RebateStatus.com / CPG / Continental Product Group files for bankruptcy; many rebates at risk.

Affects rebates mailed to addresses in Phoenix AZ, Scottsdale AZ & Niagara Falls, NY.

Bizjournals news story: "Just a day after it handed out pink slips to 17 employees, CPG Marketing Inc. and Continental Promotion Group Inc. of Tampa have filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection Friday."

There are other threads about this here and in DD, but the headlines do not fully explain the issue nor identify the rebate company, so many readers will miss the important info.

Checks yet to come will not be issued by CPG. Contact the retailer or manufacturer that offered the rebate; they are legally responsible for fulfillment. Do not cash or deposit checks received recently as stop payment orders have been issued for them, so they will bounce and be returned, possibly with fees attached by your bank.
Edit by Moderator: Thank you for participating in the forums. However, this topic has been covered in a recent post Here.

"Do not cash or deposit checks received recently as stop payment orders have been issued for them, so they will bounce and be returned, possibly with fees attached by your bank. "

That sucks! Thanks for the warning. I got one check past Wednesday.

reminbi2000 said: "Do not cash or deposit checks received recently as stop payment orders have been issued for them, so they will bounce and be returned, possibly with fees attached by your bank. "

That sucks! Thanks for the warning. I got one check past Wednesday.

Damn, I just deposited one from Newegg on the 4th. How long does it take for the check to clear?

Geeze, just got another $30 rebate check from Canon.

Luckily most of my rebates is from Parago (Rebateshq) and these two $30 Checks are the only two in trouble. -

IF Parago goes under, then truely all Hell will break loose.

Hopefully Canon can step up to the plate. Last check they are still in Business. -

GTFan said: Relax, folks. The retailers and manufacturers will make good on these, too much goodwill at risk for them.

Well, the reputable ones will, at least.
There is plenty reason to not feel "relaxed" about this. Yes, one need not panic yet, the sky is not falling. But it shouldn't be too hard to see that there is suddenly and unexpectedly a new degree of hassle to keep track of outstanding rebates and contacting mfrs./retailers directly, etc. I really don't feel like I've submitted a lot of rebates lately and yet I currently have nine unpaid rebates with CPG with a total value more than $375. And frankly in these rocky economic times that we are now in, I'd say uncertainty is all that is certain.

GTfan: Why do a follow-up post that basically repeats what you already said? In fact, what I posted does indeed change quite a bit about what you said. There are plenty of things here which could in fact become issues. A few companies have acknowledged via email (PriceGrabber and TrendNet, for example) the problem at CPG. Most have not. But this whole thing is still early in the process. It's too early to say how everything will pan out. But there is absolutely no disputing my statement that there is quite suddenly a new level of hassle, which is what you are saying. How much of a hassle remains to be seen.

getfree55 said: Looks like Canon is working on the problem and will have some updated information on the 18th about how to exchange your check for a good one.

Canon Rebate Information


I have a Check from Advance Auto I just got, so I am going to give them a call on Monday and see what they say.

Thanks! How did you find that link? I searched canon website earlier with "Rebate" keyword and found nothing. -

Here is current Canon statement on this rebate mess:

******************************************************************************************************************************
November 14, 2008.

Dear Valued Customer,

This is an official message from Canon U.S.A., Inc.

The third party rebate processing company that was responsible for processing rebate claims and issuing mail-in-rebate checks for Canon-brand printer and video products (along with many other products of a number of other companies) filed a Chapter 11 Bankruptcy petition earlier today. The funds provided to them by Canon U.S.A., Inc. (and other companies) apparently are no longer available to satisfy the rebate checks such company issued on behalf of Canon and other companies. Regrettably, as a result, you should not cash the refund check you recently received for such products, as it likely will bounce. We apologize for any inconvenience, delay or confusion this may cause. We are doing everything in our power to promptly rectify the situation.

Accordingly, we request that you take the following actions:

If you are holding or receive a rebate check for printer or video products which is dated on or before November 14, 2008, please do not cash the check, as it may bounce. Please look for updated postings on the Canon U.S.A. website on or about November 18, 2008 for further instruction on how to exchange your check for a new check that you will be able to cash.
If you have not yet mailed in your rebate claim materials, please hold such materials until you receive further instruction. We are making new processing arrangements, with a new mail in address. Please look for updated postings on the Canon U.S.A. website on or about November 18, 2008 for further instruction on where to mail your rebate claim material and how to exchange your check for a new check that you will be able to cash.
Check our web site early next week for further instructions and contact information for any questions you may have. Again, please do not cash any rebate checks for printer or video products which are dated on or before November 14, 2008, as they may bounce.

We are committed to ensuring that you receive your refund as soon as possible and that you will continue to have full confidence in Canon U.S.A., Inc.

We apologize again for any inconvenience.

Sincerely, Canon U.S.A., Inc

******************************************************************************************************************************

Interestingly, it did NOT address these consumers who have already submitted rebate but probably will never receive the check yet. Hopefully they can resubmit copy of rebate submission!

If you participated in the Office Depot $25.00 rebate Oct 12-18, 2008, for the Logitech v320 Wireless Mouse, be aware that the rebate is processed by CPG (check your rebate form for the address). I sent an email to OD asking how they were going to pay me.

From Logitech...

Brief Summary
---------------------------------------------------------------
What is happening with the rebates????

Discussion Thread
---------------------------------------------------------------
Response (Eugene) - 11/17/2008 01:35 AM
Dear xxxxxx,

Thank you for your e-mail. My name is Eugene and I will be assisting you with
your issues regarding case number xxxxxx-xxxxxx.

With regards to your issue, Logitech is aware of this issue. We are currently
working very closely with the relevant parties to sort this issue out. As for
now, if you have received a check, do not bank it in first as it will only
bounce.

I am not sure when will they come up with a conclusion. What I will do is to
keep your mail in my mailbox and set it to pending. In this case, your issue
will not be discarded. When I receive a feedback I will notify you immediately.

I apologize for the inconvenience caused.

Thank you for using Logitech. Have a great day ahead, xxxxxx.

I just contacted Newegg since I have a small outstanding Rosewill (Newegg private label) rebate. I will posted their answer here. I am going to reach out to Antec next since nobody seems to have reported their stance yet.

I spoke to Advance Auto Parts today. Took me a while to get hold of someone who knew about the problem. I first called the toll number from their web site this morning and the operators connected me twice to the wrong people or to the automated rebate status info.

I found a toll free number for them 1-800-314-4243 and had to call that a few times because it kept hanging up when it went to connect me to support or sent me to the operator after waiting on hold.

Apparently they are aware of the problem as some other people have called.

They took my name, address, phone#, e-mail address, promotion #, rebate item #, check # ,check amount, check issue date and will contact me again when they issue the new check. They were not sure how long that would be.

Sounds like they would also refund any bounced check fees if I had cashed it already.

reminbi2000: A friend had the Canon info, I just saved it as a reference.

tguyla said: Damm, I've just submitted Crucial memory $40 rebate last month. Crucial rebates are processed by rebatestatus.com. Please add it to the list

My last Crucial rebates went to rebate-zone which is Helgeson Enterprises not CPG.

So Crucial has more than one processor.

Hi, Im an employee for the rebate center that everyone is bickering about. Id just like to state that you all sicken me. Whining and complaining over a few bucks on a lousy rebate. You were going to purchase the product regardless of the situation, the rebate was just an added bonus. While all of you seem to be freaking out over how your going to get your $15 or $20 rebate checks, some of us are worried about our homes and families. Im sure some of you are counting on the money to assist with paying for things, but if you factored a rebate check into your budget or planning, then maybe you should really rethink some things in your lives.

KroniLogiK said: Hi, Im an employee for the rebate center that everyone is bickering about. Id just like to state that you all sicken me. Whining and complaining over a few bucks on a lousy rebate. You were going to purchase the product regardless of the situation, the rebate was just an added bonus. While all of you seem to be freaking out over how your going to get your $15 or $20 rebate checks, some of us are worried about our homes and families. Im sure some of you are counting on the money to assist with paying for things, but if you factored a rebate check into your budget or planning, then maybe you should really rethink some things in your lives.

I am sorry for your loss of job. Problem is many of FWers here use deals with rebate too feed their family as well. -

Im not venting. Im not doing this out of hostility or anger. Im simply allowing everyone to see both sides of the equation. Obviously there's alot of rebates for well over $20, but again, the vast majority aren't. Im simply giving some knowledge as to what's going on because right now, everyone is full of assumptions, and again, being an employee, Im hoping to clarify things a bit. Im sorry if I came across as being bitter and what not. But one thing I can definitely assure you, in the state the economy is in, rebates should be the last of your worry. Big named stores and businesses are closing down everywhere. Circuit City is the latest to take the big hit. Do some research, its pretty scary out there.

KroniLogiK said: Hi, Im an employee for the rebate center that everyone is bickering about. Id just like to state that you all sicken me. Whining and complaining over a few bucks on a lousy rebate. You were going to purchase the product regardless of the situation, the rebate was just an added bonus. While all of you seem to be freaking out over how your going to get your $15 or $20 rebate checks, some of us are worried about our homes and families. Im sure some of you are counting on the money to assist with paying for things, but if you factored a rebate check into your budget or planning, then maybe you should really rethink some things in your lives.

You, sir, are - to put it as gently as possible - clueless. Most of us aren't going to be living in the streets if we don't receive the rebates, but any reasonable person calculates the rebate into the decision to purchase a product with one. For companies not to follow through with paying rebates is tantamount to fraud. I daresay it's no surprise that you were working at a rebate center.

Lol...another interesting shift at CPG. The calls keep pouring in. I apologize for calling people whiners and bickering and blah blah blah, but wow, some of the things I come across on a daily basis definitely justify me making those accusations.

Just for an update though, CPG is not closing down. They are currently in the process of restructuring the company. Through the restructuring phase, alot of rebates are not being handled by this center anymore (Canon, CSK Auto, BFG, Kensington Computers, Costco, Staples, etc.) However, many rebates are and will continue to be processed through CPG.

To whoever made the post of outstanding rebates through Bridgevine, Bridgevine will continue to be processed through CPG and there rebates will be honored. The processing time for Bridgevine rebates has always been a loooong 10-16 weeks, which is why many believe that they wont receive it.

Sorry, I meant the Canadian Staples, not the American! CPG has an office in Canada.

Samsung still has active rebates through CPG! Came across a few callers today...business hours are actually 8am-6pm EST , this just recently changed a few days ago

How about Antec? I received a check (dated 11/5) from CPG on 11/14 for Antec laptop cooler. Will CPG honor the check or will it be returned?

iknewthat said: With the demise of this rebate houses that was so popular, and the reportedly missing millions of dollars in their hands (who knows where that went?) it would seem that in the future companies will just reduce prices of things on sale without making anyone go through the silly hoops of sending in scraps of paper and UPC's for a rebate.
I'd say your post is both wishful thinking and oversimplification. It's too early to proclaim the death of the mail-in rebate. As has been pointed out, there are many other processors out there. It's still a viable business model, and love it or hate it, the BEST deal for the savvy consumer is still with a rebate. Look at Bust Buy and Orfice Max. These two companies dropped rebates with the supposed notion of lowering the price up front. That lower price is almost never as good as the sale plus rebate found elsewhere. It makes sense, really. As long as the consumer follows through, the deal is his to be had. Until something better, i.e., cheaper, comes along, I'll keep playing the rebate game.

KroniLogiK said: Samsung still has active rebates through CPG! Came across a few callers today...business hours are actually 8am-6pm EST , this just recently changed a few days ago

Any information on AVG/Grisoft and PC Tools? Thanks.