How many times have you walked into a store or went to a retail outlet on the Internet to buy some item at a great price, only to find that you had to pay full price at the store and then send in for a rebate?
It has happened to me more times than I care to remember. Although I have never been cheated, I still don't like the fact that you have to do it in the first place. I set up a system at home so that when I send in for a rebate, there is always something to remind me that it hasn't come in yet (I think it is called a tickler system). When the rebate check arrives, the tickler is deactivated (so to speak).
Of course, the reason rebates are used rather than giving the customer a lower price at the checkout is because so many people forget to send them in, thereby saving the manufacturer a great deal of money. I have forgotten to do that with a couple of small rebates.
Rebates are often used in the technology business. I once got a $100 rebate on a printer and a $50 rebate on a hard drive. You bet I sent those in...and got them, too.
Here is a true story: I once had a $5.00 rebate coupon for an item and was about ready to send it in. Then I read the fine print: They wanted a check included for $4.50 for a handling charge. My net gain of 50 cents was obviously not worth it.
The reason I bring this up is that I recently read two interesting articles about rebates in one of the technical journals I subscribe to, so I thought you might also find it interesting. Click here for the first article, then scroll down just a very short way and you will see it.
When you are done, click here for a followup article with true stories from readers about there experiences with rebates. It is definitely worth it.
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