the system with fraudulent coupons.  I hope they can avoid that.

Besides a great new coupon policy, Walmart also offers a selection of free samples mailed to your home. Check out a recent post for more information on free samples from Walmart.