Changes in Coupon Barcodes

I decided it is about time to post something about this since I had some issues at Rite Aid last night. Did any of you notice that most of the coupons in your recent RedPlum's were missing the normal UPC bar-code?

Many manufacturers are switching over to a new bar-code system, called GS1 Databar. This new barcode holds a lot more information in it than the standard UPC. It allows more products, like fresh foods, to have a bar-code. It also allows companies to put more information into their coupons to reduce the amount of fraudulent coupon use!

This is what the old UPC bar-code looks like:









And this is what the new bar-codes look like:














The problem with this new code is that not all retailers are up to date on the software it takes to scan these coupons. This is where I ran into an issue last night. I was trying to purchase 3 Infant and 2 Children's Advil. I had (2) $5.00/2 printable coupons from their website, and (1) $1.00/1 coupon from the RedPlum coupon insert. My coupons wouldn't scan. All three coupons had the new GS1 barcode on them. The cashier was willing to push the $1.00 coupon through, but didn't want to push the two $5.00 coupons through. I don't blame her! That is a lot of money! She called up the manager who tried to scan the coupons with no luck either. She then told me that since it didn't scan, it must not be for the product I was trying to buy. **There was even a picture of children's Advil on the coupons :)

I walked out of Rite Aid with no Advil at all.

If you want a little more information on this, you can go HERE

I might try printing out some of the info on this website and carry it around with me in case I run into more issues.

Has anyone else had problems with these new coupons? What store did they not scan at? Are there any stores you have had success with these coupons?