Complaint Review: CompUSA - Mount Laurel New Jersey

I wanted to clarify that I do not hold the Mount Laurel store responsible in any way for this: this is out of their hands, it's "corporate" that lost the UPC code. In response to Kevin's response, perhaps "gross" incompetence is legally an overly strong term, but it's gross to me, due to the amount of the rebate, and due to the fact that they not only lost the UPC code but also lost any record of my first call or request to have the envelope pulled. That's bungling. I have rec'd rebates from CompUSA before, but directly from the manufacturer, not CompUSA themselves. I don't 'know if there is a statute of limitations on this sort of thing, as I've been too caught up in other things recently to really persue this - exactly what I think some of these rebaters are counting on - so now I'm not sure if I should cut my losses or what.

I wanted to clarify that I do not hold the Mount Laurel store responsible in any way for this: this is out of their hands, it's "corporate" that lost the UPC code. In response to Kevin's response, perhaps "gross" incompetence is legally an overly strong term, but it's gross to me, due to the amount of the rebate, and due to the fact that they not only lost the UPC code but also lost any record of my first call or request to have the envelope pulled. That's bungling. I have rec'd rebates from CompUSA before, but directly from the manufacturer, not CompUSA themselves. I don't 'know if there is a statute of limitations on this sort of thing, as I've been too caught up in other things recently to really persue this - exactly what I think some of these rebaters are counting on - so now I'm not sure if I should cut my losses or what.

I wanted to clarify that I do not hold the Mount Laurel store responsible in any way for this: this is out of their hands, it's "corporate" that lost the UPC code. In response to Kevin's response, perhaps "gross" incompetence is legally an overly strong term, but it's gross to me, due to the amount of the rebate, and due to the fact that they not only lost the UPC code but also lost any record of my first call or request to have the envelope pulled. That's bungling. I have rec'd rebates from CompUSA before, but directly from the manufacturer, not CompUSA themselves. I don't 'know if there is a statute of limitations on this sort of thing, as I've been too caught up in other things recently to really persue this - exactly what I think some of these rebaters are counting on - so now I'm not sure if I should cut my losses or what.

I wanted to clarify that I do not hold the Mount Laurel store responsible in any way for this: this is out of their hands, it's "corporate" that lost the UPC code. In response to Kevin's response, perhaps "gross" incompetence is legally an overly strong term, but it's gross to me, due to the amount of the rebate, and due to the fact that they not only lost the UPC code but also lost any record of my first call or request to have the envelope pulled. That's bungling. I have rec'd rebates from CompUSA before, but directly from the manufacturer, not CompUSA themselves. I don't 'know if there is a statute of limitations on this sort of thing, as I've been too caught up in other things recently to really persue this - exactly what I think some of these rebaters are counting on - so now I'm not sure if I should cut my losses or what.

I am an employee of the CompUSA in which you purchased your item. I can't really offer you much of an explanation as to why the company did not honor your rebate, but I can say that I have never had such an experience. In addition to being an employee, I am a frequent customer. In fact, roughly 50% of my paycheck is returned to the store every other week. I have purchased roughly 7 items associated with rebates in the past year: four from the manufacturer and three from CompUSA. The average rebate amount was about $50. I have receieved all but one of these rebates, and I expect the final one to arrive in the coming weeks. I do occasionally hear customers report not having received their rebates-- but far less frequently than I hear customers inform me that they have receieved them. The explanation I can offer you is that CompUSA deals with an enormous volume of rebate requests. You purchased your printer in February, a month during which the company is in the middle of processing all of the holiday rebates. It is probable that your UPC code was lost because of that circumstance. I wouldn't attribute the possible mix up to "gross incompetence". Another question you raised asked about the practicality of CompUSA rebates vis-a-vis manufacturer rebates. You mentioned that you understand the manufacturer offering rebates, but not the store. To me, both make good business sense. You offer a rebate when you want to attract customers by a sale price-whether you are a retailer or a manufacturer. Only a percentage of customers actually return the rebates. The company hangs on to more money with mail in rebates than with instant sales. The same principle applies with "money back guarantees". Conceptually, it sounds nice. It is one more feature to guide you to purchase the product. But how likely are you to actually go through the trouble of sending the product back if you aren't fully satisfied? Most people won't. You have to understand that even though CompUSA, or any other retail store or company for that matter, takes pride in serving customers, the bottom line is all about money. Rebates are a hairy area, but I wanted to contradict the tone of your letter by offering my contention that rebates are generally honored.

I am an employee of the CompUSA in which you purchased your item. I can't really offer you much of an explanation as to why the company did not honor your rebate, but I can say that I have never had such an experience. In addition to being an employee, I am a frequent customer. In fact, roughly 50% of my paycheck is returned to the store every other week. I have purchased roughly 7 items associated with rebates in the past year: four from the manufacturer and three from CompUSA. The average rebate amount was about $50. I have receieved all but one of these rebates, and I expect the final one to arrive in the coming weeks. I do occasionally hear customers report not having received their rebates-- but far less frequently than I hear customers inform me that they have receieved them. The explanation I can offer you is that CompUSA deals with an enormous volume of rebate requests. You purchased your printer in February, a month during which the company is in the middle of processing all of the holiday rebates. It is probable that your UPC code was lost because of that circumstance. I wouldn't attribute the possible mix up to "gross incompetence". Another question you raised asked about the practicality of CompUSA rebates vis-a-vis manufacturer rebates. You mentioned that you understand the manufacturer offering rebates, but not the store. To me, both make good business sense. You offer a rebate when you want to attract customers by a sale price-whether you are a retailer or a manufacturer. Only a percentage of customers actually return the rebates. The company hangs on to more money with mail in rebates than with instant sales. The same principle applies with "money back guarantees". Conceptually, it sounds nice. It is one more feature to guide you to purchase the product. But how likely are you to actually go through the trouble of sending the product back if you aren't fully satisfied? Most people won't. You have to understand that even though CompUSA, or any other retail store or company for that matter, takes pride in serving customers, the bottom line is all about money. Rebates are a hairy area, but I wanted to contradict the tone of your letter by offering my contention that rebates are generally honored.

I am an employee of the CompUSA in which you purchased your item. I can't really offer you much of an explanation as to why the company did not honor your rebate, but I can say that I have never had such an experience. In addition to being an employee, I am a frequent customer. In fact, roughly 50% of my paycheck is returned to the store every other week. I have purchased roughly 7 items associated with rebates in the past year: four from the manufacturer and three from CompUSA. The average rebate amount was about $50. I have receieved all but one of these rebates, and I expect the final one to arrive in the coming weeks. I do occasionally hear customers report not having received their rebates-- but far less frequently than I hear customers inform me that they have receieved them. The explanation I can offer you is that CompUSA deals with an enormous volume of rebate requests. You purchased your printer in February, a month during which the company is in the middle of processing all of the holiday rebates. It is probable that your UPC code was lost because of that circumstance. I wouldn't attribute the possible mix up to "gross incompetence". Another question you raised asked about the practicality of CompUSA rebates vis-a-vis manufacturer rebates. You mentioned that you understand the manufacturer offering rebates, but not the store. To me, both make good business sense. You offer a rebate when you want to attract customers by a sale price-whether you are a retailer or a manufacturer. Only a percentage of customers actually return the rebates. The company hangs on to more money with mail in rebates than with instant sales. The same principle applies with "money back guarantees". Conceptually, it sounds nice. It is one more feature to guide you to purchase the product. But how likely are you to actually go through the trouble of sending the product back if you aren't fully satisfied? Most people won't. You have to understand that even though CompUSA, or any other retail store or company for that matter, takes pride in serving customers, the bottom line is all about money. Rebates are a hairy area, but I wanted to contradict the tone of your letter by offering my contention that rebates are generally honored.

I am an employee of the CompUSA in which you purchased your item. I can't really offer you much of an explanation as to why the company did not honor your rebate, but I can say that I have never had such an experience. In addition to being an employee, I am a frequent customer. In fact, roughly 50% of my paycheck is returned to the store every other week. I have purchased roughly 7 items associated with rebates in the past year: four from the manufacturer and three from CompUSA. The average rebate amount was about $50. I have receieved all but one of these rebates, and I expect the final one to arrive in the coming weeks. I do occasionally hear customers report not having received their rebates-- but far less frequently than I hear customers inform me that they have receieved them. The explanation I can offer you is that CompUSA deals with an enormous volume of rebate requests. You purchased your printer in February, a month during which the company is in the middle of processing all of the holiday rebates. It is probable that your UPC code was lost because of that circumstance. I wouldn't attribute the possible mix up to "gross incompetence". Another question you raised asked about the practicality of CompUSA rebates vis-a-vis manufacturer rebates. You mentioned that you understand the manufacturer offering rebates, but not the store. To me, both make good business sense. You offer a rebate when you want to attract customers by a sale price-whether you are a retailer or a manufacturer. Only a percentage of customers actually return the rebates. The company hangs on to more money with mail in rebates than with instant sales. The same principle applies with "money back guarantees". Conceptually, it sounds nice. It is one more feature to guide you to purchase the product. But how likely are you to actually go through the trouble of sending the product back if you aren't fully satisfied? Most people won't. You have to understand that even though CompUSA, or any other retail store or company for that matter, takes pride in serving customers, the bottom line is all about money. Rebates are a hairy area, but I wanted to contradict the tone of your letter by offering my contention that rebates are generally honored.