3 Controversial Walmart Policies Spark Outrage Among NJ, NY and PA Shoppers

Walmart is one of the most conveniently situated outlets in the U.S.

It's a shopper's dream outlet.

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The company has created its marketing strategy so that shoppers have little need to go elsewhere, which is true most of the time.

Walmart is like Costco or BJ’s without the membership fees.

Most items have low price tags, and even Walmart’s branded goods are inexpensive and reasonably worth the price.

For decades, shoppers have enjoyed Walmart’s low prices and flexibility.

When I say "flexibility," Walmart has been known to give shoppers who use coupons a lot of grace.

As a cashier at Shoprite many years ago, I encountered professional coupon shoppers regularly.

Being a pro "couponer" is no small feat.

It takes hours and hours to clip and organize coupons and even more time to coordinate a grocery haul based on different stores' specials for the week.

I would frequently scan $150 worth of groceries for a customer, and once I was done scanning their coupons, they paid less than a dollar or even zero.

We never returned the money to a customer if their order landed in the negative; it was a draw.

One of the many benefits of shopping at Walmart has been its policy on "overages."

What is an "overage" at Walmart?

If you used a coupon whose value was more than the price of the product you had purchased, Walmart would give it back to you.

It would either be deducted from your total, or you would get cash back if the balance were already zero.

You basically get paid to do shopping at Walmart. Not a bad deal.

However, all good things have to end at some point.

Walmart stores no longer have an overage policy.

Now, it appears they are also changing their advertising coupon policy, which many in the area find outrageous.

That's not where the Walmart coupon crackdown stops.

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A new rule now states a single customer can no longer use more than four identical coupons in a day.

If a customer attempts to exceed that limit of four, the register is programmed not to allow it.

What is an "override" at a grocery store?

An "override" at your Walmart or grocery store occurs when a store assistant or manager intervenes to resolve an issue with a transaction that the computer at check out has flagged.

An employee can essentially override the decision of the store's register for coupons or any other transaction.

That is no longer an option at Walmart.

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New registers are more modern and advanced, and "the system" will now determine the outcome.

This eliminates the possibility of ever asking a manager to sign off on a bargain.

This approach has angered loyal Walmart customers, particularly coupon users.

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