Do you know how to tell a legitimate coupon from a fake? Because they don’t tell you everything on reality television we are here to reveal the secrets of Extreme Couponing. TLC’s Extreme Couponing is really not about education it is more about entertainment. Our goal is to educate you and empower you to save money for your family.
This week the Walmart on Greenhurst and 12th in Nampa, Idaho quit taking black and white coupons due to coupon misuse. Maybe this has already happened in your area? If it has not it may be just a matter of time. We do not want any Fab Frugals to misuse coupons so we are going to review the security features of the coupons so you can all be sure to use coupons correctly. Giving couponers a good name is the responsibility of each and every one of us.
That last time I shared this information was in the Coupon Tip Tuesday series. I wrote a post called How to Tell a Fake. So this is a little review from that post…
Rule 1: Be sure to stick to reputable sites when printing coupons like: coupons.com, smartsource, and redplum. If you print from a manufacturers website or a bricks coupon link you will be safe as well. We have a more comprehensive list of reputable coupons printing sites here
A few things to looks for on a legitimate coupon from coupons.com:
- Product watermark behind the coupon value
- Little dots in the expiration date box (yellow in color)
- The time and date stamp around the coupon
- Unique serial number on the coupon (See “Features that are different” below)
- Coupons.com logo and verify logo
A few things that raise a red flag when printing coupons:
- Coupons from an email sent to you by a friend and not the manufacturer
- Coupons found in a PDF form
- Coupons that do not have a print limit
- Expiration date that is really, really far out
- Coupon that does not have a bar code.
- Coupon is for a FREE product {These are rarely printable off the internet normally obtained directly through a manufacturer}
- Coupon value is unusually high
If you suspect a fraudulent coupon you can check to see if it is listed on the counterfeit coupon list. If the suspicious coupon is not listed and you think it is fake you can report fraudulent coupons here.
Never copy your coupons doing so makes them fraudulent! Learn more about coupon ethics here!
HOW DO YOU TELL A FAKE?
More Coupon Education Resources:
- Read more tips to answer your couponing questions or get more Extreme Couponing Education tips.
- Get a quick start on Extreme Couponing done right with our coupon class on DVD
It all began on October 8th, 2008. Cathy and Monica started this coupon blog to help friends and family learn about their new money saving hobby couponing! Since then they have taught thousands of women (and men) 
