Comments on: Why retailers use rebate cards instead of checks?

By: Paul Palmer

Paul Palmer — Sat, 25 Dec 2010 06:24:25 +0000

Rebates were a scam to begin with since they counted on half the people forgetting to apply for them after the purchase. Now they have loaded a card scam on top of the rebate scam since most people will leave an unused remainder and they can apply endless charges.
f=ma
Bank=fraud.
Credit institution=crooks
Those are the controlling equations.

By: Joey

Joey — Tue, 01 Dec 2009 14:50:57 +0000

I hate these things and I wish they were against the law. I do not want payment in the form of a card.

By: stev anderson

stev anderson — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 04:36:33 +0000

CDN is still providing a retailer rebate card worth $200 …but they will deduct a $3.90 from it!!

—if you want one , confirm it by call 1-888-8041696

By: TAN

TAN — Thu, 13 Aug 2009 16:08:16 +0000

Is a prepay rebate debit card exactly opened an account under my name? My question is: if it is under my name, when I activate it and use it, that means I open an account and close it. My credit score will be deducted. If I am going to buy a house and apply the mortgage, it will be not good for me.

By: Marty

Marty — Sat, 06 Jun 2009 01:53:15 +0000

I used the cards to pay my cell phone bill online (which has a minimum payment amount of $1). Originally I would get stuck with small amounts (less then $5), so I was paying the bill(s) in small increments to finish these cards. Now, as soon as I receive them, they are immediately emptied using above method. I end up with positive balances on the phone bill, which is fine. I no longer need to worry about (1) losing the card and (2) not using the entire balance.

By: Yan

Yan — Fri, 17 Apr 2009 03:50:50 +0000

I have a different problem. I had a $25 card from Amex and the merchant overcharged it by $1 so now I have -$1 balance. Should I be concerned?

By: Joy

Joy — Fri, 17 Apr 2009 03:02:38 +0000

What do I do with the one penny I have left on my Visa rebate card. If I ignore the thing will it just expire or will Visa charge me an account maintenance fee?

By: Bob Smith

Bob Smith — Fri, 10 Apr 2009 20:04:57 +0000

Credit card companies tack on all of these fees below to try to make money off of consumer who owns the card:

Atm Fee
ATM Withdrawal fee
ATM Balance Inquiry fee
Automated Telephone Inquiry fee
Customer Service Live Call fee
Paper Statements per request fee
Replace Card Fee
Inactive Account Monthly Maintenance Fee
Monthly Maintenance Fee
Direct Deposit Rebate Fee
International ATM access
International Currency Fees

And as you said, retailers typically have pay to use the company card companies services. Usually, its between 3-5%.

Fees retailers pay include: monthly fees (Gateway Fee, Statement Fee, Monthly Minimum) and transaction fees (address verification fee, retail/transaction fee).

By: Yan

Yan — Thu, 09 Apr 2009 00:50:43 +0000

I get 5% cash back on gas purchases from my other credit card and so I would rather use my rebate card on something else. Will have to think what that is. So far I am spending it on Starbucks coffee but running the balance is a major hassle

By: Don

Don — Thu, 09 Apr 2009 00:03:52 +0000

I totally agree with Jonathan. The first time I got a rebate as a debit card I struggled with the best way to use it. What you do is take it to the gas station, you have to go inside, pay at the pump will not accept your rebate card. Tell the clerk what pump number you are at and ask them to credit your pump with some amount that you are sure will fit into your tank. They need to use it as credit card, not as a debit card because sometimes debit cards try to put a $75 hold against the card which will fail if the rebate card is only $15. Done this several times (including about 1 hour ago) and it works flawlessly every time.