Is this available online?

I have also seen here in Indiana that Circuit City stores have been having $90 rebates on Maxtor 200 GB drives.

The only problem is that I don't want to wait 2 months for the savings to be effective; they should simply discount the product; or make it an "instant rebate."

I think they do that (rebates) because there is at least a *chance* that you won't collect on the rebate.

Just curious, but what sort of results have folks had with rebates? So far my record is zero out of about 30. I've never gotten a rebate back ever (unless it was an instant one at the cash register). Even when i've contacted various companies afterwards sending them proof that i followed the rebate requirements perfectly i still get no response. The only one response i ever got to a complaint was a half-hearted "So what, it's too late now."

I never consider rebates when pricing items anymore. As far as i'm concerned, when i see a price like $100 after manufacturers $50 mail in rebate, the price is just plain simply $150 and that's what i expect to pay.

Bestbuy, BJs, Amazon, Microsoft, Western Digital, and Dell all pay their rebates.

Top of the list to avoid is TCA Rebates. Sometimes they use different names, but the dead giveaway is the New Rochelle, NY address. They have had more complaints with the Better Business Bureau and the Attorney General's office than any other rebate company. It's been going on for many many years. They even advertise to their clients that they will guarantee a certain percentage of non-payment. I use to have a link to that ad.

Unfortunately many rebates are through a company that went the way of TCA rebates of late. That would be Rebates HQ. Staples, OfficeMax, etc all use them. Often they are a hassle to collect from. Moreover many of the rebate deals have time limits and the items are back ordered the day they are advertised so that by the time the item comes in it no longer qualifies for the rebate unless you want to spend a lot of time trying to collect.

If you are persistent you WILL collect. The last time Rebates HQ didn't pay my $50 rebate after 8 months I ended up contacting the office of the president of Staples. I had the rebate in 4 days.

John

>>> Just curious, but what sort of results have folks had with rebates? <<<

For the most part always great. Maxtor, Comp USA, Staples, Office Max, Kiplingers always 100% within the time frame they give. Never any issues. The others were very few and they have either gone out of business or I just don't deal with anymore. The ones I don't really expect are the DVD "freebie" types from Disney and such - you know "Buy two titles and send in the original receipt and UPC and get a free DVD of your choice...from these 3 titles." I just don't bother because I would never send an original receipt and the UPC would mean cutting up the usualy spiffy DVD box. :) Besides I have taken to shopping at Target when the DVD's first come out - normally the new stuff is about $15.00 there when the price at most any store that TransWorld owns costs about $10.00 more.

I've always had good results except this one time...I bought a bunch of components to build a pc for my sister, almost all of them had rebates...and then I threw all the boxes away because, hey, it wasn't MY pc, and I didn't need all those boxes around - but I never cut out the UPC codes. DOH! So, aside from my one-time extreme stupidity, no problems.

Newegg.com has WD 200 Gig for $150 for 2mg Buffer and $156 for an 8mg version. No rebates either.

I have good success with Best Buy, Comp USA, Maxtor, Western Digital, Fujifilm, Powerquest rebates.

I don't know of a rebate I've been burned on.

Out of perhaps two dozen rebates over the past 3 or 4 years, I only got stiffed on 3. One was on a "Play Piano" software product for my daughter ($20 with a $20 rebate) which simply saw the company disappear, one was on an Acer keyboard ($20), and one was a whopper, a $100 rebate on a WD 120GB drive through Dell. Dell said they wanted a "Packing Slip" and rejected my claim because I had sent them a "Packing List." After ONE YEAR of runaround I finally found a sympathetic ear in Customer Service (amazingly, someone not based in India!) and they immediately issued a $100 credit on my credit card. Wait, so that makes two out of about 24.

I agree, the big names are a safe bet. The no-names will have sometimes to be dragged, kicking and screaming, to pay up. ALWAYS make a photocopy of everything you are sending in, and then follow up in two months, and then two months later if necessary. At least the phone numbers are toll-free.

I think they're kind of fun, like I'm "gaming" the system. They're betting most people forget to send the paperwork in, so they can afford to give an aggressive rebate; in a sense I'm getting a better deal because others don't follow through. Paying $20 net for a WD 200GB drive ain't bad...

I have done dozens and dozens of rebates and collected on all of them. The only hassle was Staples who claimed I didn't sent the UPC codes. Turns out they do this with almost everyone (lots of online chatter about this). I simply don't shop at Staples anymore.

Costco has the best deal, because you can come home and do it online (they print a special receipt that has all the info you need). No cost of stamps or envelopes.

In answer to "why not simply discount at the register," the reason is simple: Only 5% of rebates are ever redeemed. Even for large rebates ($20 and up), the figure doesn't go up that much. Thus, a manufacturer or retailer can offer a rebate for almost half the price of the product, but when you factor in the percent that never collect, the effective discount is actually much smaller than most "sales" you see in stores. It is therefore a great marketing tool, because they can get the impact of a huge discount, without having to pay out much. I love them because all the fools that never apply are subsidizing my purchase.

I have done dozens and dozens of rebates and collected on all of them. The only hassle was Staples who claimed I didn't sent the UPC codes. Turns out they do this with almost everyone (lots of online chatter about this). I simply don't shop at Staples anymore.

======================

That's RebatesHQ as I was describing above. They pulled that same stunt on me.
I have been doing the rebate scene for 5 years now with lots and lots of purchases. I can tell you that the trend is moving toward more and more hassles. I have eventually collected on all rebates as well, but I (as well as many consumers according to Wall Street Journal) are sick of rebates. My purchases of items requiring rebates in the last 6 months have been limited to around 6 or so. That's a record low for me.

PS: Fujifilm does not pay all of their rebates as stated by someone above. I buy pretty much only Fuji Media for my work so I can swear to it. They are a hassle particularly if you don't apply online first before you send the stuff in.
CompUsa I'm not sure about. I haven't purchased anything with a rebate from them in 4 years because they used to use the infamous TCA Rebates of New Rochelle, NY. I guess they may have changed rebate fullfillment houses.

John

I've had very good luck with rebates over the last couple years than previously. Seems like in the late '90s, I would get massive delays on several that required follow up. Lately, I think I've done a few rebates every year from Best Buy and/or CompUSA on Maxtor hard drives, and got a fairly prompt check each time.

But I still don't really think of that rebate as really existing until its in my grubby little hands.

G

I recently bought a JVC VTR that had a $100.00 manufacturer's rebate. When I got the unit, a certificate of rebate was in the box with the VTR - but it was a photocopy and not the original document. I called JVC to make sure that this was okay, and they said it wasn't. So I called the vendor I purchased the unit from, and they told me that JVC was wrong - they said that JVC WOULD honor my rebate and that I should just send it in. Well, to make a long story short, I talked to the vendor two more times and they finally agreed to send me the original certificate. When I received the proper document, I filled it in, sent it to JVC and got my $100.00 a week later... I also got a *W-9 from JVC (with the check). :-P

*FYI non US forum members. A W-9 is a tax form that US companies (usually) send to private contractors or others that they have paid for their services, it allows them to show to whom they've paid income to for services (usually).

Shawn

Craftech,

Where did you buy your FujiFilm media? I have never had to go online prior to the rebate. I think I have bought all my FujiFim media through Best Buy and have not had a hassle. With BestBuy they print the rebate form and the rebate receipt when you check out, so maybe that route is less hassle-prone.

Kevin

Regarding rebates... I ALWAYS get my rebates. So far around 20. I make a photocopy of whatever I send, put the date sent on my copy, and the date the rebate is expected to be delivered, plus a contact phone number (or web address to check status). After a few weeks I call and ask about the status of my rebate. Many times, that inquiry alone results in the check arriving within a week or so. At worst, after a few more weeks I call back a second time. So far all rebates have been received within the time frame advertised.

Read this for insight into why companies offer rebates:
http://www.techrebates.com/rebates.asp