2-Foot-Long CVS Receipt Doubles As Party Streamer
Matt sent Consumerist an e-mail with the subject line, "Why is my receipt two feet long?" See, he shopped at CVS, purchased one item, used the self-checkout machine, and walked away with a receipt longer than my dog. This is a massive waste of paper, especially when you multiply it by the number of CVS stores and the number of purchases at each one, but it isn't completely pointless.
A closer look at his receipt shows that most of its impressive size comes from coupons. One offers a gift card for transferred prescriptions, and the other $5 off a purchase of $15 or more. Both useful. In fact, many people are annoyed when they don't receive the ExtraCare coupons, and still others have turned the combination of manufacturer's and ExtraCare Coupons into a personal care item stockpiling game.
Still, I bought two items at a Rite-Aid store last week and walked away with a similarly long receipt, but mine didn't offer any useful coupons. It did, however, have promotional messages and an invitation to take a phone survey. I recycled it before I had a chance to photograph it next to a yardstick. Pity.
Protip if you don't want long receipts at CVS: Don't use your loyalty card. Even that will only make the situation a little bit better.
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Comments:
The ones at Walgreens always have a sweepstakes on them. Then, the other machine prints out six or seven coupons for things I won't ever buy. There's no way to stop it.
I have made peace with my wasted receipt paper by cutting off the part I need for my records (if it's necessary to keep for my records) and recycling the rest.
It's only about 2/3 as tall as my cat, who is not quite 10,000 feet tall.
It has coupons at the end. Wasn't there *just* a story on here about a woman who didn't get coupons and Consumerist was all "What gives, CVS? Where are the coupons?" Damned if you do, damned if you don't.
I always tear off all this spam and hand it to checker or leave behind. I make sure their is no personal info.
I would be more afraid of the giant cat.
@wadewood: Why do you hand it back to the cashier? I promise that s/he has no interest in it, cannot keep it from printing, and is cursing you under his/her breath as you walk out the door.
That's nothing compared to the fine print receipts you get from a verizon store. If you stretch just a days worth of those end-to-end you could probably go to the moon and back.
Pfft, that's nothing. When I worked at CVS we would have customers who would get anywhere from 8-10 feet of nothing but Extracare coupons. Most of them are crap, but some are actually worth in-store credit.
Is thermal paper even recyclable?
After a day of running errands it's like trying to fit a set of encyclopedias in my wallet. I just toss them in the recycling without even glancing to see the marvelous savings Walgreens, Target, etc. think I need.
@wadewood: also... you check it for personal information? Either you are not checking very hard, which makes checking pointless all together, or you check it well and make everyone hate you.
Yeah, how dare they offer discounts to their customers...wait, what?
@babyruthless: I'm sure s/he does it because it's too much effort to throw it away. As Mitch Hedberg said: "And when someone tries to hand me out a flyer, it's kinda like they're saying, 'Here-you throw this away.'"
I am suprised CVS hasn't gotten in more trouble for this wasted paper. They have to go through tons of it and mostly for coupons that are never redeemed. There has to be a way to make the coupons smaller, etc.
@PLATTWORX: I'd love to see them become electronic coupons tied to your ExtraCare card that then get applied automatically next time you shop. That would be fantastic.
Coupons are good. This is not a waste of paper. The paper is very thin, plus it's probably made from recycled paper anyways.
I got an equally long receipt from grocery shopping at Kroger several weeks back, with the majority of the length being an application for a credit card that I didn't want anyway.
Honestly, I would've preferred coupons to that...
The elusive $5 off $15! You're a lucky bastard, OP.
@PLATTWORX: Why would they get in trouble? They're paying for the paper and not taking it from someone else.
@SabreDC: Seconded... Should Consumerists be complaining about getting the coupons or not getting the coupons? Answer: Both!
When the checker has to fold the receipt three times in order to hand it to me and I only bought a couple of things something is seriously wrong.
Just think of all the paper they waste. I rarely see coupons, mostly surveys, ads and sweepstakes.
Longcat sure is long.
I love you, Consumerist. <3
I work for Blockbuster, and you should see the YARDS of receipts our customers get. First, they get the receipt detailing what they purchased and a paragraph of text at the bottom. THEN, they get a receipt with some more paragraphs (something about CIT bank? I don't even bother reading it) and THEN they get one or two, or sometimes three VERY LARGE coupons, depending on their rewards membership and how long it's been since they visited. And if you paid with a debit or credit card, yep, you get a receipt for that too!
We need to arrange a coupon swap.
Consumerist / CVS Coupon Cavalcade! Hooray!
Open Letter To Shoppers At Giant Eagle Who Leave Their Coupons In the Self Checkout Coupon Printer:
Thanks! I usually only get coupons for things my member card THINKS I wanna buy. You've provided me with a little extra savings surprise.
Also: Special shout out to those of you that actually remove the coupons but stack them neatly next to the self-checkout scanner. I appreciate this extra effort to tidy up my savings at your expense. Keep up the great work!
My wife saves *thousands* of dollars a year with these long receipts. F**k off, tree huggers.
@brettbee:
I wouldn't mind the extra paper if it were for something I actually USE. But most of the coupons at the grocery store are for crap I've never even heard of.
The store your wife shops at must have better coupons.
Only two coupons? I seen people buy a shit ton of stuff, and then get the phone survey, AND about 6 or 7 coupons. Thats a long receipt
@codeman38: I don't totally mind the coupon printer at Kroger, but I want to be able to opt out of specific coupons. I'm not switching cat foods! Stop giving me alternative cat food coupons!
Give me Healthy Choice coupons when I buy Lean Cuisine, fine, but I'm not switching cat foods! Stop wasting paper!
@howie_in_az: LOL. No, seriously, I just laughed out loud. You deserve it -- you can has cheezburger.
Excessive receipts to accomodate coupons make penguins cry.
At the CVS I go to, there is a machine where if you scan your Extra Care card, you get coupons.
What people don't realize is that you can keep scanning it even after the coupons come out for more until it says that there are no more. The second time I scanned my card, I got $2 free Extra Bucks.
According to the managers at the store at which I work, receipts are NOT recyclable. The thermal paper used in receipt printers has a chemical coating on it that prevents the recycling.
Just throw it away, you're actually causing more hassle for the recyclers by putting it in :(
@HogwartsAlum: It's not so much the random coupons - though some are useful, but the Extra Care Bucks. Between sales, ECB deals, and manufacturers' coupons, stuff like deodorant, toothpaste, etc. is near-free, free, or sometimes even a moneymaker. She's had receipts as long as she is tall those are mostly ECB's. When stuff is free or better but a brand we don't use, she'll "buy" and then donate.
CVS, please stop wasting trees.
Thanks,
Matt
Circuit City was the master of all Ungodly Large Retail Receipts (ULRRs). Theirs were at least 3 feet long and 6-inches wide if you simply bought a CD.
And let us not forget their ancient credit-card signature capture device, where they (and I, when I worked there) slid the butt of the receipt into the little window on the gray capture box, and you had to sign it with a pen about 43 times before it would catch.
Oh, ye olde City of Circuits, how we miss thee.
In a pinch, you can wipe with it.
CVS does have coupon machines, sadly they aren't very innovative. You just scan your card and they come out. You can't pick and choose which ones, so there is no saving paper there.
@SabreDC: The article actually went to the trouble of mentioning this. Were I your 3rd grade teacher, I would call on you right now and grill you about the other details I know you weren't even reading.
@LastVigilante: A CC store near me opened in 06 and still had those stupid capture box things. Their registers were nowhere "state of the art"
@codeman38: You can opt out so you don't receive those any more if you want. Just bring your Kroger card to customer service and tell them you want to. They'll scan your card and then an Opt Out barcode.
I complained to Circuit City about theirs being just as long. Maybe thats why they had to file for BK?