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Are Rebates Scandalous?
theodp asks: "Motley Fool offers a dead-on take on the computer mail-in rebate fulfillment process--Once I receive your 'claim,' I will begin to 'process' it. Assuming that you filled out all the information correctly, and assuming nothing is missing, and assuming your claim doesn't get lost somehow, and if you call or write a few times to check on your claim's status, then I will mail your check within 10 to 12 weeks. Maybe. Or maybe it'll be four to six months. Or never." What are your thoughts on rebates, and have any of you noticed who, at least in the computing industry, is more trustworthy with rebates than others?
Update by J :
Here's the
short version
of the article.
Mail in rebates suck. I'm don't want to wait 6 months for a $10 check when I can buy it on pricewatch.com for $10 cheaper anyway. It's funny, when you own them money it better be on time, when they owe you money it takes 6 months. It's all a scam. They could easily sell it for the after rebate price. What they're hoping is that alot of people will forget to send it in before the rebate expires and they'll get to keep the money. It's retail's way of hopefully charging more than the actual price to people who don't bother. And people who do bother get screwed up the butt.
---- "Excuse me. Where's the children's gun section?"
There's no other reason for them not to do rebates at the POS/cash register.
A lot of people forget or are too lazy to mail in rebates, which means more money for the company.