Frustrating VMware Rebate Experience (solved)

[fusionrocks]

@okra

The VMware Fusion rebate program has had a handful of factors that have led to frustration amongst an extraordinarily small subset of the many many thousands of customers who have had successful experiences. I'm sorry that you are among that minority, and want to fix it for you.

Firstly, if you purchased from Amazon, your rebate is fulfilled by VMware Fusion's publisher, Smith Micro. Please see the post immediately preceding yours in this thread.

Also, please see the first organic search result in Google for "VMware Fusion rebate" found here: http://www.vmware.com/landing_pages/fusion_rebate.html

I'm sorry that your rebate has taken you a long time, but as with all things, there are many contributing factors here. I would recommend that you email cs@smithmicro.com if you did indeed purchase from Amazon, to ensure that you get your rebate from VMware Fusion's publisher, Smith Micro.

 

[Scudder2u]

7+ months and still waiting on my rebate!

The title says it all. I purchased this in Februrary!!!!

This rebate has been a mess since the beginning. If you are considering Fusion make sure the full purchase price is fair for you... chances are good you will end up paying it. The 2.0 upgrade might have been worth it but I got so frustrated over the rebate experience I never left parallels!

Oh well.... lesson learned... other be warned.

 

[nado]

VirtualBox is Free!

I'm not convinced these people would have received their cheque had they not posted their experience publicly.

For others considering buying, give VirtualBox a try, it's free. It's not as polished as VMWare or Parallels, but it might be good enough and save you frustration!

http://www.virtualbox.org/

 

[MVApple]

I've also had problems with VMware rebate. I actually mailed mine in and I got an email stating the 3rd party had received my rebate and was processing it. Then a few weeks later I got an email saying I sent the rebate in too late and I would not be paid. I actually DID send it in on time though. I remember I wanted 2-3 weeks before sending it and I looked at all the dates to make sure I was still in the time frame.

Anyways, I put in a complaint with the BBB after I saw no way of communicating with the 3rd party. They responded pretty quickly and told me that my rebate would in fact be processed, but they stated they had "no idea" when it would be mailed to me. So far it's been one month since I received that email.

I'm going to wait one more month and then file another complaint with the BBB and I'm going to call my local police department to see if I can put in a claim of fraud against Microsmith or the 3rd party. I have the email response claiming they were sorry for the mistake and would send me the rebate so there's not a whole lot they can do but send me the rebate. Waiting 4 months for a rebate is a bit much.

To microsmith, at this point you've left a bad impression on many customers. I understand that a 3rd party processes the rebates, but you have to realize your reputation is on the line as well. Sending customers their rebates will make many forget the situation, but some may not completely forget the time they've wasted trying to get things sorted. Next time, I think I'll skip rebates unless it's from a company I trust. It's just not worth the hassle wondering when or if your rebate will come.

To everyone else, I recommend filing a complaint with the BBB.

*edit*
I purchased from Apple if that makes any difference.

 

[MVApple]

I decided to email the 3rd party handling the rebate and this is what I received as a reply.

"Dear Consumer:

Thank you for your inquiry regarding the status of your rebate. Our records indicate this promotion is being fulfilled directly by the client.

Per the clients request, we ask that you please contact them at the number on your rebate form."

What the hell does that mean? Is the client microsmith? I guess I'll give them a call later but at this point I have little faith in receiving the money that is owed to me.