Lets complain to Consumer Affairs about McDonald's not accepting print out coupons

ozf1 on 23/03/2013 - 12:37
Last edited 02/04/2013 - 20:40

Members,

Lets complain to consumer affairs about McDonalds not accepting the print out coupons posted a few days ago on this site (http://www.ozbargain.com.au/node/96946) and one just posted and removed a few minutes earlier.
Usually coupons state you are not able to use photocopied or non original coupons. The ones posted here did not state that.
They are getting free advertising here at OzBargain, and really how much is it going to hurt them to accept a few vouchers, not good PR I say.

Edit; Just to clarify, I did not try to use the vouchers.
I posted this topic in reaction to another Ozbargain member's posting of the said vouchers, followed by another member posting on that deal, Waverley Gardens or Mount Waverley (?) McDonalds not accepting them, and then McDonalds consequently making/requesting ozbargain to remove the deal.
The reference to the Libel case ( for those aware of it, such as Supe on 25/03/2013 - 13:49) is that this reminded me of BigMicks modus operandi, and I'm clearly not a fan of it.
Back in the early 90s whilst living in North Melbourne, we'd get the McDonald Vouchers in the mail in photocopied paper, mostly yellow paper but sometimes white, most of us had no access to a photocopier, but the ones that did, would photocopy and use the vouchers no problem (Flemington McDonalds), they would usually be buy 1 get1 free BigMac or McChicken.
So it was surprising to hear that McDonalds would not accept copies now. After all, you 'used to' just be able to tell the person at the front counter your BigMac did not have enough … and they would just replace it for you whether you'd eaten half or all (if you called to complain after doing a take away, they would take your name down and give you a free meal on your next visit). I think Hungry Jacks have this written on their burger boxes! 'satisfied or get it replaced'.

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Comments

  • m0nkeycheese on 23/03/2013 - 13:58
    +22

    Waste of energy if you ask me.. Good luck taking on an international corporation.

    Don't give them your hard earned $. That's the best way to fight back.. You will be healthier too ;)

    • sophiasmith on 23/03/2013 - 19:55
      +10

      Bullshit, best way to fight back is actually get off your ass.
      If you don't make a complaint, no one knows what is wrong; hell even McDonalds won't so how can they change?
      How can our government organisations fix/enforce it?

      In order in "best way"*:
      1st: Talk to the company
      2nd: Talk to the responsible government organisations
      3rd: Take them to small claims tribunal or court
      4th: Lobby elected representatives
      5th: Join consumer advocacy groups
      6th: Run for parliament
      …
      nth: Accept you got reared in the end and take your money elsewhere next time.

      Before you ask I have done: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 but not 6 (yet).

      *"best way" is subject to Kogan's acceptable usage policy and may change whenever they feel like screwing me over again. (Also best is subjective, I've kinda tried to sort by (effort*reward)/likelihood of success )

      • m0nkeycheese on 23/03/2013 - 22:36
        +3

        You must have too much time on your hands. Most people in the real world don't have time to do your 1-5 steps. It's much BETTER to move on and forget about it than to start silly war. The already stressful lives we all lead don't need things like this being added to them. Put all that negative energy into looking after your loved ones.. Go hug your mum, take your wife/girlfriend out to dinner do something with your significant other. After its all said and done I can assure you who will come out on top

        • ozf1 on 24/03/2013 - 16:22
          +4

          mmmm. We do have time to read the OzB forums and reply to posts, it really doesn't take that long to at least lodge a complaint to Maccas' , after all they are trying to gain support and Aussie customers by being Aussified, so they should be 'fair Dinkum' and give us all a 'Fair go', that is the Australian way is it not?!.
          I for one have already lodged a complaint on their site, it doesnt matter if It doesn't get anywhere, they do have a 'quality system' and customer complaints are recorded and looked at when they are audited, so at the very least it wont look good for them.

        • OzzyOzbourne on 26/03/2013 - 08:20
          +2

          good point, go straight to step 6 if you are a busy person ;-)

      • Foma2 on 25/03/2013 - 17:40

        Option 3 is costly and most likely won't get you anywhere unless you are ready to invest huge amount of time and efforts. At least in SA.

    • CMI on 24/03/2013 - 23:35

      Don't give them your hard earned $. That's the best way to fight back.

      Yes. Great plan.
      Are you even for real? If you spent $1,000 per day at McDonald's and all of a sudden you stopped eating there, they're not going to notice a damn thing.

      Of course they're not going to accept a photocopy of a coupon - would the VicRoads or the police accept a photocopy of your drivers license? Take a long, hard look at yourself and maybe you'll realize just how ridiculous you sound right now.

      • ozf1 on 24/03/2013 - 23:58
        +2

        Really, comparing a 'photocopied coupon' to a photocopied drivers license is ridiculous.

        • CMI on 25/03/2013 - 00:01
          -1

          Oh yes what was I thinking. With all due respects to any intellectual defect that may be causing you to sound this ridiculous, maybe it hasn't yet occurred to you that this whole thread is one giant joke.

        • ozf1 on 25/03/2013 - 01:31

          no, im having a good laugh, at people that just like me, are not able to handle criticism, it's a vicious circle.

  • t_c on 23/03/2013 - 14:14
    +14

    who needs mcdonalds coupons when you can get a pokitpal $2 whopper

  • Ughhh on 23/03/2013 - 19:01
    +9

    They are getting free advertising here at OzBargain

    I believe they requested McDdonalds deals not to posted on OzBargain a year or two ago, so I doubt they care about this free advertising, or your complaint.

    • ozf1 on 24/03/2013 - 16:24
      +1

      Maybe so, a complaint still a complaint, and yes, they probably didn't request but rather flexed their international muscle, how do you like to be bullied.

      • Ughhh on 24/03/2013 - 17:28
        +1

        I'm confused….
        Who's being bullied?

    • Davo1111 on 26/03/2013 - 10:39

      yeah, they sent through a C&D a while back. From my understanding they changed their minds.

  • sophiasmith on 23/03/2013 - 19:46
    +9

    But… you didn't give them a coupon.

    Usually coupons state you are not able to use photocopied or non original coupons. The ones posted here did not state that.

    brb photocopying a bunch of $100 notes, they don't say "you are not able to use photocopied or non original notes" on them either.

    • ATD on 23/03/2013 - 21:50
      +2

      Pretty sure McDonalds aren't powerful enough to create a law to stop it, like the Aus Gov't ie: Crimes (Currency) Act 1981

    • ozf1 on 24/03/2013 - 16:25
      -1

      'photocopying a bunch of $100 notes', Going a bit far dont you think! compare apples with apples at least.

      • ProspectiveDarkness on 24/03/2013 - 17:30
        +1

        compare apples with apples at least.

        It is exactly the same principle. 'Counterfeit' coupons are comparable in legitimacy to counterfeit notes - they were not released, nor are they authorised by, the provider.

        • ozf1 on 24/03/2013 - 20:25
          -2

          Yes agreed, but there is no warning of the fact, until people tried to use them.

        • Eivad on 25/03/2013 - 13:07
          +1

          Yeah, but you knew about this rule - that's the difference. so would a reasonable consumer

        • ozf1 on 26/03/2013 - 22:49

          No I never stated I knew about this rule, I never tried to use this coupon, this forum post was as a reaction to the person who posted the vouchers and deal, and the person who tried to use them in Waverley Gardens Victoria, I believe.

  • berger on 23/03/2013 - 20:30
    +10

    Just use common sense. Is a photocopy a coupon. Play the game fair and Everyone wins.

    • ozf1 on 24/03/2013 - 16:49

      berger, yes it is, a photocopied/scanned whatever coupon.

      • ProspectiveDarkness on 24/03/2013 - 17:36
        +2

        No, a photocopy is an illegitimate copy of a coupon, made by the user to exploit a limited coupon an unlimited number of times. Surely you can see why a business would take issue with this.

        • ozf1 on 24/03/2013 - 23:03
          -1

          Funny how many people agree McDonalds don't need the free advertising , but they do worry about the discounted burgers/meals this vouchers would generate.

        • ProspectiveDarkness on 24/03/2013 - 23:21
          +2

          Do you have a point, or are you just slinging mud and seeing what sticks? 'Free advertising' has absolutely nothing to do with the ROI of the coupons. If you could look at this from anything other than the perspective of an entitled (non)customer, you would understand that.

      • [Deactivated] on 27/03/2013 - 20:34

        ozf1, then McD should sell those people a photocopied/scanned whatever meal/fries/burger

  • Moderatorscotty on 23/03/2013 - 21:45

    Just for the record, I received an email from McDonald's Australia on 21 March regarding to this deal posted. They have requested to have that deal removed as they are not "authorised".

    After explaining to them that OzBargain is a community website for shoppers, and many consumers here can benefit from their coupons, I asked them what's the exact reason why the coupons have to be pulled. For example whether there's terms and conditions that coupons cannot be shared on the Internet.

    The reply I got was that for letter-box distributed vouchers, only the original copy can be accepted by McDonald's — for them to track distributions and marketing ROI I guess. By posting scanned vouchers on the net means there will be disappointments from people using those printed vouchers, which I guess would be administration headache for them.

    The post was then unpublished as there is really no point posting something that no one is able to use.

    As of "they are getting free advertising here at OzBargain", I am afraid to say that they definitely do not need the advertisement here. I also doubt a few of us here complaining about them would bring them bad PR, as they have now stated the rule — only original vouchers.

    • voteoften on 24/03/2013 - 16:20
      +1

      "By posting scanned vouchers on the net means there will be disappointments from people using those printed vouchers…"

      Hi Neil, Could you please explain how people using the printed vouchers would be disappointed? I don;t care about McD's vouchers, but I just don't understand how the ones who receive the ones authorised by the company would be disappointed. Is McD cancelling those vouchers? Thank you.

      • ozf1 on 24/03/2013 - 16:41
        -2

        Exactly, what a load of Bull.
        Not "authorised", surprised they did not say, 'you are using the McDonalds (TM), logo on your website without our written permission, if you do not remove this post we will pursue legal means etc.
        FYI I do not care for McDonald vouchers either, I have not eaten the stuff for over 4 years (used to at least once weekly).
        After watching the doco (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/McLibel_case) on the ABC or SBS (not sure), look for it, watch it, to see the lengths BigMick are willing to go.

        • Supe on 25/03/2013 - 14:19
          +2

          The McLibel case turned me off McDonalds too. Last time I bought a McDonalds burger was in 1994 and last McDonalds product purchased (loved the mcmuffins but it bothered me eating them) was in 1999 before completely pulling the pin. I'm not against junk food (used to eat too much of it) but McDonalds behaviour towards a couple of citizens evoked corporate bullying at its worst. If I have kids, they're not eating it either. m0nkeycheese is right. Best way to protest is not give them your hard earned. While my single vote of never buying McDonalds again means jack to them - I still feel a sense of satisfaction from my stance. Plus HJ's are better.

        • ozf1 on 26/03/2013 - 22:45

          Cheers, at least you have an informed opinion of what I refer to, I have nothing against fast food outlets either. I will defend my point and stance.

      • voteoften on 24/03/2013 - 16:50

        sorry, I meant scotty.

        • Wyzard on 27/03/2013 - 00:40

          How did you get Neil from Scotty???

        • voteoften on 27/03/2013 - 01:10
          -1

          assumption plus sloth

      • Ughhh on 24/03/2013 - 17:26
        +4

        I think Scotty means the people using the photo copied coupons will be disappointed as they will be rejected. Original coupons will be fine.

        • voteoften on 24/03/2013 - 18:02

          re-reading that, I think you are correct JLove

          NM Scotty.

        • Moderatorscotty on 24/03/2013 - 23:07

          Yes what JLove said. McDonald's will not honour the printed coupons, which might result angry customers, which can be a PR and admin issue they need to deal with. Therefore from their point of view, they rather not have them posted on OzBargain in the first place.

          Seriously we have people here who cannot understand that even merchants have rights to refuse a sale. We have merchants complaining to us and requesting to have their old EXPIRED deals removed from OzBargain, because they still get people ringing up demanding the old once-off special price (who get angry when the merchant refused to repeat the sale).

        • m0nkeycheese on 25/03/2013 - 09:15
          +10

          Unfortunatly OzBargain seems to attract people who think the world owes them something.. Quite sad really

          We see it time and time againg people whinging about sellers not giving them a fair go, when the sellers have just as many rights as the wingers think THEY do. If only they put themselves in the sellers shoes they would possibly snap out of it.. Although many are so stubborn to even agree with that :(

  • t_c on 24/03/2013 - 11:43
    +2

    I wonder if it also has something to do with not wanting to devalue their brand
    once you put out too many coupons and/or they go mainstream
    people can become accustomed to the discount and may be less likely to pay full price
    would you be more likely to pay full price for a whopper, a pizza or a big mac?

    • The Quote Train on 24/03/2013 - 17:19
      +2

      No, that wouldn't be a consideration for them. "For them to track distributions and marketing ROI" is the most probable reason.

  • JediJan on 24/03/2013 - 14:07

    Quick mention that there are some new "original" vouchers out at the moment.
    Mum gave me two sets (not sure if they came in the paper or as junk mail); anyways in south eastern Victoria suburbs.

    Says "Tastes of America" (blue/red on front) …
    On the back a few "Buy one get one free" and other vouchers, valid to 14/04/13.
    Perhaps have a look out for them … if you are into Maccas that is!

    • ozf1 on 24/03/2013 - 16:47
      -4

      "anyways in south eastern Victoria suburbs."

      Yeah funny how they don't need to give them to the lower socio-economic western suburbs, in Burnside, we have one McD at Ballarat rd and one in Caroline Springs, also two KFCs (same distances, about 2km away from each other) and one Hungry Jacks, not to mention Dominos, Nandos etc.
      Come on local 'governments', look after the weak of mind.
      This shows how much they 'really care' about the obesity and diabetes problem… Australia now the fattest country in the world, and if i heard correctly on TV this week, we also have the fattest/biggest ever contestant in a 'biggest loser' anywhere in the world.
      Aussie, Aussie, Aussie!… Fat! Fat! Fat!

      • The Quote Train on 24/03/2013 - 17:20
        +2
        1. We're not the fattest country in the world.
        2. Who cares about the 'biggest loser', the show is tripe.
        • ozf1 on 24/03/2013 - 20:23
          -4
          1. We're not the fattest country in the world.
            says who 'we are not the fattest country in the world', do you read much? it's a sad fact we are, look it up.
          2. Who cares about the 'biggest loser', the show is tripe.
            YOu are entitled to your opinion, I never said the show was the best ever!, the statement just highlights they managed to find the fattest/biggest in Australia… I think, if i heard correctly.
        • dealman on 24/03/2013 - 20:26

          We're not the fattest country in the world.

          We're not the fattest country in the world yet.

        • altomic on 24/03/2013 - 21:11

          Mmmmmmmm, tripe.

        • ozf1 on 24/03/2013 - 23:01

          mmmmm indeed tripe!

        • voteoften on 24/03/2013 - 23:19
          +1

          You won't find tripe at McD. It takes too much time and too much technique to prepare.

  • ProspectiveDarkness on 24/03/2013 - 17:42
    +2

    And what exactly would be the basis for the complaint? They are perfectly entitled to set the grounds for their own coupons, whether they're stated on the actual coupon or not.

    Judging from your other responses in this thread, it seems like you're just hating on them for any old reason. We call that 'clutching at straws'. Lodge the complaint to the ACCC by all means, but don't expect a favourable resolution.

    • ozf1 on 24/03/2013 - 19:37
      -7

      No, dont confuse yourself, the reason would be as stated,the coupons do not state 'only original coupons will be accepted' or 'no photocopies will be accepted'.

      as stated, I do not eat McD. but similarly to 'voteoften's comment I do not care about McDonalds, just their bullish behaviour.

      • Ughhh on 24/03/2013 - 22:19
        +6

        Nor do the coupons state "feel free to photocopy"
        Just because it doesnt say, doesnt mean its allowed. Do we need to be spoonfed on everything?
        Get over it, Im sure consumer affairs have better things to work on.

        • ProspectiveDarkness on 24/03/2013 - 23:34
          +6

          nothing to get over.

          You started this thread on OzBargain, attempting to persuade people into complaining to the ACCC about an illegitimate discount for fast food you don't eat, at a venue you don't even shop at, and are doing your best to keep this ridiculousness going by complaining about anything and everything McDonalds related. Sounds like you have something to get over, to me.

          I know you'll neg me, so, I'll neg you too!

          Seems mighty mature.

        • gmatht on 25/03/2013 - 15:29
          +4

          Indeed. I am not a lawyer, but I'd guess copying the vouchers is a technical violation of copyright law.

        • ozf1 on 26/03/2013 - 22:50
          -2

          Indeed, you are not a lawyer.

    • ProspectiveDarkness on 24/03/2013 - 20:35
      +3

      And yet you care enough to comment on it…?

      • ozf1 on 24/03/2013 - 20:53
        -7

        Why not? At the very least it's inspired 'thought' in people. Except for the ones that just are just trollers of course. You know the ones that pick on or criticise someones comment and do not contribute to the topic posted.

        • pumpkinspice on 26/03/2013 - 11:29
          +1

          You are inspiring idiocy.
          Also for someone who apparently thinks people shouldn't be eating McDonald's due to obesity, your position on their coupon policy is very strange.

          …and why do you keep placing things in single quotes which you are actually referring to?
          Placing things in quotes implies either:
          1. an actual quote
          2. sarcasm

          You seem to be implying neither of these.

  • Eivad on 25/03/2013 - 13:16
    +3

    "Usually coupons state you are not able to use photocopied or non original coupons. The ones posted here did not state that."

    Seriously, the fact that you stated it means you knew about this fact. This is why people are negging you - you can't know about the condition and then try and take advantage of a company because it "forgot" to put the line in. A line that you, and most reasonable people would already assume applied. A line that already exists in McDonalds Ts & Cs, but the reference to which they must have forgotten to put into the coupon.

    It is akin to having a $50 store voucher and saying "Wow, this store forgot to say one voucher per person! Let me photocopy them and use them all at once! What, you're refusing my vouchers?! I'm going to complain to the ACCC!!!"

    • ozf1 on 26/03/2013 - 22:53
      -5

      Eivad, if you are addressing me, i will reply to you. No I never stated I knew about this rule, I never tried to use this coupon, this forum post was as a reaction to the person who posted the vouchers and deal, and the person who tried to use them in Waverley Gardens Victoria, I believe, and was told they do not accept copied coupons.

      • Wyzard on 27/03/2013 - 00:48
        +1

        Dude, you lost credit about 60 comments ago.

        • ozf1 on 03/04/2013 - 15:02

          Wyzard, don't care, neg whatever. Look at the comment, I was simply responding to the poster, he stated "the fact you stated means you knew"… i never stated I knew, or tried to use the coupons, even before I edited the posts info.

  • No ONE on 26/03/2013 - 00:34
    +1

    And say WE are from OZBARGAIN… lolll

  • gimme on 26/03/2013 - 08:09
    +3

    what's the average age here?? 12?

    • voteoften on 27/03/2013 - 01:12
      +1

      more like 40, i'd imagine. if you are talking avg

  • yacman on 26/03/2013 - 18:26
    +1

    Just curious, what was the voucher?

    Like what did you save?

    In my experiences any vouchers I have ever seen Mc Donald's do not even come close to say a KFC "Cheap as Chips" Meal or $2 Whopper. So is there really a huge demand for Mc Donald's vouchers to even fuss over?

    • ozf1 on 02/04/2013 - 20:41

      Buy 1 get 1 Free BigMac or McChicken, Muffin deal and a meal deal (?).

  • Geewhizz on 27/03/2013 - 09:02
    -1

    'Present this voucher" means just that, it doesn't imply by omission that you can present a copy of it.

  • ozf1 on 30/03/2013 - 14:11
    -1

    Hey, we just received the vouchers in our mail box today!, the exact same ones… wooo hoooo! off I go to Maccas… NOT!.

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