Note: This article title may be easily confused with rabbet A rebate or rabbet A rabbet (also known as rebate) is a recess or groove cut into the edge of a piece of machineable material, usually wood. ...

A rebate is a type of sales promotion used by marketers, primarily as incentives or supplements to product sales. In marketing, sales promotion is one of the four aspects of promotion. ... It has been suggested that Product marketing be merged into this article or section. ... In economics, an incentive in anything that provides a motive for a particular course of action — that counts as a reason for preferring one choice to the alternatives. ... Depending on context, a supplement can refer to: a nutritional supplement taken by people to enhance their diets; it can include vitamins, minerals, fiber, and/or protein, among other additives; the pet or livestock equivalent of the nutritional supplement, added to fodder, which in addition to the types of additives...

The most well-known and used type is the mail-in rebate, an offer in which the purchase of a product entitles the buyer to mail in a coupon, or a receipt and barcode[s] and receive a check for a particular amount, depending on the particular product, time, and often place of purchase. Originally this was a way for manufacturers to encourage sales, by giving the money directly back to the consumer, rather than the retailers keeping it. To gain control of an asset in exchange for a valuable consideration. ... In marketing a coupon is a ticket or document that can be exchanged for a financial discount or rebate when purchasing a product. ... A receipt is a document made by a merchant, landlord, vendor, or other creditor in favor of a customer acknowledging having received an amount of money for some purpose. ... Wikipedia encoded in Code 128-B Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia encoded in the DataMatrix 2D barcode Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia in multiple languages encoded in the DataGlyph 2D barcode A barcode (also bar code) is a machine-readable representation of information in a visual format on a surface. ... Typical cancelled personal cheque as used in the U.S. A cheque (CwE) or check (AmE), thought to have developed from Persian Ú†Ùƒ chek, is a negotiable instrument instructing a financial institution to pay a specific amount of a specific currency from a specific demand account held in the maker/depositor... Manufacturing is the transformation of raw materials into finished goods for sale, or intermediate processes involving the production or finishing of semi-manufactures. ... A drawing of a self-service store Retailing consists of the sale of goods/merchandise for personal or household consumption either from a fixed location such as a department store or kiosk, or away from a fixed location and related subordinated services (Definition of the WTO (last page). ...

Rebates are now offered by either the retailer or the manufacturer of the particular item. Large stores often work in collusion with manufacturers, often requiring two or even three separate rebates for each item. Even manufacturer rebates are now often valid only at a single store. Rebate forms and special receipts are now usually printed by the cash register on a separate receipt. In the study of economics, collusion takes place within an industry when rival companies cooperate for their mutual benefit. ... A cash register or till (British English) is a mechanical or electronic device for calculating and recording sales transactions, and an attached cash drawer for storing currency. ...

Rebates are heavily used for advertised sales in retail stores in the United States, such as Best Buy and Staples. Personal computer components and electronics seem to have a large portion of rebate sales. For example, an item might be deceptively advertised as "$39 after rebate", but the item actually costs $79 and comes with a $40 rebate coupon. Best Buy is sometimes called the big blue box because of the prominent design on Best Buy stores resembling a blue box. ... Typical Staples store Staples, Inc. ... In general, a things components are its parts; the things that compose it. ... Two digital voltmeters The field of electronics is the study and use of systems that operate by controlling the flow of electrons or other electrically charged particles in devices such as thermionic valves and semiconductors. ...

The turnaround time is generally four to eight weeks, if the rebate is refunded at all. Most rebates are handled under contract by companies that specialize in doing so. Their fees are covered by the customer money that the manufaturer or retailer keeps. It has been suggested that Logistics Overview be merged into this article or section. ... a money back guarantee is essentially a simple guarantee that, if a buyer is not satisfied with a product or service, a refund of the monies or consideration paid will be made. ... All the textbooks define a contract as either a promise or an agreement that is enfored or recognised by the law. ... One pays a fee as renumeration for services, especially the honorarium paid to a doctor, lawyer or member of a learned profession. ...

Although rebates are common in the United States and Canada, many areas of the world do not use them.

Rationale

Rebates have become very popular in retail sales. Retailers and manufacturers have reasons to offer them:

• Not all buyers remember to mail the coupons, a phenomenon known in the industry as "breakage". While the return rate varies greatly depending on the amount of the rebate, the particular store, and the particular product, BusinessWeek recently estimated a return rate of just 60%. Some estimates have been as low as 2%. For example, nearly half of the 100,000 new TiVo subscribers in 2005 failed to receive their $100 rebates, allowing the company to keep $5,000,000 in additional profit entitled to the cutomers rather than the company.
• Not all buyers will meet the criteria to receive the rebate. Companies often require the original UPC barcode, receipt, and additional information, which a buyer may forget to include when redeeming the rebate. Companies almost always add other caveats to the rebate as well, such as the redemption having to be postmarked by a certain date. It works in the company's favor if buyers do not act quickly to redeem.
• Not all rebate checks are actually cashed, a phenomenon known in the industry as "shrinkage".
• During the turnaround time, the company can continue to get interest on the money.
• If the turnaround time crosses a financial period boundary, such as annual quarters, a rebate offer can be used to inflate sales at the end of a period, at the expense of the initial budget of the next period.
• Extended warranties and other price-dependent factors always use the initial purchase price, not the price after the rebate.
• If the rebate is from the manufacturer, the retailer has a "free" sale.
• If the rebate is from the retailer, the manufacturer has "free" advertising.
• Rebate can also be used to collect consumer information as it is required by most rebate forms for consumers to fill in personal or household information. This information can be used by producer or retailer to analyze consumer behavior.
• Once the UPC has been removed from the box, retailers will refuse to accept a return of the item. The inability to return a product (and therefore lose its profit, however slim) is attractive to both retailer and manufacturer alike.

BusinessWeek is a business magazine published by McGraw-Hill. ... TiVo (pronounced, in IPA, ) is a popular brand of digital video recorder (DVR), a term synonymous with personal video recorder (PVR). ... Subscriber: In a public switched telecommunications network such as the common telephone system, the ultimate user, customer, of a communications service. ... 2005 (MMV) was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Profit is a positive return made on an investment by an individual or by business operations. ... UPC is a three letter acronym that can stand for: Uganda Peoples Congress Ultra Personal Computer Unified Parallel C Uniform Plumbing Code Union des Populations du Cameroun United Pan-Europe Communications United Pentecostal Church United Poultry Concerns United Presbyterian Church Universal Product Code Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya University... CAVEAT (Canadians Against Violence Everywhere Advocating for its Termination) was a Canadian lobby group which existed from 1991 to 2001, based in Burlington, Ontario. ... This article is about the postal marking. ... In sales, shrinkage (also commonly referred to as shrink) is the loss rate of products between point of manufacture and point of sale. ... In finance, interest has three general definitions. ... A quarter is: One of four equal parts of a single thing (sometimes referred to as a fourth in US English). ... Budget generally refers to a list of all planned expenses and revenues. ... In business law, a warranty is a promise that something sold is as factually stated or legally implied by the seller. ... Gratis versus Libre is the distinction between no cost and freedom, a distiction not made by the word free. ... The term return may have one of the following meanings: Return is a financial term that refers to the benefit derived from an investment. ...

Consumer caveats

• Sales tax is calculated on the initial purchase price, not the price after the rebate. A $199 item with a $150 rebate is advertised as only "$49", but the customer must pay tax on $199. Rebates never refund the sales tax, or the cost of the postage or envelope.
• As above, once the UPC has been removed from the box, retailers will not accept a return of the item. Customers must therefore ensure that they do not need to return the item before mailing the rebate.
• Consumers should always read rebate rules carefully and follow them to the letter. The following are common:
  • Rebates usually require the consumer to submit either original or a copy of UPC from the product's box and mail it with the rebate form. This will typically need to be cut out from the product packaging.
  • Rebates usually require the consumer to submit the original sales receipt (or sometimes a copy), and circle the item purchased.
  • Rebates usually require the consumer to accompany the UPC and the receipt with a properly filled-out rebate form. Some rebate forms have a place for a signature. It is important to include it, otherwise the rebate will be rejected.
• Consumers should make copies of all the materials they are mailing in in case the rebate is rejected.
• For high-value rebates, consumers should sent materials via certified mail to ensure proof of both the mail date and the receipt.
• Since rebate turnaround time is typically months away, consumers should keep records for the rebates they send in. It also helps to set up reminders to go back and check on the status of rebate submissions.
• If the rebate is rejected, it may be difficult to resubmit it, since required documentation such as the original receipt is usually sent with the original request. Sometimes, copies are not accepted. Still, having copies and mail receipts on hand goes a long way in helping to revert the rejection.

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Recent accusations

Wirefly has been accused of making rebate rules so complex that it is nearly impossible to get one, such as moving the 30-day filing window from the day of purchase to 180 days out, so that the vast majority of people will completely forget about it by then. The company has furthermore been accused of not even abiding by the already-complex rules it has set up.

External links

• Rebates Tracker - a website where consumers can keep track of rebate submissions.
• BusinessWeek article on rebates.