Talk about unexpected surprises in the mailbox! I posted last Februrary about my fight to collect $30 in rebates from American Telecom Services (ATS) for a cordless phone bought from Office Depot on Black Friday 2006. Here the timeline on this rebate:
- 11/24/2006 – Purchased ATS cordless phone as part of Office Depot Black Friday sale
- 12/9/2006 – Mailed required rebate forms, receipts, and proofs of purchase to rebate processor
- 3/16/2007 – After receiving a postcard stating I had to activate a prepaid calling card in the box (I already had), I re-activated the card and resubmitted the rebate documentation for payment.
- 9/21/2007 – I sent an email to customer service for ATS and the rebate processor with scans of my rebate documentation threatening a BBB and AG complaint and demanding payment of the rebate claim.
- 9/25/2007 – I receive a response from Julie Diaz at ATS claiming that the company was no longer doing business with the rebate processor and was processing the claims from their corporate office. The copies of the documentation I provided was to be forwarded to the appropriate department for prompt payment.
- 2/27/2008 – I file a BBB complaint against ATS for non-payment of the rebate.
- 4/3/2008 – I receive an email from a civil investigator with the Georgia Governor’s Office of Consumer Affairs requesting information on my complaint for inclusion in their investigation. I promptly send the investigator copies of my documentation and other information provided.
- 7/20/2009 – I finally receive my rebate from ATS! It came in a plain white envelope with my name and address handwritten with no return address and a postmark from Connecticut. The check was handwritten and had a form letter attached simply apologizing for the length of time it took them to process the claim.
So it took ATS approximately 136 weeks to process my rebate, which is just a shade over two and a half years! I’ve deposited the check, so let’s just hope it doesn’t bounce.
Sounds alot like my experience with ATS….
Although mine only took about 1.5 years.
I got the similar check too. But it makes the thing worse, as the check was returned because of “not sufficient funds”. I was charged $10 from my bank!