OK - here's the best rebate story ever - seriously, try and top it.

A number of years ago I went to one of those big box electronics store
to buy 2 computer systems for my kids for Christmas. With all the
various rebates, the total "list price" of $1750 (which no one in their
right mind would ever pay) was going to be reduced to roughly $800.
When I went to check out, I was asked if I wanted to open a store
credit card. One of the features of the card was "unemployment
protection" where for a small monthly fee they would pay off 10% of the
card balance each month while the cardholder is unemployed.

Well, at the time of the purchase I was employed, but a few weeks
earlier I had been informed that I was going to be downsized at the end
of the year. Naturally I jumped on this offer. I put the $1750 on the
card and mailed in all the paperwork for the ~$950 in rebates, which I
promptly put in the bank.

Starting in January, I submitted my first un-employment claim and they
paid ~$175 toward my balance. The next month they paid ~$155, and so on
for the 6 months that I was out of work. By the time I found a job, the
balance on my card was less than the rebate money I had banked. I then
used most of the rebate money to pay off the balance of the card.

In the end, I ended up with 2 complete systems (CPU, monitors,
printers, etc) and about $50 extra in my pocket.

Nice, huh?


Barry Watzman wrote:
I totally disagree with your premis (that rebates are generally a scam
(there are some that are, but a small minority)), and as for your
"check", I almost never get an envelope at all, they are almost always
just postcards.


HeyBub wrote:
James wrote:
As has been adequately explained here before, rebates are by their
very nature a scam. There is no logical explanation for a rebate
program other than being a scam.

Here's further proof:

I got a rebate check sometime back. It came in a nondescript envelope via
"Bulk Mail" (now known as "Standard Mail").

I normally toss snail-mail-spam. Probably millions others do too. Evidently
the rebate company tried to take advantage of this social engineering
concept.