How often do you send in for rebates on a product? I never do, but was just going through some things and found one from an item I bought in December. Of course in fine print it says, must send in within 60 days of purchase. Sure enough its too late and can't get my $20. I think rebates are a scam. They do it to make a products price look enticing knowing damn well the consumer half the time won't go through the hassle of sending it in.
I found a rebate last week for a 75 dollar gift card from some clothes I got in July...it was only redemable for a month. I put them in a drawer and forget about them and am then like oh shit when i find them.
my exact point I would think a consumer conscious company would just give the customer the discount up front.
i have probalbly cashed in about 500 dollars in rebates .....and yeah they are a scam ....they should reduce the price of their products at the point of sale....but this way they can take advantage of people who forget to send in their rebates ...to make a few extra bucks ...
It's genius. The are more than willing to give you the money entitled if you send it in on time. If you don't send it in, then it's your own fault for being lazy enough to let the rebate expire. You can hate the rebate, but you don't have to lose out on the money if you don't want to.
aome companies do...but you have to use their credit card which usually has really high interest so you have to be good and pay it off in a month which of course never happens so it's like you get no rebate at all because of the interest. so yeah you're pretty much screwewd anyway you look at it if it's up front or if you have to mail it.
I was cleaning out my junk in my moms drawers last week and I found a 200 dollar rebate for her lap top that she never sent in. I didn't tell her about it but she said I had no one to blame but myself for the gift card one so I am going to try to be a good daughter and not mock her. but only type A's seem to turn in rebates...no offense if you're a type a
Definitely a scam. They hope that most people are like you and forget about it. I've used a few rebates, we mail them in right away. The fine print usually says that you have to fill everything out EXACTLY as they say or you can be refused. So you have to be very careful.
I'm not whining, just forgetful that's all. All I'm saying is that I bet many companies are banking that their customers will be forgetful like me and forget to send in the rebate in time. Hence their reasoning for offering a rebate instead of the up front discount.
These actually exist? I always thought that they were a myth. Anywho, rebates are a great way to make the customer think they're getting a good deal but not lose as much money as you would with an actual sale - something like less than half of rebates are actually claimed. We learned about it in Marketing class.... it's a great deal for the company, and if you're willing to spend the time to mail it in, then you get a good deal too. Nothing I buy is ever on a rebate sale though... probably because I can't afford nice things these days
