Walgreens coupon policy debate solved. (For me at least.)

I have long suspected that all the major drug stores work the same in their rewards program insomuch as to assume that because Walgreen’s RR’s are actually “manufacturer” coupons, that CVS and Rite Aid also swing the same deals with the same people. You see, all the major drug stores work in conjunction with the manufacturers. That is to say upon redemption, the stores actually get reimbursed for these rewards, the same as they would with coupons. That is why your reward will say something like “Thank you for your purchase of Lysol”. The company only has to redeem that money to the store after you have spent that reward on something else. This is why, if you lose a reward, they will likely not issue you another. CVS is the most lenient in this situation.

However, the debate over Walgreen’s rewards being different than other stores was settled for me this morning in an email from Rite Aid. You see, I temporarily lost my rewards. I did find them, but not before firing out an email asking if they had an online site to retrieve them like CVS. This was the response.

“Thank you for your email to Rite Aid Wellness+ Customer Service.  I’m sorry that you were unable to use your +UP coupons.  Unfortunately we are unable to reissue any lost or expired +UP coupons. The reason for this is because the manufacturer is providing these extra savings on their products and they reserve the right to limit them in any way, so once lost or expired they can not be redeemed. I’m sorry for any inconvenience this has caused. If you have any additional questions regarding your account please feel free to contact us through an email or by calling 1-800-RITE AID. Thank you once again for your business and have a wonderful day.

Thanks,

Jeff F.

Rite Aid Wellness+ Customer Support

1-800-748-3243”

This means that the claim that the criteria of Walgreens redemption policy being harder to meet than others, solely because the rewards are “coupons”, is bogus. By rights they are ALL “coupons”. Therefore Walgreens strict coupon policy is at their own behest, not the manufacturer.

In case you are unaware of the difference, CVS and Rite Aid redeem their rewards as cash. Therefore, if you are purchasing 1 item, and you have 1 applicable coupon, and 1 reward with an applicable dollar amount, this is not a problem. At Walgreens, you would need to purchase another item, so that the ratio of items and “coupons” are equal. They treat their rewards as coupons. Again, CVS and Rite Aid treat theirs as cash.