Extreme Couponing: Even More Fraudulent Coupons Used!

After doing more research today I came across information regarding another set of fraudulent coupons that were used on last nights “Extreme Couponing” Season 3 premiere. You can read more at jillcataldo.com and you can also view stills from the show.

Apparently Cole Ledford used several coupons which allowed him to steal Hefty garbage bags. You can see the proof that this coupon is fraudulent HERE and here is a picture of that coupon.

Hefty-Kordite fraudulent couponHere is the coupon seen in Cole’s stack…

TLC-Hefty fraud coupon

It’s terrible that TLC condones fraud and the unfortunate fact is that stores will have to recoup the loss at the expense of the rest of us. People that use fraudulent coupons make it more difficult for legitimate coupon users to have a good experience and they drive up the cost of all products when they steal from stores.

Angelique Campbell, who used the fraudulent Quilted Northern coupons, blogged about her Extreme Couponing experience stating “I also for the first time did have to order some coupons from a clipping service (which is something I do not normally do and try to prevent).” I found a very interesting comment on her blog, which she answered.

From Charolette: How did you get all those packs of Quilted Northern? I know there is a Free Product Coupon that is being sold online that the manufacturer, Georgia Pacific, has said is fraudulent.

 

Response: I did purchase them in the rush of getting ready for the haul. I have had a very rough pregnancy and was not stocked on my coupons as normal…and did not have much energy to go searching for them…in desperation I did purchase them…I never purchase coupons…this was a new thing for me. Since then I have been in contact with the CIC to find out if the coupons were counterfeit they have not confirmed that they are…however I am praying that if they were…we can catch whoever the distributors are! I never intended on using fraudulent coupons and am disgusted at the possibility that they may have been. I cannot further address this issue publicly as per the request of the CIC.

I would see no possible reason for CIC to tell Angelique she cannot comment on the matter any further; it seems TLC is most likely trying to do damage control OR cover their own rear. The CIC WANTS people to know there are counterfeit coupons out there, they have a vested interest in STOPPING coupon fraud. TLC on the other hand has plenty to gain by telling Angelique to keep her trap shut….

America goes coupon crazy

I came across this on MSN this morning and wanted to repost it. Yes, America HAS gone coupon crazy but can you blame us? The economy we live in is terrible and everyone wants to save money.

By Giselle Smith
money.msn.com

Coupon use in the US boomed in 2011, but do you know who uses the most coupons?

As coupons have expanded from something you cut from the newspaper to include printable online deals and easy-to-flash smartphone downloads, do you find you’re using them more than in the past? If so, you’re not alone.

In fact, coupon redemption in the United States increased 63% in 2011, and Americans saved $3.7 billion as a result, Coupons.org reports. That dollar figure represents 3.3 billion coupons — 100 million more than were used in 2009.

“Across the country, more Americans than ever before are turning to digital coupons to help them save their hard-earned cash,” Jeanette Pavini, a savings expert with Coupons.com, said in a news release.

Who uses coupons?

Coupons.com recently released its “The Most Frugal U.S. Cities” report, ranking the top 25 couponing cities in America. The five top cities for couponing are:

  1. Atlanta
  2. Tampa, Fla.
  3. St. Louis
  4. Cincinnati
  5. Raleigh, N.C.

Though four Southern cities showed up in the top 10, the Midwest ranks as the country’s hottest couponing region, with nine cities in the top 25 and three in Ohio alone (Cleveland and Columbus, as well as Cincinnati). Four Northeast cities — Pittsburgh (No. 13), Washington, D.C. (No. 16), Boston (No. 17) and Philadelphia (No. 25) — made the list, but only two cities in the West: Seattle (No. 14) and Phoenix (No. 23).

The demographics of coupon users are also changing, becoming “younger, more affluent and tech-savvy,” Coupons.org reports. More than half of 13- to 17-year-olds use coupons and coupon codes, and members of households with incomes of $100,000 or higher are twice as likely to print digital coupons than those in homes earning less than $35,000, the site reports. In addition, people with a college education are twice as likely as those who did not finish high school.

What do people use coupons for?

Of course, there’s a difference between clipping a coupon (or accessing one online) and actually using it. When I stumble across a stack of coupons I’ve set aside for later use, I’m usually disappointed to find that at least half of them have expired.

The coupons that are most frequently used are for food purchases, Coupons.org reports, with 2.1 billion food coupons used in 2010, compared with 1.2 billion non-food coupons redeemed. And food coupon use increases near the end of the year.

The top categories for coupon use in 2009 were cereals, baking ingredients, entertainment, nutrition and diet, and bathroom tissue, the site reported.

Coupons getting more popular

The bulk of redeemed coupons — 89% — are still clipped from newspapers, and Internet coupons represent only 1.5% of those used, according to Coupons.org, but that’s changing quickly. In 2011, 20% of smartphone users took advantage of mobile coupons, a 117% increase over 2010.

The site predicts that online coupon users will grow from 2.7 million in 2010 to 35 million in 2014 — an increase of almost 1,300%.

Think it’s not worth the bother searching for all those coupons? Coupons.org reports that “an hour of smart couponing is estimated to yield about $100 in savings.”

Source