My CVS trip - is cashier wrong? -

[scrtgrdn02]

Originally Posted by LovinMyCoupons

Hi,

In trans. #3 you listed two $/$$ coupons. LOOK at your receipt - were they both deducted?

Your total would have had to been $40+ before tax for them to both apply.

Yes they were both deducted, I gave her the 5/25 first which left me with over 20.00 so the 5/15 still worked (I have done this several times, and it has worked each time). I don't know I think each cashier is different and have never had a problem with the ECB's before. I'll just avoid her.

[scrtgrdn02]

Thanks everyone for all your help, I will keep trying to figure things out, I really appreciate all the input.. Thanks again.

[angela2678]

A cashier told me once that, when she knows someone is paying with ECBs, she rings the items as "non-taxable" to avoid the whole tax confusion. But I'm certain she is not supposed to do that! Also, the tax gets confusing because certain items are taxed at different rates. And it all depends on your state, anyway--in some states (like mine), MFQs do NOT reduce the taxable amount--you still pay tax on the before-Q total.

[Latonya]

I always give them my CVS Qs then CVS ECB then the man qs thats my order in purchasing at CVS.

[lucyrevenge]

I've handed over my Qs in all different ways & have had the cashiers put them in in all different ways. My end totals are no different & my tax is no less.

Just a note to the OP, like others have said the cashier should have "burned" your ECBs for you or adjusted them down. If you get one the doesn't know what you are talking about, ask for a manager as every store I go to every cashier there knows how to do that. Something I do alot as I'm not big on filler items which usually ends up being candy bars - straight to the hips - no thanks.

[scrtgrdn02]

Originally Posted by lucyrevenge

I've handed over my Qs in all different ways & have had the cashiers put them in in all different ways. My end totals are no different & my tax is no less.

Just a note to the OP, like others have said the cashier should have "burned" your ECBs for you or adjusted them down. If you get one the doesn't know what you are talking about, ask for a manager as every store I go to every cashier there knows how to do that. Something I do alot as I'm not big on filler items which usually ends up being candy bars - straight to the hips - no thanks.

I was thinking about this again this morning, (i'm a dweller) how do you know when you should get a filler for your purchase?

[californiashopper]

The way I always calculate it is by totaling all of my items, not including sales tax. Then I figure out the total coupons and ECBs so that the total doesn't exceed my pre-tax sales total (ECBs can't be used to pay sales tax).

If I don't do all of the totals in my head before checking out, then once the cashier rings everything up, I just ask her what the subtotal is and hand over enough ECBs to come as close as possible to that total.

But I generally have a bunch of ECBs in different denominations and don't usually worry about splitting my orders, since I pretty much have enough ECBs to cover it all, so I understand that when you are trying to split your transactions it can be a little bit more complicated. The key is still to make sure that your coupons and ECBs together don't come to more than your pre-tax subtotal (unless you want to have the cashier adjust the ECBs down to match your total, which I personally don't like doing).

[scrtgrdn02]

Originally Posted by californiashopper

The way I always calculate it is by totaling all of my items, not including sales tax. Then I figure out the total coupons and ECBs so that the total doesn't exceed my pre-tax sales total (ECBs can't be used to pay sales tax).

If I don't do all of the totals in my head before checking out, then once the cashier rings everything up, I just ask her what the subtotal is and hand over enough ECBs to come as close as possible to that total.

But I generally have a bunch of ECBs in different denominations and don't usually worry about splitting my orders, since I pretty much have enough ECBs to cover it all, so I understand that when you are trying to split your transactions it can be a little bit more complicated. The key is still to make sure that your coupons and ECBs together don't come to more than your pre-tax subtotal (unless you want to have the cashier adjust the ECBs down to match your total, which I personally don't like doing).

Ok so when I make my list I should add everything up so lets say I my total is 25.95 I should make sure that my coupons and ecb's don't add up to more then that. Right? Because this is what I do and it always seems to be different when I get to the register, I write my lists and total it all and have my coupons ready with the correct ECB's before I even get to the store but this last time it didn't work out as well as it usually does, I swear the cashier was doing something different then the other ones do. I guess I just have to suck it up and stay away from her next time I go

[scrtgrdn02]

Ok hang on everyone, I think I finally got it.. I went over it again and got my calculator out and I think I figured out what I did wrong, seems so simple now... Gez I could punch myself in the face... Thanks for all the help and not getting irritated with all my stupid questions... dang it took me awhile. I swear I am sitting here with my calculator figured it all out and out loud I literally said to myself "Oh I get it" Sorry... I think I might try again tomorrow at CVS and see if I get it right..

[angela2678]

No problem! It's complicated--nobody masters it immediately!

Here's my method: When I look through the ad, I have a notepad and pen. I make 5 columns: Item, Price, MFQ value, OOP (cost of the item once MFQ is deducted), and ECB (what, if any, will print from that item). Once the total in the "Price" column is high enough for me to be able to use whatever purchase-based Q I have (like $4/$20), I total the rest of the columns (plus deduct any other non-MFQs, like a CVS "any dental care" Q or whatever). Ideally, the total in the "ECB" column should be higher than the total in the "OOP" column. :-)

If the "OOP" amount is in the negative, I know to buy a filler that will cover it, or to break the transactions differently. I usually only do one transaction, because I have enough ECBs to cover it (I carry over $25-$35 in ECBs week to week so I can use up to a $10/$50 Q without having to pay OOP). I don't bother figuring the sales tax or anything ahead of time, b/c it depends on what the items are and, sometimes, how the cashier rings it.

Hope that makes sense...