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December 7, 2004 09:18 PM

The Trouble With Rebates


Excerpt: Faced with falling prices and a stream of new products that threaten the already brief shelf lives of existing ones, manufacturers and retailers of computers, peripherals and software are relying more and more on rebates to attract customers. And for more and more customers, the experience of redeeming the rebate, like Ms. Forrest's, is not a pleasant one.


LIKE many bargain hunters, Rosemary Forrest makes a point of mailing in rebate coupons when she purchases computer equipment. So when she bought a Microtek scanner in June from a catalogue and sent in the rebate application, Ms. Forrest knew that she would probably have to wait at least two months before seeing the $50 check in the mail.

Eight weeks later, Ms. Forrest, of Augusta, Ga., did get something in the mail from the company Microtek had hired to handle its rebate program. But instead of a check, it was a letter explaining that she had sent in the wrong bar code from the scanner box. What's more, she had a deadline two days away in which to send in the correct one, or she would not receive the check.

''They can take eight weeks and they give me two days?'' Ms. Forrest asked. ''If it hadn't been for the rebate, I would have bought a different scanner.'' Although Ms. Forrest mailed the correct bar code the same day, six more weeks have gone by with no check in sight.

Faced with falling prices and a stream of new products that threaten the already brief shelf lives of existing ones, manufacturers and retailers of computers, peripherals and software are relying more and more on rebates to attract customers. And for more and more customers, the experience of redeeming the rebate, like Ms. Forrest's, is not a pleasant one.

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Read all 21 posts in the same category of Spending:

Cell Phone Calls In Flight? - Dec 09, 2004
Holiday Tipping - Dec 09, 2004
Tunes Coming To Callers? - Dec 08, 2004
Electronic Ways to Pay Eclipse Checks in Number - Dec 07, 2004
Customers Tire of Excuses for Rebates That Never Arrive - Dec 07, 2004
'Phishing' Attacks Surge In 2004 - Dec 06, 2004
Bush Signs Internet Tax, Special Ed Bills - Dec 05, 2004
The Wide World Of Online Shopping - Dec 04, 2004
Shopbots: Your Own Automated Shopping Assistant On The Web - Dec 04, 2004
Traveler: Know Your Options - Dec 04, 2004
Worried Merchants Throw Discounts at Shoppers - Dec 04, 2004
Regifting 101 - Dec 02, 2004
Health Costs Up 7.5% - Dec 02, 2004
5 Popular Holiday Shopping Scams - Nov 30, 2004
Slick Tips for Holiday Shopping - Nov 28, 2004
Give Gifts That Give Back - Nov 28, 2004
Tips For Stretching Your Holiday Budget - Nov 26, 2004
Meet The Bargain Hunters: Three Everyday Experts Share Their Tips - Nov 26, 2004
Smart Holiday Shopping - Nov 25, 2004
Some Shoppers Find Fewer Happy Returns - Nov 07, 2004