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Old 06-30-2004, 01:49 PM   #1 (permalink)
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Rebates

Okay. I bought a ton of stuff to bring to Iceland, and I got a ton of rebates to submit. A few of them I missed out on, thus I lost $80 of savings. (I missed them because the deadline was while we were in Iceland)

I hate it. It's kind of lame, but at least now you can track them down a little bit easier to find out just how long you have to wait to get the check etc.

But still, it's some work. I have to remind myself to do them as fast as I can. It's lame to miss them for no reason, so I've been doing them a bit differently. Where I prep it all out as soon as I open the box and start playing with the item. Once I know it's good then I can turn around and cut off the UPC and submit the rest of the paperwork.

I much prefer coupons and instant coupons or instant rebates... but the new rebates you have to purchase in small 2 week window and then you have 30 days to postmark from the purchase date.

but damn... I lost $80....
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Old 06-30-2004, 02:01 PM   #2 (permalink)
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It could have been worse.


You could have lost $80 and not gone to Iceland.
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Old 06-30-2004, 02:08 PM   #3 (permalink)
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The way I look at rebates is it's nice to get the money but if I blow it off it's no big deal. Of course instant savings are better but rebate amounts are usually larger. Most people don't send them in so they can advertise a rebate that is 4x larger since they know only 1 in 4 will send in the rebate.
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Old 06-30-2004, 02:09 PM   #4 (permalink)
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That reminds me when I bought my shitty monitor, the rebate was $ 100. I got lazy and didnt' send the rebate, until it was too late...now I stand before you, with 100 dollars less....Sure learned my lesson though...
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Old 06-30-2004, 03:07 PM   #5 (permalink)
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I can't fucking stand rebates. I will actually not buy a product specifically because it has rebates. If it's instore, then that's different, then it's just a case of the store being too stupid to mark the actual price of the item on it.
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Old 06-30-2004, 03:51 PM   #6 (permalink)
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Not sure of accuracy because I can't remember where I read it but the figuire I saw was 40% of rebates sent in aren't ever received by the consumer. So not only do you need to remember to send it in you need to make sure you get it back.
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Old 06-30-2004, 04:20 PM   #7 (permalink)
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I've never had a rebate that I've sent away for ever come back. Usually they make up some obscure excuse, either you didn't send it in before the deadline, or they try to send you coupons. My dad sent in a rebate for some random piece of electronics that he bought and the company actually sent him a letter back saying that the form he sent in for the rebate was mangled in the mail and they couldn't give him his money.
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Old 06-30-2004, 06:51 PM   #8 (permalink)
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Yeah, there was an expose a few months ago on a tv news show about the hoops that companies go through to prevent you from claiming the money you're owed through rebates. It's a really horrible practice.
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Old 06-30-2004, 08:02 PM   #9 (permalink)
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They're giving you the chance to get money off, money that you wouldn't normally get off, the product... so you're not being "ripped off"... you were given a chance to get some money off, and you fooked it by taking too long. That's not their fault. It's also not their fault that people carelessly assume that whatever they get will ALWAYS work with the rebate, without checking out the details. If you're going to assume you're getting a check in the mail just for buying something, you should properly inform yourself beforehand.
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Old 07-01-2004, 05:02 AM   #10 (permalink)
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I'm a cheap bastard, so whenever there's a rebate to be had, I do it. I make very sure that I include all that they ask for and I include a cover sheet stating each of their requirements and how I fulfill it.

I've only been dicked over once, by Staples and a random CD-R company. They make it very hard to contact them.

Best Buy and Circuit City have good rebate programs. They generally give you the numbers and websites to contact if you don't get your rebate. So if I do them, I usually stick to those two places. CompUSA usually does a pretty good job also.
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Old 07-01-2004, 05:17 AM   #11 (permalink)
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I've never not gotten a rebate I sent in. Additionally, with the exception of one, I've always received rebates despite the fact that I sent them in late. I've been as much as a couple of months late on some and still received them. I guess the rebate fairies just like me.

I always send the rebates in even if they're expired. It costs me 37 cents to maybe get back 10, 15, 20 or more dollars. To me it's worth the gamble (so long as I remember).
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Old 07-01-2004, 05:29 AM   #12 (permalink)
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Rebates operate in the interest of manufacturers and vendors. They aren't made with the best interest of the customer in mind. They do provide a somewhat misleading impression that the item costs less than the ticket price (if the rebate is properly expedited and processed). The fact that they're not sent in and sometimes are lost in the shuffle benefits the sellers.

I neither like them nor appreciate the way they are designed and executed.
Why should I? I'm just the consumer.
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Old 07-01-2004, 06:55 AM   #13 (permalink)
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Just keep in mind when you send a rebate in send it certified mail. I bought some stuff from Circuit City one time and sent the rebate in and never heard about or recieved my rebate. I went to them bitching and they said we never recieved it!!! I was so pissed. Then I just bought a flat screen tv from Best Buy and sent my rebate certified mail and had my money in about three or so weeks. Just some advise. Send certified mail.
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Old 07-01-2004, 06:59 AM   #14 (permalink)
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Quote:
Originally posted by kempster
Just keep in mind when you send a rebate in send it certified mail. I bought some stuff from Circuit City one time and sent the rebate in and never heard about or recieved my rebate. I went to them bitching and they said we never recieved it!!! I was so pissed. Then I just bought a flat screen tv from Best Buy and sent my rebate certified mail and had my money in about three or so weeks. Just some advise. Send certified mail.
Or keep photocopies of what you send (that's the route I take) and make note of the date(s) the rebates are sent out. Having this info when you call to check on the status virtually guarantees that they'll honor it.
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Old 07-01-2004, 07:15 AM   #15 (permalink)
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I bought a $1200 computer once, a rather crappy one, with $700 in rebates. I thought I was going to make out pretty well. Then my mom threw away all of my computer boxes, including the boxes with the recepits. The store I bought it at sent me some substitute receipts, but it was too late.

That one really, really blew.
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Old 07-01-2004, 03:01 PM   #16 (permalink)
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The $20 rebate from my Buslink CD-RW drive (rebadged Lite-on) took about five months. Allegedly, the delay was due to problems Buslink was having with the rebate fulfillment company that they outsource to. Rebates suck, but at least I got my money at the end.
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Old 07-02-2004, 07:02 AM   #17 (permalink)
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I would rather see all these items priced lower, than have to go through the hoops of rebating; however, being frugal, I send them in when they apply to me. I usually get them back as I'm careful to follow the directions. Read the fine print, it pays off!
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