Why you shouldn't buy Tide and other products from resellers

Ever been at a flea market or garage sale and seen a large display of Tide laundry detergent or other name-brand products?  It might be a great deal, but you should probably pass it up -- turns out there's a new rash of shoplifters stealing mass amounts of Tide from stores in order to resell it.

According to The Daily, some shoplifters have made off with as much as $25,000 in Tide detergent, planning to resell it for anywhere from $5 to $10 per bottle.  Cases have been reported from Minnesota to Maryland, and CVS says it might soon be locking up its detergent supplies in high-risk areas.


The Daily even found a policeman in Maryland who said the laundry detergent is being traded for drugs in some areas.

“We sent in an informant to buy drugs. The dealer said, ‘I don’t have drugs, but I could sell you 15 bottles of Tide,’ ” Sprague told The Daily. “Upstairs in the drug dealer’s bedroom was about 14 bottles of Tide laundry soap. We think [users] are trading it for drugs.” 

What about if your neighbor is just selling a few bottles?  Keep in mind that Proctor & Gamble coupons specifically exclude purchases meant for resale -- so even if the seller bought the items, they could still conceivably be committing coupon fraud.

Your best bet?  Shop the sales in legitimate stores, and bypass deals you find in other venues.

Read more about the Tide shoplifting ring here.

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