How To Fill Out Rebates

With the exception of Hanns-G** LCD rebates and the shipment issues I've experienced with eCost.COM**, I have received virtually every rebate I've filled out -- and that's about 50 in the past 12 months (if not more). I've received checks from alleged "trouble" retailers like TigerDirect and the like. I believe the reason I get my rebates returned is because I don't give the processing agent an excuse to not find something. I hope these simple recommendations help others as well.

Here's my recommended procedure ...

1. Read all directions when you buy
2. Biggie: Enumerate all items (if they are not already)
3. Biggie: Attach items to letter (US) or A4 (ISO) sized paper
4. Biggie: Enumerate all included pages
5. Biggie: Supplement hand-written fields with printed/stamped address
6. Verify everything
7. Make photocopies
8. Use the correct postage


1. Read all directions when you buy

That includes the rebate begin and end periods -- especially before you buy. It's not unheard of for resellers to advertise before a date, although most consumer laws (especially for those of us who are Florida residents) are now causing repeated offenders some serious legal issues. You also want to be certain you buy the correct SKU item or product/model number, and you want to be aware of the rebate periods -- including any post-mark date.

But most importantly, you want to ensure you have all the required items and the required procedure down, which brings me to ...

2. Enumerate all items (if they are not already)

Every rebate form should list everything required. Good rebate forms will have every item already enumerated. Some include more than one item next to a single number. Others may just have a bullet list. Poorly written rebate forms will have no, easy-to-see list. In any case, always ensure the items to be included are enumerated.

I.e.,

• For items already enumerated with 1 item to include per line, use as is
• For items already enumerated, but some have more than 1 item per line, annotate with letters (if existing enumeration are numbers) or numbers (of existing numeration are letters)
• For bullet lists with 1 item per line, add numbers as long as they are 1 item per line
• For bullet lists with some having than 1 item per line, use numbers and numbers+letters as appropriate
  

E.g., a rebate form that says ...

• This rebate form
• The original UPC code and a copy of the invoice

Now becomes ...

1. This rebate form
2. The (a) original UPC code and a (b) copy of the invoice
   

You will use this enumeration (1 - 2a - 2b in this example) in #4.

3. Attach items to letter (US) or A4 (ISO) sized paper

Do not just stick any items, especially not cut-outs or register receipts, into the envelope. Anyone who has done any corporate expense reports for some time will note that accountants and bookkeepers don't like this either. You can be sure that rebate processing departments who are looking for an excuse to deny your rebate will use this to their advantage as well!

Instead, take a letter (US) or A4 (EU) sized sheet of paper, or whatever matches the size of the rebate form, and attach any loose items to those sheets of paper. Attach by using cellophane/clear tape to the top portion of the item. Attach as close to the top of the paper as possible. For long (longer than 11") register receipts, attach the top of the receipt and fold any portion underneath. This will also make it easier when you make photocopies in step #7.

4. Enumerate all included pages

Now the reason you enumerated items in step #2, and attached any loose items in step #3, is so you can match that enumeration on the included pages themselves in this step. 1-2-3, 1-2a-2b, etc... as necessary to line-up items in/on your included pages to the enumerated items in your rebate form. Write those numbers (or numbers+letters) in the upper-right corner of every page! Now they have no excuse because even a moron can count, right along with the rebate form!

Since most rebate processing is outsourced, rebate processors see a number of different forms. Yes, it's very likely that -- especially if you bought and submitted early -- your rebate processor could be seeing the form for the first time! If you make it easy for them, they are less likely to give you trouble. After all, they probably are compensated (or their employer is compensated) by the number of rebate forms they process -- possibly also by how many they reject.

If your form is well organized and saves them trouble, they are far more likely to process it and save rejections for those submissions that are hard-to-follow and would take more time. Sad, but true.

5. Supplement hand-written fields with printed/stamped address

Now most rebate forms require the forms to be handwritten. If you're like me, you have poor hand hand-writting (even my printed handwriting went to junk by the end of college). But just because you can't use printed labels for your address in the form's fields doesn't mean you can't attach a printed or stamped address label as well for "clarification/verification." In fact, the best place for your printed or stamped address level is right in the upper-right corner, along with your page number (or number+letter) for each item. So feel free to do it, and I recommend you do it, on each and every page in the submission.

Now they have no excuse that they couldn't read your correct and full address. Yes, you included a printed or stamped address label, but you didn't do it in the fields on the rebate form where it had to be handwritten -- you followed those rules and requirements. You are merely including an address level for clarification/verification. Furthermore, you do it on every page in the submission -- with your name and address on every page in the submission -- so the processor has no excuse for "misplacing" any page either!

6. Verify everything

This one should be obvious, but verify everything. Ensure your numeration is correct, all fields are filled out and you have the correct info -- including a UPC code and not some other bar code, like a shipping code. Don't laugh, I almost did that once. When in doubt, include both codes if you're really unsure. E.g., HP likes to put up to 7 bar codes on its products -- yikes! You can include all bar codes on the same page as the UPC code is enumerated to be included on.

Verify again after you write the address on the envelope -- which you do before you sealing the envelope with the contents, right? Now, unfortunately, because most rebate forms are purposely vague -- by "hand written" they may also include the envelope itself. So other than your return address, which can be stamped or a label (at least I've always done that), you may have to hand-write their address, and it's probably good to just always do that. Write clearly and, as I always do, put the Zip Code (especially if it's a 9 digit) on its own line in the lower-right hand corner -- a very big 5 or 9 digits. Mail carriers like that, and most of the time, the rebate processing address is a P.O. Box. so its routed almost directly by that 9 digit zip code.

7. Make photocopies

This one should also be obvious. You want to have copies. If anything, it's always good to have copies of receipts and UPCs for any high-priced item for insurance purposes. Keep a hanging or other file folder just for rebates and high-priced items. It can't hurt to do this in general, for your own records.

8. Use the correct postage

Lastly, use the correct postage! Not all letters will be under 1oz (28.350g ISO). Use your post office's self-service machine and make postage with the exact zipcode encoded if you really want to be sure. Otherwise, put two (2) stamps if you are unsure. I often just put two (2) stamps anyway because most rebate submissions of mine are almost always 0.80 or 0.90 oz and "close enough." If your local postage is metered on every 25g (and not 30g), then you're hitting it even more than us Americans! Yeah, it costs me another $0.41 to "be safe," but it's worth it on $10+.

Conclusions

I hope these procedures -- especially items #2-5 which you may or may not have thought of prior-- will help everyone with their rebates in the future. To summarize what this does ...

A. Like with any accounting/bookkeeping submissions, loose items are a no-no with rebates too
B. Anyone can count and match-up numbers (or numbers+letters) from the rebate form to pages
C. If you write as poorly as myself, backing up the hand-written info with a printed address is ideal -- do it on every page of the submission too
D. The easier it is to processor your rebate, the less likely your submission will be "accidentally lost" (with that "statistic" left to submissions less well organized)

**Hanns-G Note: OfficeDepot.COM paid my Hanns-G $100 rebate on a 19" LCD some 9 months after my submission. They apologetically stated they were aware that many people have not been receiving them from the product vendor (Hanns-G), so they paid the rebate instead (despite the cost -- $100 in this case, and clearly a net loss for them), and included a $5 gift card for my extended patience. I've also noticed that OfficeDepot.COM has since dropped all Hanns-G products, and any reference on their web site is only for remaining stock in stores. I would advise everyone to avoid all Hanns-G rebates at this time. At the same time, ordering anything on-line from OfficeDepot.COM has the exact opposite consideration -- if the vendor doesn't honor a rebate, OfficeDepot.COM will (which I think is Florida law -- at least for retail outlets in Florida).

**eCost Note: eCost.COM took over one month to ship an item, which was after the rebate period had expired. Even though I included the order date and shipper tracking information that showed eCost did not ship in time, the rebates were still rejected. I had tried to cancel the order twice -- once on December 20th and again on the 22nd, as I ordered December 6th and it was not going to make it for Christmas. They shipped after New Year's anyway, of which I received it just after 30 days from invoice, which was outside the rebate period. Again, including documentation didn't help my cause, and it was finger-pointing from then on. I would advise anyone to avoid eCost.COM if they are interested in timely receipt of any product (let alone within a rebate period).