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Original poster

How crap is Boots Advantage Card?

100 replies

hexsnidgett · 08/11/2023 20:01

The ridiculous rule where you have to have enough points for a whole item!
I have £10 worth of points, but got no discount off my £40 bill.Angry

OP posts:
sadeyedladyofthelowlandsea · 08/11/2023 23:12

HighywayToHell · 08/11/2023 21:06

I refuse to use Boots now after they wiped my £30 in points off my advantage card, no email, no warning, nothing. Bastards.

EXACTLY the same thing happened to me! They just wiped my points without letting me know they had introduced an expiry date.
I wouldn't have taken it quite so personally had it not been for the fact that I was one of the first people in the UK to have an advantage card when they introduced it on a trial basis in our local area back in the 90s! Oh, those heady days of 10 points per £1. I've still got the original card. I glare at it vengefully from time to time.

Brrrrrrrrrrrr · 08/11/2023 23:13

MsRosley · 08/11/2023 21:57

I got so fed up with the barrage of different offers and discounts and extra points deals that I gave up shopping at Boots. It would take me half a hour to work out how to get the best discount, and just made me feel the whole chain was a rip off.

LOL talk about cutting off your nose. Couldn’t work out the discounts (they’re incredibly easy to understand btw) so I’ll go shop full price elsewhere.

🤪

Unexpectedlysinglemum · 08/11/2023 23:14

Just do two transactions? That's what I do

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sadeyedladyofthelowlandsea · 08/11/2023 23:17

Flickersy · 08/11/2023 23:04

That's part of the basic T&C's. It's not their fault you didn't pay attention.

Show quote history

It wasn't part of the T&Cs when I joined - and they didn't let me know it was being changed.

ALongHardWinter · 09/11/2023 00:15

I must admit that I never go in Boots nowadays (too many bad experiences with rude staff). But back in the days when I did,it used to annoy me that you had to have enough points to cover the entire price if an item.

Togekiss · 09/11/2023 01:12

I never shop there now as well. Their online delivery service/click and collect is shocking.

Every single time I’ve tried to order online, I’ve got an email a day later saying x is unavailable. Or they delivered my items to the store weeks after they said they would.

The Boots stores in my town are tiny as well so even if I did want to shop in person- there’s fuck all to buy.

I just order online or go to Superdrug/a department store depending on what I want and the price range. At least I know it’ll be in stock.

Nat6999 · 09/11/2023 01:30

I'm on my way to £300 worth of points, I need some new appliances & I'm going to use Boots Kitchen Appliances for as much as I can so I can get points.

BastardtheCat · 09/11/2023 05:20

MrsMiagi · 08/11/2023 20:47

LOVE the advantage card! The trick is to use it online/the app.
I wait until things are 3 for 2 or on offer then get the tenners extra points when spending £60, plus load all the personalised offers in the app. Boots is one of the only places that lets you code stack so my recent order that should have been almost £200 was half price, plus £15 back in points. Student discount also works on top of this and if you are part of the parenting club there are freebies plus a monthly discount code on baby items.
I Usually have at least a couple hundred pounds worth of points each Xmas which really helps for gifts.

Use Quidco or a site like that for cashback too where possible!

Where do you find your codes?

BastardtheCat · 09/11/2023 05:22

OhTheSilence · 08/11/2023 20:57

I've built up a lot of points through their recycle scheme. Today just dropped off 5 empty tubes of toothpaste and got 500 points.

I didn't know about this! How exactly did you do it?

LittleMooli · 09/11/2023 05:26

ManchesterLu · 08/11/2023 21:56

It's easy done. If you know you have £10 worth of points, just ask the cashier to put through a couple of items separately so you can pay for them with points.

I love my Advantage card, and earn a lot on it.

I assumed the OP had ordered something online and wouldn't meet free delivery if they just spent the £10 or the item was £40. But I might be wrong

PaminaMozart · 09/11/2023 05:28

AutumnCrow · 08/11/2023 20:33

Yes it's crap now, and they have lost the word 'woman' on their website too. Terrible marketing and customer service, and the pharmacy service isn't great. So bye bye Boots, after all these decades, until you come to your senses.

And they are 'headquartered' in a tiny rented office in Zug, Switzerland.

Which, of course, is where they pay their taxes...

I hardly ever shop there now, for this reason alone.

starfishmummy · 09/11/2023 07:34

ALongHardWinter · 09/11/2023 00:15

I must admit that I never go in Boots nowadays (too many bad experiences with rude staff). But back in the days when I did,it used to annoy me that you had to have enough points to cover the entire price if an item.

I don't mind that the points have to cover the whole price of one item. It annoys me that they have to cover the whole bill so the thing you want on points has to go through in a separate transaction.

megletthesecond · 09/11/2023 07:46

I've managed to accumulate £18 on mine this year for my Xmas stocking.
My teens need pimple specific skin care and DDs tampons only seem to be available in boots.

JPMJuliz · 09/11/2023 08:27

Pushkinini · 08/11/2023 20:38

I have £104 on mine which has taken me years to accrue. I quite like the fact that you have to have enough to cover your purchase otherwise I'd just use mine off a random shop. I'm not sure what I'm saving for, but I do fancy some new straighteners so might keep saving for some good ones.

Don’t the points expire after a while?

EarringsandLipstick · 09/11/2023 08:30

Regarding the Advantage card, it's great. Always good offers eg on makeup. I love the points - I save enough each year to buy my favourite peregrine which costs €120 & is unaffordable otherwise.

AutumnCrow · 09/11/2023 08:35

JPMJuliz · 09/11/2023 08:27

Don’t the points expire after a while?

Show quote history

Yes, I was warned about it in an email which was over-complicated and tedious.

greengreengrass25 · 09/11/2023 18:14

Isn't it more you have to use your advantage card regularly

PictureOfFlorianTray · 09/11/2023 18:59

I loathe shopping in Boots now.

Scruffy looking shelves, no assistants to help and a bloody awkward self serve scanner that invariably can't scan an item and then you get barked at for not holding the item properly!'

I rarely venture in now.

As to their pharmacy... god help us.

GKM · 22/07/2024 16:09

There is NO advantage on the boots card, I had to get a new card as i lost mine when i tried to register it they had deleted over 600 points disgraceful, just a bunch of thieves

TellySavalashairbrush · 22/07/2024 16:16

I don't think its too bad. Seems to build up the points quite quickly. Unlike Sainsburys where I spend a small fortune on a regular basis and then wait about 6 months to get £2.50 off my shopping- total rubbish!

ScottishScouser · 22/07/2024 16:20

Its to do with refunds.

If you part pay with points and a card (especially a credit card) and then return the item, they can't refund the whole amount to the card. Partly its money laundering and secondly its getting cash from a credit card without a cash advance.

Its only normally small amounts where Boots is concerned buts its the same rules as for larger items where I've just worked with a retailer sorting out their system for partial tenders for gift cards and loyalty cards. It c an be harder than you think.

Bloom15 · 22/07/2024 17:18

The Superdrug card is really good - if you have £1 or more you have take it off your shopping

RaraRachael · 22/07/2024 17:40

I get loads of points and usually save them up and treat myself to something I wouldn't normally buy.

fetchacloth · 22/07/2024 19:11

The Boots loyalty scheme is more generous than most and the points accumulate quite quickly. I use the points for treats and presents.

FFSTeenagers · 26/07/2024 16:05

I think my points expired without my knowing. £50 down the drain 😰😰😰

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