HappyCruiser383 Posted September 27, 2007 Posted September 27, 2007 Ok, I stood in line for 3 hours and got some fantastic deals. $80 MIR! $30 MIR! Another MIR for $30. then I went to 3 other stores. All total, I had a grand total of about $400 in rebates. Only ONE rebate was paid on schedule. That was HP for $80. All others required me to make multiple phone calls to find out there was no such PO box or they didn't receive my papers or or or or. I didn't start seeing the money back until the begining of August. Kohl's was kind enough to send me the rebate in the form of a gift card (I was happy to get that after 6 months). I will never buy anything with a MIR again. Did you know that two states have sued the company in MN for not processing the money properly? Please share your stories. . . and thanks for listening. I'm hoping that I can help somebody else avoid the hassles that I had.
Marcster Posted September 27, 2007 Posted September 27, 2007 Two BFs ago, we bought a Olevia TV from OfficeDepot. Olevia took 5 months to pay the $200 rebate. http://s23.photobucket.com/albums/b399/Marcster2005/Smileypad/Rude/raspa.gif
bigjimslade Posted September 27, 2007 Posted September 27, 2007 I shop BB becuase there are no rebates.
i.feature Posted September 27, 2007 Posted September 27, 2007 I never consider a MIR a "great" deal. Very few of them end up being simple or fast.
freesia39 Posted September 27, 2007 Posted September 27, 2007 i get most of my rebates on time. the only one i never received was for a soyo motherboard, and any amount of pushing i'll never see it. make sure you always: 1. fill out the form NEATLY. 2. make photocopies of everything. EVERYTHING. 3. cut the UPC neatly. 4. if you're VERY paranoid about the date stamp, i ran the envelope through the meter mail machine at work, then photocopied the envelope for further backup. or you can get a certificate of mailing from the post office. 5. follow directions to the letter. if it says "do not staple" believe me, do not staple.
billcsho Posted September 27, 2007 Posted September 27, 2007 Rebates can be tricky if you are not used to it. I filed 27 rebates for BF2005 and 28 for BF2006. All the rebate checks (total ~$400) for BF2005 came in within 8-12 weeks after submission. For BF2006, half of the rebate checks (total ~$745) took longer than 12 weeks. The longest one took almost 4 months (not my record in rebate processing time though). It also took 1 e-mail and 1 phone call to get two rebate problems solved. I did not have details record for 2004 and earlier, but the trend clearly shows: 1. The amount per rebate is getting bigger (i.e. more money out of pocket initially). 2. Longer processing time. 3. More excuses in denial. Anyway, I have been getting near 100% success rate (only a few failed in the past 10 years or so). The keys are: 1. Never buy products from manufacturers with bad rebate record. 2. Trust only good rebate processing centers (Rite-aid, Parago [symantex, McAfee, CA, Staples,..], Costco, etc). 3. Do it only if it really worths the effort (Deep discount, Free after rebate, or even make some money). Don't forget you need to pay the postage and spend time on it. Forget about it if it is only $5 or less. 4. Buy the items you really need not just because of the rebate (except for items that can make money after rebate from a source with good reputation). 5. File online submission (or at least pre-submission) whenever possible. This would reduce processing time and human error. Best of all, you'll get a tracking number immediately. 6. Do not consider rebates without any tracking options on the form (online or toll free number). By the way, I just submitted 11 rebates last month and I got 8 validated already. I am going to make ~$100, get 2 free softwares, 2 flash drives, plus a free printer from those rebates. So there is nothing wrong in MIR for me.
jaymacfla Posted September 28, 2007 Posted September 28, 2007 Ok, I stood in line for 3 hours and got some fantastic deals. $80 MIR! $30 MIR! Another MIR for $30. then I went to 3 other stores. All total, I had a grand total of about $400 in rebates. Only ONE rebate was paid on schedule. That was HP for $80. All others required me to make multiple phone calls to find out there was no such PO box or they didn't receive my papers or or or or. I didn't start seeing the money back until the begining of August. Kohl's was kind enough to send me the rebate in the form of a gift card (I was happy to get that after 6 months). I will never buy anything with a MIR again. Did you know that two states have sued the company in MN for not processing the money properly? Please share your stories. . . and thanks for listening. I'm hoping that I can help somebody else avoid the hassles that I had.One company got busted by a reporter that found over 1000 unopened rebate submissions in the company dumpster!
billcsho Posted September 28, 2007 Posted September 28, 2007 That was in California and they process Frys.com rebates.
Rebirth Posted September 28, 2007 Posted September 28, 2007 Never had problems with OM, BB, MC or Staples. All came. The slowest was OM, it was like 2 1/2 months. All others were 2 months or less.
jellybean051901 Posted September 28, 2007 Posted September 28, 2007 I had trouble with MIr also. They sent it back to me after month saying I didn't have the required papers which I did. When I tried to call they told me it was too late to get the rebate even though it was their mistake
billcsho Posted September 28, 2007 Posted September 28, 2007 I always take an active role in tracking rebate. I would not submit a rebate if there is no online tracking or at least a toll free number on the form.
len_mullen Posted September 28, 2007 Posted September 28, 2007 My rebates are mostly Staples EasyRebates these days, but there was a time when I frequented a lot of stores that had rebates and, for the most part, I had great success. Two stores -- Best Buy and OfficeMax -- failed to fulfill. In both cases, I ended up getting a rebate check and a consolation check. Best Buy was a BB gift card with purchase of a Western Digital drive. WD said BB would not send them gift cards to fulfill the rebates and BB said it was a WD promotion. In the end, I got a check ffom WD and a gift card from BB. OfficeMax was the worst. I have to thank BF for getting that one. I threatened to stand outside one of their stores handing out fliers on BF if the problem was not resolved before. The check arrived two days before and a colsolation check soon followed. I have not used a rebate from either store since. One large ATI rebate went unfulfilled about the time AMD bought the company. I fully expected to get stiffed on that as ATI had been difficult to work with. To my delight, AMD fulfillment was very helpful. I think, in all, I have missed out on two or three of the thousands of rebates I have submitted over the years. One of those was my fault. The important thing is to scan/copy everything and follow up as soon as the promise date passes. Be sure to get the name and number of each person you talk to and make a record of the conversation including promises, the date, and the time. That said, I can get nearly everything I want at Staples and their rebates are easy and reliable, so I tend to avoid rebating elsewhere.
nirvana4all Posted September 29, 2007 Posted September 29, 2007 With the exception of one $10 MIR from best buy about 2 years back, I must say that I am 100%...so all told, that is probably like 34 for 35 in the past 5 years.
solenita Posted September 30, 2007 Posted September 30, 2007 I had over a $100 that I was due from circuit city. I submitted them on Black Friday last year and it was May or June before I got them, I had to call them a few times....but then they paid them all twice...so I can't complain about that!! I'll just call it, umm....interest!
bfshoppergirl Posted September 30, 2007 Posted September 30, 2007 I always do MIR on BF at Staples and have never had a problem, did Comp USA last year and didn't have any problems either. Most stores offer online rebate info so you don't mail in anything.
jarerice Posted September 30, 2007 Posted September 30, 2007 i hate rebates!!! I don't trust them at all!
Marcster Posted September 30, 2007 Posted September 30, 2007 i hate rebates!!! I don't trust them at all!Staples Easy Rebates are practically guaranteed though... All you have to do is fill out the form on their Web site, there is nothing to get mailed in. A month later (after the return policy is over) they cut you a check. Easy peasy. http://i23.photobucket.com/albums/b399/Marcster2005/Smileys/ok.gif
Fishboysmom Posted October 1, 2007 Posted October 1, 2007 I have always sent my envelopes certified mail for the larger rebates. This way they cannot say they never received it. Worth the few extra bucks IMO.
Marcster Posted October 1, 2007 Posted October 1, 2007 I have always sent my envelopes certified mail for the larger rebates. This way they cannot say they never received it. Worth the few extra bucks IMO.Ah, but they can always say that the envelope was empty or that your submission was "incomplete". http://s23.photobucket.com/albums/b399/Marcster2005/Smileypad/NO/no.gif
Gurnee Al Posted October 1, 2007 Posted October 1, 2007 We've had so many problems with OfficeMax rebates that we refuse to shop there any more (not just for BF but all the time).You can go back to Office Max. They stopped all rebates several months ago!
guilliam Posted October 1, 2007 Posted October 1, 2007 Ihad one rebate for $25 2 years ago from tigerdirect.com that I never received. They say they guarantee their rebates. But ONLY if you make them have to sign for it when they recieve it. Last purchase I will make from them
Kimp67 Posted October 1, 2007 Posted October 1, 2007 Guess I'm lucky, I think I've always gotten mine
krstee Posted October 2, 2007 Posted October 2, 2007 I love the Easy Rebates through STaples. They are the most hassle-free. I have done others, and for the most part, I have gotten them all. I actually can't remember a rebate that I submitted, that I haven't gotten. Granted, I don't do too many - and I try to stay away from the multiple rebates offers (like BB used to do years back where they'd have their rebates as well as the manu's rebates). Those seemed to be too crazy and there were too many receipts and copies to keep up with. I am hoping that rebates will be kept at a minimum this BF - since most people don't like 'em anyway... :)
AndreaInNC Posted October 2, 2007 Posted October 2, 2007 NC just signed into law that the company processing the rebate has to give you the rebate within 60 days. I had the worst time with rebates on two separate purchases from PC Connections.com. They were awful, I waited over 6 months for each rebate and I still never got them from the rebate company. But kudos to PC Connections, they gave me the rebate right back to my credit card.
shopping mom Posted October 2, 2007 Posted October 2, 2007 I am having trouble with ALLTEL. I had to fax them everything they said they were missing items,( I did not want to pay postage agian) funny that I had all the copies, but they have nothing. It seems that sometimes the larger the rebate the bigger the hassle.
lhemrich Posted October 2, 2007 Posted October 2, 2007 Two years ago I went to Radio Shack and bought several items that had mail-in rebates. I had terrible problems and never did get all my rebates. AND the portable dvd players quit working within 3 months and Radio Shack would not stand behind the product because I had not purchased the extended warranty (it was more than the dvd player). I have not and will never go into Radio Shack again - BF or otherwise!
Rojo Posted October 4, 2007 Posted October 4, 2007 Printed off sale and rebate coupons for Black Friday days last year. All coupons were good except for the one for Toys R Us...they said that they were counterfit and would not take them
billcsho Posted October 5, 2007 Posted October 5, 2007 Two years ago I went to Radio Shack and bought several items that had mail-in rebates. I had terrible problems and never did get all my rebates. AND the portable dvd players quit working within 3 months and Radio Shack would not stand behind the product because I had not purchased the extended warranty (it was more than the dvd player). I have not and will never go into Radio Shack again - BF or otherwise!I guess they were processed by OnRebate, one of the worse processor. I did get 3 out 3 from them though, but you have to be extra careful and follow the instruction word by word in submitting their rebates. They have very strange rules that can easily invalidate your submission.
pottsie66 Posted October 5, 2007 Posted October 5, 2007 I am still waiting on a $100 rebate from my computer monitor that I ordered from Woot last year. The company the processes the rebate sent me an email stating they had run out of money for the rebates. I have never heard anything like that. I definitely got ripped off!!
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