Excuse me? I DO know how to read, thanks...

[lupo pazzesco]

This happened over the July 4th holiday, and I'm only now getting around to it, mostly because I finally received a response to the complaint letter I wrote. I'm putting the body of the letter here, with the response, because it's a frustrating and piss poor reaction by the cashier, but in this case, corporate was polite, thorough, and may have won me back as a customer. Names, addresses, etc changed to protect the...people...sure...

Hello,

On July 4th, I was in store #xxxx (<Address>). I had brought with me a coupon from a local promotion called <Promotion coupon>.

The coupon stated "Free <Local Brand> Coffee, Cappucino OR Fountain Drink (Any Size) Valid from May - Aug 2012. The fine print reads"Offer expires 8/31/12. Limie one <promotion> Certificate per customer, per visit. Not valid with any other certificates, coupons or discounts. certificate must be presented at time of order and surrendered upon redemption. Presented certificate must possess security seals to be valid. Certificate has no cash value and does not entitle holder to cash back. Not valid on previous purchases. Valid at participating area locations only"

I apologize for writing the entirety of the coupon text, but that is the basis of my complaint. Around 4:45pm on July 4th, 2012, I went to this location with said coupon. I was purchasing a round of snacks and beverages for myself and my boyfriend, and presented the coupon for a <local brand> iced coffee from the fountain drink area. It was listed, according to the pricing on the sign, for $1.59.

Upon approaching the register, the cashier (whose name I unfortunately did not see, as I did not see a nametag or other identifying badge) told me I was not allowed to use the coupon on the iced coffee. I pointed out the wording on the coupon, and asked her to show me where it said iced coffees were excluded, also pointing out that if it were iced beverages excluded, fountain drinks would be off the list as well. Her response was to tell me the coupon specifically said fountain drinks were allowed. I again pointed out there were no other exclusions that disallowed me using the coupon for the iced coffee.

I was then told that the value of the coupon was only applicable up to $1.69. I told her the price of the iced coffee was $1.59, and her immediate response was to claim “no, it’s more expensive”. I pointed out the price was listed on the sign for the iced coffee dispenser. Further, though I did not specify this to the employee at the time, the dispensing machine states “Made from fresh brewed coffee and fresh dairy”, with the <local brand> logo.

The employee then said she could check with her manager, and I agreed, asking if I could speak with him or her. The employee called over her coworker, a male employee who asked what was going on. She asked him to take over the line, and showed him my coupon. He said something, I believe “I’d do it”, but the employee insisted she verify with the manager. I can respect this, as she’s taking precautions. However, rather than go get the manager, whom I assumed was on the property, she instead pulled out a cell phone and then called directly from behind the register, I believe on the store phone.

I was then treated to listening to the employee talk about me as if I weren’t there. She asked whomever was on the other end of the line (which would be the manager, one could assume?) whether the coupons were good on iced coffees, then proceeded to explain that I was claiming that because the coupon rightly did not exclude them she would have to accept it. The call continued in this vein for a few minutes, before the employee hung up and told me the coupon was not eligible for the iced coffees. I said I would go elsewhere then and reached for the coupon.

She may not have heard me, as she kept speaking over me, and stated “But I was told to go ahead and do it for you since you went ahead and got it anyway”. I said no again, and I will admit, I snatched the coupon back. Perhaps a bit rude on my part, but at this point I was agitated, as her tone, to me, implied she was simply doing it so I would finish the transaction and get out of the store.

The whole experience was both annoying and tiring, and I was more than a little insulted. I read the coupon thoroughly. I pointed out there were no exclusions, and I was argued with. Further, when a manager was offered, rather than go off the floor discretely, every other customer in the line who chose to, could listen in on the employee talking about me while standing behind the counter. While impressions may vary, I personally, felt she was speaking rather rudely about me. I also feel belittled because, as I said, I read the coupon closely, and I was matter of fact and polite. Though, as the transaction went on with the employee coming up with reason after reason not to honor it, reasons that I could refute with signs and notices from that very store, I did grow rather short with her in my language, and spoke a bit more brusquely than I intended.

I am not writing this to demand compensation, nor to demand the employee be fired or any over the top claims such as these. However, I would like to suggest employees and managers alike read the coupons offered through your company. I would like to be spoken to in a mature and adult fashion, rather than contradicted, told first that “the coupon doesn’t say iced coffee” then “well, it’s more expensive anyway”. I would also like to bring these coupons from the <Promotion> to the attention of <Convenience Store chain> stores, and point out the language in them. If the iced coffees are excluded from the promotion, note them as such in future coupons perhaps.

This experience has soured me on <Convenience Store chain> for the moment, which is saddening, as this location is one we visit most often, several times per week. It is our go to store for gas, newspapers, air for our car tires, ice and snacks for both short journeys and long road trips. Please let me know that this was a one-time fluke, and the belief I have in <Convenience Store chain> as an excellent company is no longer misplaced.

Thank you for your time,
Lupo Pazzesco

I know I sent it in on a holiday, so wasn't really expecting a response right away, but as the weeks wore on, I kinda forgot about it and grumbled. I still went to the chain, just different locations, but started avoiding them. Yes, yes, I know it's a worn out phrase, but it IS the principle of the matter. If employees are trained to talk down to customers and argue with them, I want no part in the chain. Well, this morning, THIS was sitting in my email box:

Good morning Lupo,
We apologize for the delay in our response. You are correct, the coupon does not exclude the iced coffee, and you should have been allowed to use the coupon for your purchase. We have notified the Area Manager for this location of the incident so she can provide additional training to her employees. We would like to send you a gift card as a token of apology for this experience. Please tell us where you would like us to send your card.

Thank you,
<Convenience Store> Customer Relations

Happy me! Which, in light of all the crap going on at work, this is a welcome bit of goodness. I responded:

Hello,

Thank you for getting back to me, and no worries on the delay. I understand that time is needed to look into any complaint thoroughly, plus I did write on a holiday weekend, so I wasn't expecting a response exceedingly quickly, if at all. I do thank you for letting me know I was correct, and I appreciate the offer of a gift card, though it was unasked for. I won't turn it down, as I still like to go to <Convenience Store Chain> stores regularly. My address is below: Thank you again so much for your response and have a great day!

All's well that ends well, and my faith in this corporation is renewed, which is nice because it IS a local company, and this is the first MAJOR issue I've had with them. Yay!

[TheCheerfulTreeRat]

How lovely to see you take the time to write back to them! It's Jolly Nice to have a positive reason to write back of course...

<smiles an evil little smile>

Of course, if I was going to play Devils Advocate, I'd point out that with the Fountain Drinks, that could be considered the exception that proves the rule, but that's only because I'm an annoying stirrer...

[lupo pazzesco]

That's essentially what I was trying to work around to, but the cashier just would NOT see reason. She kept saying "It says coffee, not ICED coffee"

"Yes, but fountain drinks are iced"

"But that's ICED drinks."

"..."


My brain kind of hurt after that, and the boyfriend and I got into a long disagreement where he called me a sucky customer for snatching the coupon back. I ended up giving it to him, and told him to get a fountain Dr. Pepper, since I obviously wasn't going to be using the coupon myself. Kinda wishing I held on to it, but after the two week mark passed with no response, I was all meh, someone might as well get a freebie.

[Mr Hero]

So am I correct in understanding the only difference between what you wanted and what the cashier said you could have is a bunch of solid H2O?

[Slayer]

Glad they replied positively!

I know here when a fast food chain had a similar $1 off coupon, iced coffees didn't count. But it was behind the counter and not part of the fountain drink machine so it's possible it would of if it did lol.

[lachesis]

To be honest, I read the text for the coupon as being only for hot coffee. However, once the manager said ok to give you the iced coffee, the cashier should have sucked it up and gave it to you.

Good to see the response from corporate, though!

[lupo pazzesco]

So am I correct in understanding the only difference between what you wanted and what the cashier said you could have is a bunch of solid H2O?

Yup. H2O bits. That's it. And she kept coming up with excuse after excuse, as to why I was wrong and she was right. Blegh.

To be honest, I read the text for the coupon as being only for hot coffee. However, once the manager said ok to give you the iced coffee, the cashier should have sucked it up and gave it to you.

Good to see the response from corporate, though!

Hmm, I've always been the one writing the coupons for the different places I work, so I guess it's habit for me to see the fine print and automatically catalog the exclusions/inclusions. I'm not a pain in the ass about it, though, and usually when I point it out to someone when they claim "oh, you can't use it for ___" they reread it and go "Oh, I didn't think about it that way"

Does that make me sound horrible? I don't know. I mean, I'm polite about it, and what REALLY got me upset was the cashier's response, and the whole "Fine, I'll do it, just to make you GTFO" the multiple excuses and lies, and her repeatedly talking over me.

Anyways, will update and let people know if corporate follows through and I actually get that gift card. Probably another month or so until then, though.

[Mr Hero]

Yup. H2O bits. That's it. And she kept coming up with excuse after excuse, as to why I was wrong and she was right. Blegh.

If it were me, I'd be tempted to ask for a comp cup of ice. And then pour it in the coffee right in front of her. Of course that might be SC behavior, but it would feel so satisfying!

[Slayer]

If it were me, I'd be tempted to ask for a comp cup of ice. And then pour it in the coffee right in front of her. Of course that might be SC behavior, but it would feel so satisfying!

You'd need a much larger cup for that and a loooot of ice to make hot coffee cold quickly :P lol

I make my own by brewing at night and letting it cool off, then I put it in the fridge so it's ready for the next day. You can also cold brew, but I find it's easier for me like that.

[lachesis]

Hmm, I've always been the one writing the coupons for the different places I work, so I guess it's habit for me to see the fine print and automatically catalog the exclusions/inclusions. I'm not a pain in the ass about it, though, and usually when I point it out to someone when they claim "oh, you can't use it for ___" they reread it and go "Oh, I didn't think about it that way"

Does that make me sound horrible? I don't know. I mean, I'm polite about it, and what REALLY got me upset was the cashier's response, and the whole "Fine, I'll do it, just to make you GTFO" the multiple excuses and lies, and her repeatedly talking over me.

No, it doesn't make you sound horrible!!! You were very conscientious in making sure you were reading the coupon correctly and the cashier had to start a fight about it. Sometimes it just isn't worth fighting some issues. Like I said above, she could have easily said "the coupon is for 'this, this, and this'. But not for that. However, let me call my manager to see if we can make an exception." She chose to make it difficult. Which in turn pissed you off because being treated like you're a problem when obviously you were not acting like it, really sucks.

[lupo pazzesco]

That's the gist of it in a nutshell, lachesis.

So, update! It wasn't a month. I got the gift card the next day in the mail. Given the situation, and the amount of the coupon, it's a $5, which is rather generous. The coupon was good for up to $1.59, so they essentially gave me triple that. This is nice, because we like to go to the local store on Sundays, get some drinks as treats and the Sunday paper. Total that amounts to is roughly $4.80. So, thank you, Corporate, for our free treats tomorrow.

Slayer, I like to cold brew coffee, for iced coffee, actually. It's a lot less acidic, I think, and comes out with richer flavor. I don't do it often, mind you, because xx_wolfie_xx brews coffee every day, and it's strong enough as is, that we can refrigerate it and I can use it for iced mochas when the craving strikes. He says he likes his coffee to have some "authority!"

[TonyDonuts]

You'd be shocked, shocked, to know how much of my average day gets sucked down in explanations to staff about the terms and conditions on coupons.

"I know you'd said they can use this coupon, but I wasn't really sure if they could use it today."

I'm developing a real hatred for the word "sure."

[raudf]

You'd be shocked, shocked, to know how much of my average day gets sucked down in explanations to staff about the terms and conditions on coupons.

"I know you'd said they can use this coupon, but I wasn't really sure if they could use it today."

I'm developing a real hatred for the word "sure."

Does it have an expiration date on it? Does today's date fall before the expiration date? Then, yes, yes we take it.

[Slayer]

He says he likes his coffee to have some "authority!"

Hahaha, I like that XD I rarely cold brew since it takes a lot of time usually and ... I'm lazy I will this weekend though since I'm making it a stay-at-home weekend.

I tend to make (hot brew) coffee that I'm using for iced coffee with less coffee grounds than I would hot coffee so it's not as strong.

[lupo pazzesco]

I set up my cold brew in the morning. I forget the ratio, but it's coffee, filtered water, glass bowl. Cover lightly with plastic wrap, leave on counter. Go to work, come home. Strain. Done. Cold brew coffee you can serve iced, with flavored syrups, turn into ice cubes, or blend with milk and chocolate to make a mocha. Easy peasy, because as much as I love to cook and bake and whatnot, do NOT want to spend forever on something.

Dammit, our usual treat day is Sunday but now I wanna go and get some iced mocha with our gift card. *Whiiiiiinnee* (Just got off work, forgive me...)