The easiest way to save money at the grocery store

An alternate title for this post could be "The nerdiest thing that I know" because I'm going to tell you about the 'Scanning Code of Canada' (brace yourselves - this is exciting stuff!).

When I was a child, my mom was pretty diligent about managing our family's grocery budget. She would always check the receipt before she left the grocery store and she would often find errors on her bill. I have followed in my mom's footsteps, and like her, I often find that I have been overcharged on multiple food items (A rough guess would be that 25% of my grocery store bills have mistakes on them). And while both my mom and I would return to customer service to get the error corrected, I have since taken things a step further and found a way to make those mistakes work to my advantage. Enter, "Scanning Code of Canada".

The Scanning Code of Canada (as pictured above) states that when a customer is overcharged for an item, they are entitled to receive that item for free (up to a value of $10.00). Example:

Canned beans: Advertised price - $1.79/can
                      : Price you are charged - $1.99/can

Many cashiers will try to simply refund you the .20 cent difference. However, you are entitled to receive that can of beans for free. You will receive a refund for the price difference on any subsequent cans purchased.

Using the Scanning Code of Canada to your advantage requires a few techniques. 1) You must have some awareness of the cost of each item on your grocery bill. This can be difficult as it means remembering many prices. However, errors most commonly occur on sale items so, to start, pay closest attention to those. 2) You must check your receipt before you leave the store. It's easiest to get your money back if you act quickly as you are less likely to lose your receipt and/or forget the price of sale items. 3) You have to be willing to remind cashiers of their obligation to follow the Scanning Code. While the Code is voluntary, almost all stores in Canada adhere to it and often times, cashiers are simply not aware of the policy.

It may seem petty to use the Code to help save money on your grocery bill but groceries often take up a huge portion of a household budget and I'm a firm believer in saving money wherever I can!