Shared Reading: Are you Overdosing on Supermarket Loyalty Cards?

As people that love saving money, we've all become victim of the ever increasing amounts of loyalty cards that you find everywhere from grocery stores to pet stores, even pharmacies offer these keychain cards.

I remember in college, my keychain became so heavy that I actually broke the ignition for my car. I had to have the tumblers and key replaced because of the weight. Since then, I keep my car keys separate from all other keys.

Recently, The Consumerist looked into this ever-growing fad.

"My wife now has loyalty keyfobs on her keyring outnumbering keys almost 2:1," writes H., who dreads those times when he forgets to bring the stash of cards with him when he makes a grocery run.

The article brings to light an interesting concept of just giving everyone the discounts. While the loyalty cards offer you savings and rewards, they also allow the store to track your every purchase. Have you ever noticed that the register prints coupons for items you tend to purchase? Your loyalty card is how the computer knows.

Sometimes a store will enter a generic card number if you claim to have forgotten your card. I've also heard rumors that there is a fake phone number you can enter instead of your own.

Check out The Consumerist to read the full article, Are You Overdosing on Supermarket Loyalty Cards.