13 August 2005
Dear Diary … Today, I re-upped my McAfee coverage by purchasing McAfee Internet Security 7.0 online. The deal came with a mail-in rebate for $20.
woo hoo.
“Please save this email as confirmation of your purchase.”
“How To Redeem Your Mail-in Rebate.”
Please follow the instructions in the Terms & Conditions to complete and submit your rebate form.
yad day yad day.
Rebate form says.
1) Print out this page.
Done!
2) Complete the form.
Done!
3) Enclose a copy of your receipt (proof of purchase) from McAfee.com with the purchase circled. Enclose proof of previous ownership of a retail stand alone version of …
Done!
4) Mail to …
Done!
Mailed and, being the conscientious person what I am, copied and filed.
05 September 2005
Dear Sal Towse Tracking number: nnnnnnnnn
Thank you for your rebate inquiry. We have received your submission, but we are currently unable to honor the rebate because the email confirmation for the MCAFEE INTERNET SECURITY SUITE V8 was not received. Please forward the email confirmation to the address below so that we may complete the processing of your rebate.
&c.
Being as I’m the sort who keeps e-mails from way back and forever, I JUST HAPPENED to have a copy of the email confirmation. How many of their customers would, eh?
The packet from August 13, 2005, was remailed along with a copy of the confirmation e-mail ALONG WITH A NOTE circled with an arrow pointing to the note from Rebate Special Services:
“Note that the rebate form asks for ‘a copy of your receipt’ NOT ‘the email confirmation.’
Other comments re their foot dragging are part of this go-round.
26 September 2005
Postcard received in the mail with yet another address to send stuff to (the third, if you’re keeping track) and the note
Dear Consumer
Thank you for participating in this promotion.
Unfortunately we could not honor your request due to the following reason(s):
$20 MISS v8 UPG Rebate – Missing Proof of Purchase (um. nope!); Missing Purchase Date (um. nope!); Missing receipt. (um. nope!); Missing Purchase location (your website. duh). Invalid Postmark Date. (um. nope! not when we started all this waltz).
Checked the site and I’m told, specifically, that the problem is that I didn’t submit proof of purchase. Really. … this is all too silly.
Yet another note sent on to the folks handling McAfee rebates saying, hey. I already sent all that stuff in. I can send it in again!
You DON’T SUPPOSE that McAfee is purposefully trying to get people not to redeem their $20 rebate, do you?