$5 ebay Coupon Code doesn't work

[generaluser3]

Emailed from ebay:  Don't miss your $5 coupon to spend on eBay

I've gotten this a number of times, and the most recent one expires on February 8.  The minimum spend is $5.01.  

I've put an item in the cart, then copy/pasted the Code in the box and clicked on Apply.  This message appears:  Looks like that's the wrong code.   Please double-check and try again.

Tried numerous times, but always get the same message.  

Anyone else?  Any solution?  

Thank you in advance!

[ed8108 · Accepted solution]

Telephone customer support to report your coupon glitch

[generaluser3]

Thank you for your response, @ed8108.

I was hoping to avoid that, but, yes, that is the way to go.

[generaluser3]

Thank you again for recommending that I call customer service.  

The $5 coupon is attached to an account I never created.  But it has my email address.  It shows the account was opened last December.

I'm so confused, and wondering if this is some sort of scam.

[lacemaker3]

eBay coupons are always tied to a particular eBay account, so you can't use them with any other account.  So you would have to use the coupon with an account that was created with that email address.

If you have access to the email address, then you should be able to log in to the account. If you're not sure of the user ID, then enter the email address instead of a user ID. Most likely, you accidentally created a new account with that email address last December. That happens more often than you would think.

I have seen a notice about a $5 coupon a few times when I was browsing eBay without logging in, but it wouldn't work once I had logged in. I think they are sent as a way to encourage you to open a new eBay account. They are probably trying to target new users, not knowing that you already have an eBay account with another email.