Albertsons New Coupon Policy

Here's the Albertsons new coupon policy.  I've highlighted the most significant changes.  For those of you who keep a copy of store coupon policies with your coupons, you can to HERE to print.

Albertsons New Coupon Acceptance Policy

(Effective 12/17/2011)

Albertsons promotes a coupon friendly shopping experience and encourages customers to participate in store, manufacturer and internet coupon use. The following policy guidelines are current, but Albertsons may change this policy at any time and policy changes may not be advertised. Coupon redemptions are subject to the policy in effect at time of redemption. The current policy information can be discussed with individual store management but is not posted in each store. 

Coupons – Definition: Coupons are a form of tender to reduce an order total based on merchandise purchased. Retailers are not required by law to accept manufacturers’ coupon. Coupons can be in print and/or in electronic form, and may be integrated into the register systems where they are deducted automatically when all purchase requirements are met.

General Coupon Acceptance Guidelines

• Coupons are accepted in accordance to the stated requirements on the coupon at the time of purchase. These requirements include, but are not limited to: product type, flavor(s), size(s), quantities and minimum/maximum dollar purchase limits. 
• Coupons are intended for one time use and cannot be redeemed more than once. 
• Coupons have no cash value. 
• Albertsons only accepts original coupons and does not accept photocopied or reproduced coupons (including multiple prints of same series internet coupons). 
• Albertsons does not accept expired coupons. Printed expiration dates are verified in addition to scanning the coupon for validity. 
• Coupons stating “on next/future purchase or visit” cannot be used in the transaction in which they are generated. Next purchase is defined as a separate transaction. 
• The coupon redemption value on ‘Free’ coupons may not exceed the value of the item. Albertsons will accept ONE manufacturer coupon and ONE store coupon on the same qualifying item. (Twice the Value coupons are considered a store coupon.) 
• Albertsons does not accept competitor coupons. (Coupons generated by any competitor with competitor logo are considered competitor coupons.) 
• All applicable sales taxes are paid by the customer at the full value of the item. 
• Albertsons reserves the right to refuse any coupons at its discretion.

Manufacturer Coupons

• Coupons issued by manufacturers contain redemption guidelines including, but not limited to: “terms of agreement”, “face value”, “expiration date” and the verbiage “manufacturer coupon”. 
• Albertsons adheres to all manufacturer redemption guidelines. 
• Albertsons may issue private promotion “manufacturer coupons” in advertisements that state “redeemable only at Albertsons” in which Albertsons is the only retailer that will accept. 
• Coupons that exceed the retail value of an item will have the remaining amount applied to the balance of the transaction. In the event a transaction balance results in a "credit", additional items WILL be added/suggested to the order to utilize the remaining value of the coupon. We will not provide any "cash back" on coupons; however we will provide full redemption value. 
• Albertsons accepts internet generated manufacturer coupons that have the following conditions: 

o Coupons must scan at checkout.
o Coupons must have serial numbers and follow an industry-standard format.
o Coupons must clearly indicate that they are a manufacturer coupon and have a valid manufacture address on the printed coupon. 

• Albertsons does not accept internet generated manufacturer coupons that have the following conditions:

o FREE product without a required purchase.
o A redemption value that exceeds $5.00.
o The absence of a clear and scannable UPC bar code.
o Same serial numbers (internet sites print time & date stamps on coupons and limit the number of coupons that can be printed from same computer).
o The absence of a valid manufacturer address on the printed coupon. 

• Albertsons offers of Buy One, Get One Free (BOGO) promotions in their weekly advertisement can be combined with Buy One, Get One Free manufacturer coupons to result in BOTH items being Free. The items in the manufacturer coupon must exactly match our weekly advertisement offers and meet the redemption criteria.

Albertsons $5/$25 Purchase

Print this coupon and save $5 Off Your $25 Purchase at participating Albertsons, Jewel-Osco, Acme Markets, Cub Foods, Shaw's and Farm Fresh Supermarkets locations.


This coupon could help defray your holiday food costs!  Coupon valid through 11/19.

Albertson's Fresh For Fall Coupon Booklet

Be sure to check when you're in Albertson's for this new Fresh For Fall Coupon booklet.  Coupons included:

Manufacturer Coupons:

$1/1 Yuban or Maxwell House Coffee

$13 Dole Fruit Crisp

$1/2 Ziploc Brand Products

$1.25/2 Skippy Peanut Butter Products

$1/1 Minute Maid, 10ct 6.75oz fl boxes

$1/2 Powerade Ion4, 8pks

$1/1 Country Crock Spread

$1/1 The Coca-Cola Company Products, 20 pk or (2) 24 pk

$1/1 Tyson Frozen Breaded Chicken

$1/1 Sprite, 7.5-8 oz, 8 pk mini sleeks or (2) 12 oz 8 pk

$1/1 Tyson Grilled & Ready Frozen Product

Store Coupons:

$1/2 Albertsons Brand Flavored coffee creamers

$1/1 Albertsons Brand Mayonnaise, 32 oz, wyb any Albertsons Brand tub Lunchmeat, 7oz or larger

$1/1 Essential Everyday Product

$1/1 Homelife Liquid Detergent, 50 fl oz and larger

Albertsons $5/$25 Coupon w/ Email Savings Program

Sign up for Albertsons Email Savings Program and get an email coupon for $5 Off Your $25 Albertsons Purchase.  Plus you can get an additional $5 coupon (maximum $25) when your friends join.

Albertsons e-Coupons

This weeks digital coupons that can be loaded to your Preferred Savings card for Albertsons:

Expiring 2/20/11

$1/1 Crest Pro Health Toothpaste 4.2-7.8 oz., Limit 2 per visit

$1/1 Any Swiffer Product, Limit 2 per household

$1/1 Bounty Paper Towels, 8 Rolls, Limit 2 per household

$1.50/1 Albertsons Shredded Cheese, 32 oz.

$0.50/1 Albertsons Country Spread, 48 oz.

Expiring 2/16/11

$1.50/1 Almay Cosmetics (Not valid on Trial Size, Bright Eyes, or Whipped Gloss), Limit 2 per visit

$1/1 Mitchum or Mitchum For Women Anti-Perspirant and Deodorant, Limit 2 per visit

$1.50/1 Revlon Eye and Nail Cosmetics (Excludes Mini Fabulash), Limit 2 per visit

Albertsons e-Coupons!

Albertson's is affiliated with Jewel-Osco.  This will mean something in a minute!

At one of my Grocery Smarts classes where I share what I've learned about couponing and help others learn the skills to enable them to save money using coupons, I learned something about couponing I didn't know!  (Thanks, Massiel!)

Digital, or e-coupons (such as Smith's Softcoin, Cellfire, Shortcuts or P&GeSaver) have long been a part of my couponing.  However, these sites will only allow you to load e-coupons to your Smith's or Vons cards.  I've never been able to load e-coupons to my Albertsons card . . . until today!

Because Albertson's is a Jewel-Osco affiliate, you can go to the Jewel-Osco Avenu Program, enter your Albertson's Preferred Savings Card number, and load e-coupons to your Albertson's card.  It looks as if these coupons can be loaded weekly as the dates they are valid is short.  The following coupons loaded to my card today:

$1.50/1 Haagen-Dazs Ice Cream, Sorbet, Frozen Yogurt or Bars (Limit 6 per visit)

$1/1 Crest ProHealth Toothpaste (Limit 2 per visit)

$1/1 Bounty Paper Towels- 8 Rolls (Limit 2 per visit)

$1.50/1 Jewel (Albertsons?) Shredded Cheese, 32 oz.

$0.50/1 Jewel (Albertsons?) Country Spread, 48 oz.

The five coupons above are valid through 2/11/11.  The Jewel packaging shown on the site is identical to the Albertson's store packaging so I'm assuming the Albertson's brand will be honored for these Jewel coupons.  The following three coupons are valid through 2/9/11:

$1.50/1 Almay Cosmetics (Limit 2 per visit)

$1/1 Mitchum or Mitchum for Women Anti-Perspirant & Deodorant (Limit 2 per visit)

$1.50/1 Revelon Eye & Nail Cosmetics - excludes mini fabulash (Limit 2 per visit)

Albertsons Shop & Tell - Saved 75%!

This was definitely a 'stock-up' shopping trip.  Between this trip and my recent trip to Walgreens I've got all the candy I need for Halloween (if I can hide it well enough until then)!  I also added to my supply of flour, ketchup, oil, cooking spray and lunchbox treats:

5 Snickers Fun Size Snacks

4 Milky Way Fun Size Snacks

2 Rice Krispies Cereal

1 Rice Krispies Treats

2 Fudge Shoppe Cookies

1 Vitamin Water

2 Cheetos

2 Fritos Corn Chips

1 Gallon Vinegar

4 Healthy Choice Fresh Mixers

2 Finish Quantum Dishwasher Soap

4 Hunt's Pudding 4 packs

2 Pillsbury Flour, 5 lb.

3 Pam Cooking Spray

2 Wesson Canola Oil

4 Hunt's Ketchup

Total full-price value:  $142.24

Total Out of Pocket:  $35.01 (Plus I got a $10 off your next purchase coupon!)

Savings:  $108.13 (75%)

With a little bit of planning before you go to the store, you can make your coupons AND the store promotions work for you.  On this trip, $52.65 was saved using coupons and $54.58 was saved by taking advantage of Albertsons promotions!

Albertsons Shop & Tell

Albertson's has some great promos running this week that will generate catalina prints and instant savings.  I headed in today to stock up on school lunchbox items among other things.

This is what it looked like:

14 Sweet Baby Ray's Barbecue Sauce

2 Honey Maid Graham Crackers

2 Oreo Cookies

4 Kellogg's Fruit Snacks

2 Rice Krispy Treats

8 Diet 7 Up 12 pks.

4 Kellogg's Froot Loops

4 Kraft Shredded Cheese

4 Kraft Salad Dressing

2 Cool Whip

Total Value:  $170.54

Out of Pocket:  $55.43 (+ two unused $5 catalinas)

Total Savings (including catalina Qs):  $125.11 (73%)

I completed two transactions with (4) 7Up 12 pks. in each.  Each transaction also had 2 cheeses, 2 salad dressings and 1 Cool Whip to trip the Feeding America promo.  Check your Grocery Smarts Albertsons list for info on available coupons. 

Albertsons Newsletter

You can sign up for the Albertsons newsletter and receive coupons by email.  It's fast, easy and painless (you will need your Albertsons loyalty card number for registration).  Every Thursday get coupons delivered directly to your inbox!  Go HERE to sign up.

Albertsons Shop & Tell - Saved 66%

I thought I would share my trip to Albertsons this morning.  The picture isn't the greatest but the savings were pretty good!  When you look at what I bought you might think these are random items.  And I guess they are.  But once your storage has reached a certain point and you've stocked most of the items you use regularly, you have the luxury of shopping sales when you need to replenish.  This was that kind of trip.

I bought 6+ lbs of ground beef, $3.99/lb.

4 pkgs Oscar Mayer hot dogs, $3.99 each

10 cans Chicken of the Sea albacore tuna, $1.69 each

3 Hershey's chocolate syrup, $3.49 each

2 pkgs plastic cups, $3.49 each

5 Infusium conditioners, $4.99 each

Total Value:  $109.47

Paid Out of Pocket:  $37.56

Total Savings: $71.91 or 66%

I saved $32.50 using coupons, and saved $39.41 in preferred savings (using my Albertsons preferred customer card to realize in-store discounts).  I've been consistently coupon shopping using Grocery Smarts for a little over a year.  My stockpile has grown to the point my pantry is bursting at the seams.  And my savings have also been significant.  On average, I've saved 60% on all my grocery and household purchases.  Using the Grocery Smarts free website to match coupons to current sales is also a great time saver.  You will never waste time clipping coupons or trying to figure out a way to organize them once they're cut!  You'll never cut a coupon until you're ready to use it.  If you're ready to start saving, just give me a call (702-303-0171).

Albertsons Doublers -- AGAIN!

Albertsons has 3 "Get Double the Value for your Manufacturer Coupon" Coupons in today's paper.  They will match the amount of one manufacturer coupon up to $1 and are valid through 4/13/10.  If you're a Grocery Smarts shopper and are getting multiple papers (like me!), that multiplies your savings!  Yippee!!

Make sure you look for the one page Albertsons insert -- and check out the prices on their 3 Day Sale running Sunday 3/28 thru Tuesday 3/30.

Albertsons Shop & Tell

Total Value:  $78.96

Total coupons & store discounts:  $41.33

Amount Paid:  $41.22

Savings:  52%

The savings this week weren't that fantastic at any of the grocery stores, but even when sales aren't anything to write home about, you can still realize savings if you shop the stores sales.  I didn't have a coupon for everything, but still saved some serious money.

Great Ground Beef Deal at Albertsons 8 Hour Sale

A fellow couponer called this morning to give me a heads up on the Albertson's 8 Hour Sale TODAY.  She recommends the Fresh Extra Lean Ground Beef (85% lean), 3 lbs or more available in the service meat counter for $1.57/lb.  This is a great stock-up price.

Check the mid-week ad for other sale items and head on over to Albertson's this afternoon.  Just a note:  if the Albertson's you shop is out of the ground beef when you get there -- they'll give you a raincheck!

UPDATE:  Bought 12 lbs. of ground beef -- the guy at the butcher counter already had it packaged before I even got there and had it waiting for me.  The whole trip took 10 minutes, max.  Spent $18.85, Saved $29.01!  Came home and packaged the meat into smaller amounts and was getting ready to put it in the freezer when my hubby asked if we could put some on the George Foreman grill tonight.  Can't wait for dinner.  What a great deal!

Albertsons Kellogg's Promo

SPENT $12.28 -- SAVED $40.78

So I dropped into Albertsons for these quick buys. I needed to complete two transactions, (the 4 Raisin Bran were one order by themselves) to see if I could use a manufacturers coupon I found on the Target coupon site. It worked!

The chocolate chips were $1.88, I had two $1/1 coupons; the cheese was $1.49, I had two $1/2 coupons. The cereal is on sale for $2.67 but when you buy three you will automatically receive $3 off at the register without having to present a coupon. You can also download a printable coupon for $5/4 here. You will need to buy 4 boxes of cereal, so only three will be $1.67, one will be $2.67. But this is still a fantastic buy. The downloadable coupon has the Target emblem printed on it, but it also states it is a "manufacturers coupon". It is NOT a "store coupon", which means you do NOT have to use it at Target.

Just in case you were wondering . . . I saved 78% piggybacking the store promo with the manufacturers coupon! The cashier had a question about the coupon because initially the register wouldn't accept it. She called the manager who told her to override and enter the $5 coupon. Yippee!

Albertsons General Mills Promo

Okay, here we go again with the General Mills Promo at Albertsons and the sometimes fickle catalina printer! Please remember this promo will print a $5 catalina coupon for your purchase of a minimum of $15 in participating products AFTER MANUFACTURER COUPONS HAVE BEEN DEDUCTED. So plan your purchases accordingly. Here's how it went for me. (Sorry everything wouldn't fit in one picture!)

I did multiple transactions (5 total), with 4 transactions planned to trip the catalina print by buying General Mills products, using my coupons, and leaving a balance of at least $15.00.

The Catalina coupon printed only once. After each transaction, I told the checker I had expected a catalina print on the advertised promo. She checked the receipt, checked the ad, spoke with the store manager and gave me $5 off my next transaction. The store manager said the issue is with the Catalina company and she was going to call them again. She told me I was not the first who had the problem (and she didn't think I would be the last). This has been happening since the promo started on Wednesday. My Albertsons (on E. Charleston & Sloan and I think every Albertsons) wants happy customers and they are doing what they can by deducting $5 on your next order or refunding $5 in cash.

So please, if the catalina doesn't print and you believe you should have received it, ASK. Albertsons personnel are fully aware of the issue. SOMETIMES (I repeat, sometimes) the catalina won't print if you've used coupons in your transaction. Then again, sometimes it will!

Aside from the possibility of having to work for the $5 catalina, this is a great promo for stocking up! By the way -- hope you noticed I purchased items I would need throughout the week that weren't a part of the promo. Yes, those are fresh blackberries. =)

I saved $118.06 on groceries valued

at $195.06 --

60% Savings!

Total out of pocket: $77.00

$30 Before or After Coupons?

This week's Albertsons General Mills promo has stirred some controversy with local couponers. On Wednesday morning (as posted earlier) I was able to generate three $15 bonuses at the Albertsons on E. Charleston and Sloan. Each of my multiple transactions totaled just over $30 BEFORE coupons were deducted. Each transaction generated the $15.00 catalina coupon. I've received calls and have been following the posts on the Pinching Your Pennies forum concerning shoppers who were not receiving the $15 when their orders were under $30 once coupons were deducted from their totals. I can't explain the difference in policy from my early transactions and those of other shoppers later in the week.

The ad states "Minimum purchase requirement excludes manufacturer and store coupons". I think I was fortunate early in the sale (Wednesday morning) to receive the deal I received. It's possible Albertsons corrected the glitch and is now following the policy stated on the coupon.

I understand the frustration in fine tuning your grocery list to hit the $30 mark before coupons and then not getting the bonus. Lesson learned. SO, for the remainder of this promotion (and in the future with similar coupon restrictions) we need to closely follow the store's requirements to receive bonuses. There is no benefit in our arguing with store personnel who are only doing their job; showing courtesy is always the best policy.

UPDATE!

Saturday afternoon I spoke with the store manager at my Albertsons. I had tested the current bonus promo by purchasing enough promo items to total over $30 after coupons had been deducted. The catalina did not print. The manager (who was so apologetic) said by using any coupon in your transaction, that triggers the catalina machine to not print the bonus. So it didn't matter that $30 in promo items had been purchased above the minimum purchase requirement. If buying promo items, she said, I should not use my coupons and receive the catalina bonus -- then go to the customer service counter and show my coupons and receive the coupon amount in cash. What a hassle!

When I returned home, I called the Albertsons corporate office because I am concerned this may be the new coupon policy at Albertsons. Corporate office said under their store policy, there was no reason the bonus should not have been given. They referred me to the catalina offices, which were closed on Saturday evening. I will be calling the catalina office on Monday morning. More later.

Sweet Savings

When I saw the weekly grocery ads Tuesday, I was so excited! I checked through the Grocery Smarts listings, decided what I needed, gathered my coupons and I was ready to shop. Fortunately, there were no glitches in my morning so I was able to get out early and accomplish quite a bit in a short period of time. Gathering everything together will help you be prepared for when you can find the time to shop.

At Albertsons, I spent $50.59, saved $106.55 on groceries valued at $157.14!

And I still have $15.00 in register rewards to use on my next trip. I was able to trip the General Mills promo three times! When you spend $30 on specific items, you receive three $5.00 register coupons to use on your next shopping trip.

On my CVS trip, I spent $29.87, saved $65.77 on an order totaling $95.64

That Ice Age DVD only cost me $2.99 after making qualifying purchases (Dasani water and M&M's) for a $15.00 discount. There is also an additional $2/1 coupon available here.

(this coupon no longer available)

And finally, My Vons trip: I spent $38.00, saved $42.58 on an order totaling $80.58

So altogether I spent $118.46, saved $214.90 on items totaling $333.36. If I were paying myself for my savings, I saved over $70 an hour on these three trips. Well worth the effort, I think!

Albertsons Deals 10/14 thru 10/20

*****
STAR STRUCK
*****

Albertson's has come back this week with some more fantastic buys! There are some great five star deals you'll have to check out; but be sure you don't miss the General Mills promo. You'll save $10 on your next shopping trip when you buy $25 in participating products. So many five stars . . . too many to mention. You'll have to check it out for yourselves at the Grocery Smarts website. Okay, so I'll mention a few: Betty Crocker - snack items and potatoes; Chex mixes; General Mills cereals; Green Giant vegetables; Pillsbury biscuits, cookies and rolls; Progresso soups; and Yoplait yogurt and Go-gurts.

Of course the secret to maximizing your savings is in using the multiple coupons you're getting in your Sunday newspaper inserts. Not getting multiple Sunday newspapers? Call me for a great deal. You can also find extra printables thanks to our Grocery Smarts listmaker who searches out all the great coupons available for our convenience.
I'm headed to the store today. I'll update later and let you know how it goes!

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

Total value: $255.42, Total Out of Pocket: $79.28
Total Savings: $176.14

69% Savings Overall

Here's how it went:
1st order: 10 Go-gurts
Total: $37.90
Preferred savings: 6.00
Big Relief price cut savings: $6.90
Coupon savings: 6.20
Albertsons 10% keytag savings: 2.03
Total OOP: 16.77
+ Plus received $10.00 to be used on future order
~~~~~~~~~~
2nd order: 2 boxes Fiber One cereal
6 boxes Golden Grahams
5 boxes Betty Crocker specialty potatoes
1 can Green Giant corn
Total: $46.76
Preferred Savings: 13.67
Big Relief price cut savings: $8.00
Coupon savings: 16.00
Albertsons 10% keytag savings: 2.51
Total OOP: $6.58
+Plus received $10.00 to be used on future order
~~~~~~~~~~
3rd order: 4 Progressive Broth
4 cans Green Giant corn
4 cans Green Giant green beans
2 Pillsbury Orange Danish refrig. rolls
4 Green Giant frozen steamer vegetables
Total: $42.64
Preferred Savings: 16.03
Big Relief price cut savings: 1.65
Coupon savings: 14.00
Albertsons 10% keytag savings: 2.50
Total OOP: $8.46
+ Plus received $10.00 to be used on future order
~~~~~~~~
4th order: 3 Betty Crocker Warmers
6 Progressive Broth
2 Pillsbury Grand refrig. biscuits
2 Pillsbury crescent rolls
3 Go-gurt
Total: $41.37
Preferred Savings: 13.12
Big Relief price cut savings: 1.80
Coupon savings: $15.55
Albertsons 10% keytag savings: 2.65
Total OOP: $8.25
+Plus received $10.00 to be used on future order
and $2.50 from the GoGurt purchases
~~~~~~~~~~
5th order: 2 loaves Orowheat Bread
Albertsons string cheese (24)
6 Marie Callendars frozen entrees
2 Crest toothpaste
2 Ground Turkey
1 Beef Roast
1 Iceberg lettuce
3.48 lbs Honeycrisp apples
Total: $86.75
Preferred Savings: 19.51
Big Relief Price cut savings: $5.30
Coupon Savings: 17.00
Albertsons 10% keytag savings: 5.72
Total OOP: 39.22
~~~~~~~~~~

I divided my cart into multiple orders to trip the General Mills $10 rebate when you purchase $25 in listed items. I shopped mid-morning when traffic at the store was light so I'm less of an intrusion for other shoppers -- although my savings almost always draws the attention of other shoppers in line behind me. I used each of my $10 credits on the order that followed (it shows up in the coupon total).
***********************************
To explain, in early September I received an Albertsons keytag in the mail. It was a random mailing, not associated with my Albertsons preferred card. The mailer was addressed to "Resident." Anytime I shop Albertsons I use the keytag for additional savings through October 31st!
***********************************
Sorry for the long post . . . but I just wanted to mention that my renewal for my multiple newspaper subscriptions is due this month. Can I just tell you that the savings realized on this shopping trip alone would have paid my renewal fee over . . and over . . .and over again!

Smokin' Albertson's Deals!

I Spent $110.82, Saved $152.00

I just got back from a VERY successful Albertson's trip. Sorry there's no picture. But you'll find some great Quaker deals and some other Mix and Match promos where you'll receive savings instantly on your order (no receipt vouchers to use on your next shopping trip) so you won't have to roll you orders. When you add your multiple coupons to the instant savings promos -- that equals amazing savings! Sale is on through next Tuesday night.