MM Money

Customers Tire of Excuses for Rebates That Never Arrive

Excerpt: Bargain-hunting customers attracted by promises of low prices ''after mail-in rebate'' take the trouble to cut out bar codes, photocopy sales receipts, fill out forms and mail all of it to the manufacturer or to a fulfillment house. Then they wait, sometimes futilely, for the rebate check.

SHEROL DUVAL applied for an $89 rebate on a Canon printer she bought at Circuit City in 1998, but she has given up hope that it will ever materialize. Ms. Duval, who lives in Mount Vernon, N.Y., had more success with a $10 rebate for a CenDyne DVD player she bought at Radio Shack last November: after 14 weeks, it finally arrived.
Ms. Duval's experiences put her in a league with the many consumers who have been tempted by rebate offers, which amounted to $10 billion last year, industry analysts say.

Bargain-hunting customers attracted by promises of low prices ''after mail-in rebate'' take the trouble to cut out bar codes, photocopy sales receipts, fill out forms and mail all of it to the manufacturer or to a fulfillment house. Then they wait, sometimes futilely, for the rebate check.

''After a year, I just give up on them,'' Ms. Duval said.

Manufacturers that take too long to send out rebate checks sometimes attract the attention of the Federal Trade Commission. In 2002 the commission charged Philips Consumer Electronics of North America with unfair and deceptive practices. Philips had promised buyers of selected computer products, like CD drives, that they would receive a rebate within eight weeks. More than 50,000 Philips consumers waited six months or more for their rebates, and others never got theirs. As part of an agreement with the trade commission, Philips promised it would process future offers more promptly.

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