Nov 26, 2014 By David Singer 2 min read

Ahead of the biggest shopping days of the year, state Senator Matt Smith (D-Mt. Lebanon) said consumers should be wary of manufacturer rebate offers on purchased goods.

“Black Friday and Cyber Monday deals can seem too good to be true, and oftentimes they are … Consumers are often asked to submit forms so complex and adhere to rebate mailing instructions and requirements so tedious that they give up,” Smith said.

Smith said he plans to reintroduce legislation to strengthen protections for consumers in the new legislative session beginning in January. Formerly Senate Bill 1048 of the 2013 – 2014 legislative session, the legislation would prevent retailers and manufacturers from advertising the price after the rebate, or net price. It would also require them to issue payment to the consumer within 30 days of the received rebate request. The bill would also prevent retailers or manufacturers from aggressively disqualifying rebate filers for incomplete or improperly completed forms, or through unnecessary restrictions. Consumers who submit an incorrect or incomplete form would have to be notified and have the opportunity to resubmit a corrected form.

“Currently, the scale is tipped in the retailer and manufacturer’s favor, but when every dollar counts, we need to make sure that consumers have additional protections. The advertised rebate is effective in prompting purchases that might never have been made otherwise.”