Rebate issues. what a joke!

Never buy anything because of a promised rebate. Chances are very good you aren't going to get it because of the way rebates are managed through a third party. They get paid not to issue rebates and do it with fine print and instructions that must be followed to the letter.
I was turned down for one once because I sent in the original receipt....they said I should have sent in a "photocopy" of the receipt....Sorry ! I got no rebate because I didn't follow the "rules".
And the rebates take months...not weeks , to get through the "system" . If your not a patient person, don't do rebates.
I no longer buy anything because of a rebate.
Gary
Don't fall for the rebate thing....sometimes Santa Claus doesn't make it down the chimney.
 
I'm not criticizing Smith and Wesson, but I think many companies deliberately take a lackadaisical approach to rebate processing.

It takes way longer than it should.

The are very anal about all the paperwork being right, but don't expect them to call you if there is a problem.

You have to call them, and often the processing of the rebate is outsourced to another firm.

I have read, and I believe it's true, that companies offering rebates assume some percentage of people will just give up and never figure out how to jump through the right hoops to actually get a check.
 
Well I am criticizing them. They made the promise and are not living up to it. No reply to emails is the final insult.
 
Cal44 said:
I have read, and I believe it's true, that companies offering rebates assume some percentage of people will just give up and never figure out how to jump through the right hoops to actually get a check.
Click to expand...

A company's primary goal in offering a rebate is to get you to buy their product. Once that's accomplished, actually delivering on the rebate is secondary. While I don't believe that a reputable company like S&W intentionally tries to defraud their customers (which would in and of itself be bad business) the excessive delays and inordinate "administration" of the program effectively constitutes fraud. By this I mean, the customer does his or her part in buying the product, and pays at the point of purchase without delays and/or excessive requirements, so S&W should do the same. That's why I think S&W should just offer an instant cash rebate at the time of purchase (i.e., reduce the purchase price) and let the dealer get reimbursed.
 
A few weeks ago my wife bought a Remington shot gun and got her rebate check in under a month. She and I also bought some bulk pistol ammo from Dicks/Field & Stream and got our rebate checks in 3 weeks.

Sometimes you win some times you loose!
 
JSR III said:
I can't believe that you read every thread in every section of the forum. Seems to me that it is pretty simple to skip over any thread that starts with or contains the word REBATE. Should there be a separate section for BEAR stories or SNAKE stories or WHEN WAS MY GUN MADE?

Allowing folks with guns to vent a little online certainly seems like a good idea especially in these current times. :eek:

And whether you know it or not, the President of S&W is a member of this forum.......
Click to expand...

I don't read every thread, but I do admit that when I click on the M&P pistol sub-forum, I find myself suffering from rebate thread fatigue when I see a bunch of them. The problem is that there are only two types of posts: 1) I didn't get mine, and I'm unhappy. 2) I did get mine, and I'm happy. And there's not much other forum members can contribute to help solve the problems of their unhappy colleagues.

Conversely, when members write about their M&P pistols, it is possible to help them solve a problem, and/or to learn something new from the other knowledgeable members who respond. There's nothing wrong about allowing people to vent about rebates, it's just not as interesting and informative as discussions about M&P pistols. Thus, my suggestion for a rebate sub-forum. I wouldn't mind bear, snake, and when was my gun made sub-forums either.:p

And I'll offer a further suggestion to the President of Smith & Wesson: You can make the issue of rebate threads go away completely by eliminating rebates and lowering prices instead.:D
 
Again, I did not open every thread about the Shield however on the first page there are 50 threads and two have the word rebate in them. So, all in all it looks like a lot of reading can be done that doesn't involve rebates. :rolleyes:
 
Got my rebate stuff. Sent in in July and got it last week. 2 mags, 2 boxes of Critical Defense and a mag loader.
 
It is a long wait but S&W will honor their rebates. I would have bought the guns with or without the rebates.
 
bombaybob said:
Same here -- 16 weeks so far. Took 14 weeks before it showed up on Milano's rebate site. Milano says they then sent it back to S&W for fulfillment. Called S&W CS today. They can't even tell me how much longer. I'll never buy another S&W product with a rebate. They apparently just don't care how long they make you wait. Had my Walther $100 rebate in a matter of a few weeks.
Click to expand...
So you're saying that you won't buy another S&W firearm if they are offering a rebate on it? Sounds a little crazy to me. If you're that upset with the rebate process, just don't submit the rebate. After all, when manufacturers offer rebates, they hope for the majority of customers to forget to send in the rebate forms.

BTW, I bought a Shield back in April and submitted the rebate form as soon as I had the pistol in hand. Received the rebate check the first week of June. This was after receiving an email saying that due to overwhelming sales, rebates checks were taking longer than expected to mail.
 
Rebate Problems

I sent in two SW rebates for new purchases 7 mos ago. I only got one of the rebates. The one I didn't get was the much smaller one, so I just let it go. It is a very poorly run program. It doesn't matter that the program is administered by a different company because it directly affects the satisfaction of the SW customer.
 
7 months and have received nothing! Just checked the website and it finally shows it is processing.Ironic since pistol has already been traded.Poor at best.
 
I just submitted for a 442 purchased the other day according to the new BG380 and revolver rebate. They have a completely different system now that spits out a confirmation number and also emails a receipt. Great improvement S&W!
 
Bought 2 9mm Shields, 1st one just plain Shield, 2nd one was PC model. Bought 1 in August, the other in September. Got both of my rebates last week. Very happy !
 
18 weeks and counting

Still waiting on the S&W ammo/gear rebate. S&W CS says there's no way to tell how much longer. Filed a complaint online with the FTC today.

In answer to a previous response to my post, I don't have a problem with rebates. I'm retired. I have time to painstakingly fill out the forms and clip UPC codes. I just won't buy another S&W product with a rebate because, unlike all the other companies to whom I've submitted rebates, S&W doesn't even try to meet their time frame commitment.
 
I bought my Shield on 8/25, and I live in CT so it is supposed to be the cash rebate. Haven't heard anything.
 
Im the type of person who will not buy anything that has a rebate. Just drop the price to reflect the rebate amount and stop all the time wasted.
Jmho on the matter
 
Arik said:
I'm sure they're just holding some back going.... let's see how pissed people get!!!

Lets look at this logically. How many Walthers were sold and in what time frame? S&W had this rebate from April to end of July. Lots of people bought multiples. Guys on this forum who bought half a dozen or more just because of the rebate. Now, how long has Walther had this rebate and how many units actually sold in that time frame?

Sent from my XT1650 using Tapatalk
Click to expand...

Yeah, imagine that. Walther offered a rebate that sold fewer guns and they kept their customers happy by getting them their rebates on-time. BTW, now over 20 weeks and still waiting.
 
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JSR III said:
I can't believe that you read every thread in every section of the forum. Seems to me that it is pretty simple to skip over any thread that starts with or contains the word REBATE. Should there be a separate section for BEAR stories or SNAKE stories or WHEN WAS MY GUN MADE?

Allowing folks with guns to vent a little online certainly seems like a good idea especially in these current times. :eek:

And whether you know it or not, the President of S&W is a member of this forum.......
Click to expand...

Wow! If he's a member of this forum, he must never read it.
 
bombaybob said:
Yeah, imagine that. Walther offered a rebate that sold fewer guns and they kept their customers happy by getting them their rebates on-time. BTW, now over 20 weeks and still waiting.
Click to expand...
If I'm buying a gun it has nothing to do with the rebate. It's nice to get money back no doubt but it's not the reason for me to buy. If I'm buying it's because I wanted it ND getting money back is a nice bonus whether that's in one day or in 6 months.

Sent from my XT1650 using Tapatalk
 
Arik said:
I'm sure they're just holding some back going.... let's see how pissed people get!!!

Lets look at this logically. How many Walthers were sold and in what time frame? S&W had this rebate from April to end of July. Lots of people bought multiples. Guys on this forum who bought half a dozen or more just because of the rebate. Now, how long has Walther had this rebate and how many units actually sold in that time frame?

Sent from my XT1650 using Tapatalk
Click to expand...

Actually, I think that's exactly what they're doing. I think they've drawn a line at a particular date (after my July 25 rebate submission) after which they're trying to meet the 8-10 week commitment. Those before that date are just screwed and will be fulfilled when they are caught up on the latter submissions. That way, they don't p*** off all their customers, just those earlier submissions they have written off.
 
There are several threads out here where I won't even bother to open & read much less comment on because it gets so repetitive.

Those threads starting with a combination of the words "wrong", "won't", "SD9VE trigger" "Shield" "bodyguard 380" and now I'll have to add the word "rebate" to my don't read list.
 
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Well on more positive side - looks like S&W process their current rebate ($50 on revolvers and Bodyguard) by themselves. I've got my mastercard rebate in less than 2 weeks after submission.
 
RGVshooter said:
There are several threads out here where I won't even bother to open & read much less comment on because it gets so repetitive.

Those threads starting with a combination of the words "wrong", "won't", "SD9VE trigger" "Shield" "bodyguard 380" and now I'll have to add the word "rebate" to my don't read list.
Click to expand...


Yet here you are!!!!!!!!!!!!!:D
 
Interesting thread. Not a "joke", Im serious about buying guns and Im thrilled with my several hundred dollars that S&W sent me.

But, I actually bought some guns...at a real gun store.....
I sent in paperwork that was asked for.....
Checked at the available online site when my anxiety got up....
Didnt expect ANY emails directly from S&W.... (or anybody else)
Got my little postcard that the bank turned into hundreds of dollars!

All that being said, current prices are almost down to actual pricing WITH rebates so I cant wait for the next round of rebates next year. We will be buying Shields for 100-150 dollars.

And at those price points Ill be stacking them deep on the shelf. And to the guys who wont be participating, all I can say is.....Thanks!:D
 
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The best way to ensure that you never get burned on a rebate is just not tp participate. Don't buy the gun. If enough people stop buying guns, S&W will wise up and quit offering rebates.
Problem solved.
 
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