Watch out with TDK rebates

  • Thread starter Thread starter george
  • Start date Start date
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george

A rebate check doesn't seem to be a given. I bought a TDK internal DVD
burner, sent in all the things, but instead of a rebate I got only a letter
saying that the serial number sticker and the UPC code were missing from my
envelope and I have to send them (another set? from where?) in by 6/15 to
get any money.

Okay, I'll be out of $30, not a major loss... I'm only writing this to let
you people know what's happening. If you buy some rebate TDK product, you
might want to consider its pre-rebate cost as the final price.
 
You don't happen to remember where the rebate was supposed to come from,
by any chance?

I've had problems with only one rebate provider, and they (Parago, aka
the Rebate Center) are in Miami. Among other things, they pulled the
same trick on me with a Targus rebate for something from CompUSA. I had
my receipt, so I fought with them for several months. Eventually they
paid $10 rather than the $20 Targus promised, but at least they paid.

Before buying something with a rebate, I now look to see where the
rebate gets sent. When it says Miami, I basically write the rebate off.
It's saved me a lot of money, as many goods I find with rebates aren't
worth buying immediately without the rebate (and for me, Parago usually
amounts to no rebate, or rebate with lots of hassle).

I also know that Parago handles a lot of Staples rebates, but apparently
that's a different side of their house, as the Staples rebates I've
applied for are promptly honored.
 
A rebate check doesn't seem to be a given. I bought a TDK internal
DVD burner, sent in all the things, but instead of a rebate I got
only a letter saying that the serial number sticker and the UPC code
were missing from my envelope and I have to send them (another set?
from where?) in by 6/15 to get any money.

Okay, I'll be out of $30, not a major loss... I'm only writing this
to let you people know what's happening. If you buy some rebate TDK
product, you might want to consider its pre-rebate cost as the final
price.
Click to expand...

This is standard operating procedure for all companies that offer
"rebates". It's been my experience that most of them won't give you
your rebate until you start threatening them with lawsuits.

Write some letters. If that doesn't work, write to your state's
attorney general. You may never get your $30, but if enough people
write letters, you may get lucky enough to get law enforcement
involved.

I, too, am waiting on a TDK rebate ($10). I fully expect them to
send me a really nice form letter full of legalese that translates to
"go screw yourself and the horse you rode in on."

-- David
 
Abbott Schindler said:
You don't happen to remember where the rebate was supposed to come from,
by any chance?
Click to expand...

(Digging deep down into my trash can...)
Here it is: "TDK 4X indiDVD Internal DVD Burner MIR Program
c/o Customer Care Department
PO Box 100446 - TAP
White Bear Lake, MN 55110-0446"

In plain English, a made up company, c/o his father's mailbox out in the
boondocks.
(Throwing the letter back into the can)
 
You don't happen to remember where the rebate was supposed to come from,
by any chance?

I've had problems with only one rebate provider, and they (Parago, aka
the Rebate Center) are in Miami. Among other things, they pulled the
same trick on me with a Targus rebate for something from CompUSA. I had
my receipt, so I fought with them for several months. Eventually they
paid $10 rather than the $20 Targus promised, but at least they paid.

Before buying something with a rebate, I now look to see where the
rebate gets sent. When it says Miami, I basically write the rebate off.
It's saved me a lot of money, as many goods I find with rebates aren't
worth buying immediately without the rebate (and for me, Parago usually
amounts to no rebate, or rebate with lots of hassle).

I also know that Parago handles a lot of Staples rebates, but apparently
that's a different side of their house, as the Staples rebates I've
applied for are promptly honored.
Click to expand...

About 10 years ago HP was offering rebates on ink jets, so I got one
and sent in the rebate. I never got it so I called HP customer service
and they said they had to get another company to do the rebates. Not
long after I got the rebate with an apology for taking so long.

Crooked rebate companies can be off yodelling in the Alps before the
original company finds out. You need to stay on top of things and let
the original company know what's happened.
 
This is standard operating procedure for all companies that offer
"rebates".
Click to expand...

Not all, just some crooked ones.

Contact TDK directly on the phone immediately - they do not want bad
publicity.
 
Rebates are far from desirable. I greatly dislike them. I have used
rebates with great reluctance.

I have gotten rebates from TDK, but they took several (about 3 as I
recall) months to arrive.

COMPUSA rebate I submitted once took 6 months! Not a fun situation.

I know the companies have marketing/accounting/tax benefits for this
type of marketing. And they tie up your money and have "FREE" use of
your money for months at at time as well.

Morenuf
 
David C. ([email protected]) wrote:
: (e-mail address removed) (george) writes:
: >
: > A rebate check doesn't seem to be a given. I bought a TDK internal
: > DVD burner, sent in all the things, but instead of a rebate I got
: > only a letter saying that the serial number sticker and the UPC code
: > were missing from my envelope and I have to send them (another set?
: > from where?) in by 6/15 to get any money.
: >
: > Okay, I'll be out of $30, not a major loss... I'm only writing this
: > to let you people know what's happening. If you buy some rebate TDK
: > product, you might want to consider its pre-rebate cost as the final
: > price.

: This is standard operating procedure for all companies that offer
: "rebates". It's been my experience that most of them won't give you
: your rebate until you start threatening them with lawsuits.

: Write some letters. If that doesn't work, write to your state's
: attorney general. You may never get your $30, but if enough people
: write letters, you may get lucky enough to get law enforcement
: involved.

Guess I've been fortunate. Two rebates in the last year - one with
Microsoft, the other with Western Digital. Both came through as promised
($30 and $70 respectively).

Is there a site other than the BBB to alert customers to this? Or
retailors, for that matter.



: I, too, am waiting on a TDK rebate ($10). I fully expect them to
: send me a really nice form letter full of legalese that translates to
: "go screw yourself and the horse you rode in on."

: -- David
 
David C. said:
This is standard operating procedure for all companies that offer
"rebates". It's been my experience that most of them won't give you
your rebate until you start threatening them with lawsuits.

Write some letters. If that doesn't work, write to your state's
attorney general. You may never get your $30, but if enough people
write letters, you may get lucky enough to get law enforcement
involved.

I, too, am waiting on a TDK rebate ($10). I fully expect them to
send me a really nice form letter full of legalese that translates to
"go screw yourself and the horse you rode in on."

-- David
Click to expand...

I have done rebates a lot mostly on computer parts. Of 200 submitted, I only
got 3 problems and I am sure that I didn't do it properly for 2 of them (cut
wrong barcodes because there were more than one). And yes, I have no
problems with the TDK buners (actually I bought two, so one rebate check I
had it mailed to my sister.)
 
Here it is: "TDK 4X indiDVD Internal DVD Burner MIR Program
c/o Customer Care Department
PO Box 100446 - TAP
White Bear Lake, MN 55110-0446"

In plain English, a made up company, c/o his father's mailbox
out in the boondocks.
(Throwing the letter back into the can)
Click to expand...

Most companies use outside rebate processors, and according to the
"Rebate Company Information" thread in the www.fatwallet.com "Rebate
Tracking" forum (great website, lots of information about fixing
rebate problems) that TDK rebate is being handled by
www.helgesonnet.com, whose website gives this contact info:

Address:
Helgeson Enterprises
4461 White Bear Parkway
White Bear Lake, MN 55110-7626

Inquiries to:
Paul Wright
Business Development Manager
Phone: 651.762.9714
Fax: 651.762.9701
Toll Free: 866.762.9700
E-mail: (e-mail address removed)

I've never used this company, but it's far more likely for rebate
processors to lose items after they receive them than for the Post
Office to lose them or for customers to forget them. One company
claimed that I had left out a proof of purchase and returned
everything I had sent them -- including the item they said had been
missing.

It helps greatly if you attach things like UPCs, receipts, and other
proofs of purchase to the rebate form -- one person at FatWallet.com
ran a test and found a very high failure rate when UPCs were just left
loose in the envelope. But don't use anything that can jam
envelope-opening machines, like paperclips, and I'm not sure if even
staples are safe. I use stick glue in one corner so that the item
will be secure but can still be pulled off without causing much
damage, but a teeny drop of white glue is also OK. Small items, like
UPCs, should be glued to a 3" x 5" piece of paper, and on all items
you should write your name and address and the rebate information
(offer number, product, rebate amount).

In my experience with hundreds of rebates, there will be a problem in
about 1 in 4 submissions, half of those being delays of over thirty
days in delivery, the rest requiring contacting the rebate processor
to straighten out mistakes or resubmitting materials. The Post Office
is very, very reliable, contrary to what the companies claim (one
person at FatWallet.com tested with certified, return signature mail,
and rebate companies lost half of those mailings), and I don't think
that they've ever failed to deliver any of my submissions (or maybe
notorious TCA Fulfillment -- New Rochelle, NY, really did lose both of
my resubmissions).

I photocopy everything, not just receipts, UPCs, and other proofs of
purchase but also rebate forms and even the store ads. The store ad
can help in cases where two similar products have rebate offers but
the processing company claims that you can get a rebate on only one of
them. And it's important to copy the rebate form because it turns out
that the terms and conditions printed on it sometimes differe from the
ones on record with the rebate company. Better yet, grab additional
original rebate forms and store ads because some companies may claim
that you altered your copies. That happened to me with Best Buy,
which misprinted the expiration date on a cash register-generated
rebate form, but fortunately I had an extra original, and they tried
to claim that it too was a fake (Best Buy is one of the most dishonest
major retailers, staffed by dumb, obedient cult members).
 
Abbott Schindler said:
I've had problems with only one rebate provider, and they
(Parago, aka the Rebate Center) are in Miami. Among other
things, they pulled the same trick on me with a Targus
rebate for something from CompUSA. I had my receipt, so
I fought with them for several months. Eventually they paid
$10 rather than the $20 Targus promised, but at least they paid.
Click to expand...
Before buying something with a rebate, I now look to see where the
rebate gets sent. When it says Miami, I basically write the rebate off.
Click to expand...

I've found that Parago is one of the best rebate processors, but you
have to ask to speak to a supervisor or else you'll be stuck with
their call center (the employees there aren't given much authority).
Also the rebate terms & conditions that they have on record may differ
significantly from those on your rebate form, and Parago has tried to
reject some of my submissions because of this.

According to someone who's sued over rebate rejections, the store that
advertised the rebate offer can be held responsible for fulfilling it,
so I would have contacted the dealer of that Targus product. Some,
like Staples and OfficeMax, have been great about straighting out
matters, but Best Buy is run by lying Nazis who simply parrot their
brainwashing (the company must be run by a drunk, according to the
Forbes magazine cover that featured him). Also some people have
simply submitted a billing error complaint in writing (mailed, not
Fed-Exed) to their credit card company get their money.
 
According to someone who's sued over rebate rejections, the store that
advertised the rebate offer can be held responsible for fulfilling it,
so I would have contacted the dealer of that Targus product. Some,
like Staples and OfficeMax, have been great about straighting out
matters, but Best Buy is run by lying Nazis who simply parrot their
brainwashing (the company must be run by a drunk, according to the
Forbes magazine cover that featured him). Also some people have
simply submitted a billing error complaint in writing (mailed, not
Fed-Exed) to their credit card company get their money.
Click to expand...

Yep, they are responsible because they are the ones that advertise the
product at post rebate price. I made a store here give me the rebate
amount when D-Link rejected my rebate saying that the store was not a
valid participant, which they were. It worked out well for me in the
end though as D-Link finally honored the rebate about a month or so
after the store had already reimbursed me so I ended up with double
the rebate amount. Do I feel guilty? Hell no.
 
(e-mail address removed) (george) wrote in
A rebate check doesn't seem to be a given. I bought a TDK internal DVD
burner, sent in all the things, but instead of a rebate I got only a
letter saying that the serial number sticker and the UPC code were
missing from my envelope and I have to send them (another set? from
where?) in by 6/15 to get any money.

Okay, I'll be out of $30, not a major loss... I'm only writing this to
let you people know what's happening. If you buy some rebate TDK
product, you might want to consider its pre-rebate cost as the final
price.
Click to expand...

Normally, rebate houses let you fax in your copies...
 
I, too, am waiting on a TDK rebate ($10). I fully expect them to
send me a really nice form letter full of legalese that translates
to "go screw yourself and the horse you rode in on."
Click to expand...

Well, I've been pleasantly surprised this time.

I got an e-mail from TDK on June 3 with an ID number. According to
their web site, it's been approved and was mailed on June 11.

I still believe it is foolish to count on receiving rebates from any
company - in my personal experience, way too many have been "lost" for
it to be coincidence - but this one seems to have worked out OK.

-- David
 
David C. said:
(e-mail address removed) (David C.) writes:
I still believe it is foolish to count on receiving rebates from any
company - in my personal experience, way too many have been "lost" for
it to be coincidence - but this one seems to have worked out OK.
Click to expand...

The rule for "rebating companies "is;
When the amount of time the customer wastes in following
up on his rebate equals an inverse amount to double the rebate
send it to him.
Xeno
 
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