Complaint Review: Columbia Telecommunications

By now, there are probably many people who are in the same situation as I am: being cheated out of $25 under a phony "rebate" deal from Columbia Telecommunications.

I bought a pair of walkie talkies from Fry's Electronics last year and promptly sent my rebate request for $25 to the manufacturer - Columbia Telecommunications.

After waiting for almost 3 months without receiving the rebate check from Columbia Telecommunications, I called and complained about the delay. The lady who answered the phone mentioned that they had "a little difficulty with the rebate situation" and she asked me to fax my completed rebate form to her. I faxed my rebate form and called her again to confirm that she did receive it. She even promised that I would receive my rebate check "in about two weeks".

It has been almost two months now since I contacted Columbia Telecommunications and I still haven't received my rebate check. Worse yet, when I called the "customer service" number, I did not get a real person on the other end, instead it was a recorded message asking me to leave my name and phone number. This is a clear signal to me that the company is in some kind of trouble and will no longer talk to their customers.

I feel that at this point I can no longer count on receiving my rebate from Columbia Telecommunications. I am writing this message to warn other people who might be lured into similar rebate deals from Columbia Telecommunications.

By the way, I mentioned Fry's Electronics because I feel that they should share some of the responsibility since they advertised and sold these products from Columbia Telecommunications. In fact, last time I checked, Fry's still carry some of their products!

Pete
Mountain View, California
U.S.A.