What’s a Better Deal, Rebates or a Lower Price?

Photo Credit: richardmasoner

I think having a lower price is a better deal, but sometimes rebates offer huge discounts. When we joined Cingular, they had a great rebate deal on a phone that would make it free. It had the features we wanted and who could beat free?

The problem? We didn’t redeem the rebate. So while we got a decent deal, we left some money on the table. We fell into the trap of rebates: we were too lazy to complete the paperwork.

Why do retailers offer rebates?

1. Most people are too busy (or lazy) to complete the rebate forms.
2. It’s a wonderful way to get information on the demographics of their customers.

Here are some tips to work through rebates:

Read the rebate conditions. See if you will get actual money back or a coupon for another of their products. It still happens time to time. You also ant to see how much paperwork is due. Is it simply mailing a form out with receipt or does it involve more legwork?

Send the rebate through certified mail or get a delivery confirmation. You don’t want to do the process more than once. This proves that they did receive the paperwork.

How often do you use rebates? Who has the best rebate programs?

Update: This article was included in the Carnival of Money Stories #77 at My Daily Dollars.

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