Beware of OCZ Rebates! I wish I had know this.

Coldblackice said:
I've never had a problem with my OCZ rebates. Send rebates certified mail! :)
Click to expand...

A good source of information about rebates and problems: FatWallet.com rebate information thread.

One person found that certified mail made his submissions 10x as likely to be lost by the rebate processors, meaning almost half, and some processors, like Parago (El Paso, Miami) have sometimes stated that they won't accept certified letters.

Apparently any Visa gift card or prepaid credit card can be cashed out at no fee at almost any local bank by requesting a cash advance on the card. If you use one of these cards for a purchase and it can't cover the whole cost, be sure to use the other method of payment first and the gift card last because many store computers can't handle the opposite order (Safeway has this problem, but Wal-mart and Kroger do not). Also when doing this and the store says the whole card has been used up and offers to throw it in the trash for you, tell them you want it back because sometimes the card doesn't go through and will still have a positive balance.
 
patriot also sends "cash cards" although I have yet to receive mine so I can't comment on what theirs do
 
Just an FYI, the cards have an expiration date. Snipped from the OCZ rebate FAQ

There is an expiration date embossed on the front of your Citi Prepaid Services Card.
Click to expand...

They cancel themselves.
 
Today I filled out a rebate with GeForce. There's an option for paper check or pre-paid debit card. I chose the card. When I get these cards I immediately use it up on my cellphone bill - pay it online as a one time payment. Once payment is confirmed the card hits the shredder. Bye bye pre-paid card.
 
kristof said:
I've been an OCZ customer for years. I don't generally overclock so it's primarily the great rebates that draw me to OCZ. Unfortunately, I won't be buying from OCZ until they discontinue use of prepaid Visa cards from Citi.

Here is a list of things that I wish I had known before agreeing to have a prepaid Citi Visa card issued in my name:

  1. The cards can be charged for more than their current balance leading to an overlimit situation.
  2. There is an overlimit fee.
  3. There is a monthly "service fee" with less than straightforward rules.
  4. The card does not automatically close when it's empty. It remains a liability until you manage to close it.
  5. You are responsible for all charges made to the account even if they exceed the initial balance.
  6. Legally, you are responsible for all charges made to the account even even if they were not authorized by you. You have no legal protection against unauthorized / fraudulent charges as you do with a credit card.
  7. It takes a lot of time and energy to figure out how to close the account.
  8. To use the card you must agree to binding arbitration and pay the full cost of arbitration if you initiate it. What this means is that you give up the right to sue.
  9. There is no way to cancel on the account management website.
  10. There is no option to cancel the account in the automated phone system.
  11. There is no obvious way to get to a live operator from the automated phone system.

The automated telephone system doesn't take you to an operator when 0 is pressed. Yelling the word "OPERATOR!!!" into the handset doesn't work either. (This works on many automated systems. Some of them can even distinguish yelling and will fast track you to an operator!)

I called the special "lost or stolen" line and asked to cancel. They refused. I needed to talk to a rep on the regular line. I told the guy that I had been though all of the menus on the regular line and never heard an option for a live rep. The "lost or stolen" rep gave me instructions on which menus to follow to get to a person. The menu items he told me to select were missing from the main line.

I went through the menus until I found something that was likely to require a human. Finally, I got through to a person and managed to cancel the account.

Total time: about 45 minutes.

The menu item that gets you a live rep is "change of address" on the main Citi prepaid menu.

Happy canceling!
Click to expand...

stop playing the game people.....rebates are for schmucks IMO (no offense, but i just dont agree with them at all), i dont do em, I have even tossed the form away knowingly, because my time is worth more than all your silly games you want to play to give me my $10 back.......go f yourself mr. corporation, i'd rather give you $10 than be your pawn. if you want to sell me the product for $10 less then do it at the point of sale otherwise piss off
 
I just wanted to add that my OCZ card was already used when I tried buying something with it. It activated fine but after checking the balance online, I found it was nearly drained to $0.42. Someone used it like 6 states away from where I live.

I called customer service and I reported a fraudulent transaction. They said they would close the account, reissue a new card, and I'm currently waiting to fill out a fraudulent transaction form.

I will never submit a VISA card rebate ever again because of this experience and reading this thread.
 
lots of companies are only doing rebate cards, but even if whichever bank you get the card from doesnt allow you to request a check or go into a bank branch and get the cash for the value of the card (like bank of america), all you have to do is call and say is that you disagree with their terms of service and they will be forced to close the account and settle the remaining balance, which just so happens to be done by sending you a damn check!


before your account at any bank is valid, you have to accept and/or agree to their terms of service and sometimes privacy policy. the company sending the rebate does not have the power to do this on your behalf, so legally they, the bank, put a clause in the contract included with the card like "by using this card, you agree to these terms...".

if you dont agree dont use the card, then your account is invalid. if there is a balance on the account, the bank is not legally able to keep the money, obviously, so it must be returned to you.

its a convolouted way of getting cash in your pocket from a "rebate", but its an option of you dont like the card.
 
Long thread, not sure if it's been posted- but if you use these visa gift cards at restaurants the restaurant can charge more than what was on the bill you signed. We ran into this issue when we had one a couple years ago.

I skip on any rebate that awards these bs cards.
 
Very glad i read this before I turned in my $30 rebate after purchasing a modular 700w PSU off newegg. I'm not very responsible so I'm not even going to take a chance. I got a decent deal so no worries here. Thanks for the input guys

** send me cash or im not interested :)
 
Last edited:
TekMaster said:
Very glad i read this before I turned in my $30 rebate after purchasing a modular 700w PSU off newegg. I'm not very responsible so I'm not even going to take a chance. I got a decent deal so no worries here. Thanks for the input guys

** send me cash or im not interested :)
Click to expand...

eight more days bro....eight more days....:p
 
Wow, so much debate on this issue. A few things from my personal experience. No matter what the "agreement" says, that does not always beholden you to the card company. I have fought quite a few times and won every time against CC companies doing things like this. Sometimes my bank fought on my behalf. Also ANY time there were fraud charges on my cards no matter how long ago they occurred I have always been able to have them removed and never once paid for them. CC companies try to scare people away from fighting them, fighting charges, or suing them because they know the majority of the people will bow to the pressure. But in the end, contrary to very popular belief, the consumer has a lot of power in this country. When things get to court, the court highly favors the consumer over the corporation. So companies will go out of their way to keep anything from going to court.

As for this whole rebate debate and blaming OCZ, it just makes good business sense for OCZ or other companies to do these kind of rebates. They get someone else to process the rebate and many people will opt out of the rebate. Remember rebates are an option, not a right. Don't start blaming and bad mouthing a company over a silly rebate situation. It is a discount they didn't have to offer in the first place. And they are offering that rebate, because of the deal they get from Citi to do so. Now if their regular sales went this way, things they actually control, then I would lay more blame at their feet, but not for a third party rebate system.
 
@ NoOther: no blame at all toward them. if anything hats off toward them, for thinking of a sneaky user agreement and/or card holder terms leading to the raise of profit directly caused by that very fact. No doubt it happens. I can definitely see your point though, regardless.
 
Last edited:
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top