Dell Coupon - NOT Working

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I built an Inspiron 1520 that costs $1209, and I used the coupon which gives a -$300 off of an $1199+ Inspirons. The coupon worked yesterday, and this morning it just stopped working. I didn't get a message saying it has exceeded its limits or anything, the coupon just doesn't apply any more.

 

i had the exact same problem. i think it reached its 4000 max. damn.

 

I don't have an answer for you. The only thing I can say is that sometimes Dell's coupons fail to work. Unfortunately, Dell does not always tell you precisely why. Even if you did not see a message that says the limit is exceeded, that still could be their reason. Also some coupons work only in some stores (e.g. Education Store, Home and Home Business Store, Business Store, etc.).

To tell you the truth, I think Dell should be taken to court over their coupons because they are doing a really poor job at providing all the information as to what conditions attach to each coupon.

 

I was looking forward to buying its new Dell 1520... and now they give me this crap. I will have to send a rant email to them.

 

When I try the code it tells me that it only works for Inspirons priced at $1399 and up.

 

PizzaFTW, you get an actual explanation from Dell's site? Whenever I had coupons that did not work, there would be a link with details but when I clicked it I got a popup that did not explain anything.

 

Lemur, you actually get a link? I get NOTHING! I can't even contact Dell support without a customer number or without entering all my personal information.

 

How's it Dell's fault? Do explain.

 

Sort of. When I enter the code, it says what the coupon does at the bottom of the page, under "Coupon Entry."

"Save $300 on select Inspiron notebook purchases of $1399 or more (before tax, fees, shipping & handling)"

If you actually configure the Inspiron at a price at or above $1399, the coupon works--at least, it does for me.

Try it:
http://configure.us.dell.com/dellstore/config.aspx?c=us&cs=19&l=en&oc=DNCWKA1&s=dhs&sm=2

 

How is it not? Its website is not showing me why the coupon's not working, and I can't contact customer support. How is it not Dell's fault?

 

As far as I know, Dell is allowed to pull the coupon whenever they please. As for not being able to contact customer support about it, well, enter your contact info and you'll be able to.

 

Thanks for reporting. I'm glad the coupon works. Just to clarify, my problem is not that coupons expire or have conditions attached to them but that *when* they fail, Dell does not tell you *why*.

 

I really don't want to pay $1100 for what I can get for $900...

 

No, Dell is not allowed to pull the coupon whenever they please. Consumer protection laws do not allow sellers to do whatever the hell they please with coupons they issue. The life of a coupon may be limited in two ways: by specifying an expiration date or by limiting the number of redemptions. The expiration date must be clear ("for a limited time" is not a date). If they limit the number of redemptions, they *can* be vague about it and say "while supplies last". But the law also requires that they be very clear about all the conditions under which a coupon may be redeemed and when they refuse a coupon that they issued, they have to tell you why.

 

lol you dell guys are SPOILED! If your biggest complaint is not telling you why a coupon doesn't work, consider yourself lucky.

What do customer protection laws say about this-

Imagine how pissed you'd be if this happened instead w/the coupon: they let the coupon work at checkout, then after you order decided not to let it apply after you submitted your credit card and ordered- then instead of cancelling your order, just charge you the higher amount without the coupon! All you can do at this point is cancel the order or submit a "price match" request to fix their (admitted!) "glitch".

If you think Dell should be taken to court for not telling you why a coupon doesn't work, I hope you push for the death penalty in lenovo's case (the above has happened to no less than FIVE members here)!

Seriously though, sorry to hear it, I was just reading that thinking I wish lenovo would have merely not let my coupon work without an explanation as to why lol.

 

Well, after 9 years Dell lost me as a customer. My next machine is a Sager NP2090. But I'm not a Dell-guy or a Sager-guy or anything. I buy what I need and that's it.

What Lenovo did is much worse and warrants them being taken to court but since it would be a civil case the only penalty possible is damages. The death penalty is an option only for criminal cases.

But the fact that Lenovo did worse does not make Dell's behavior okay.

 

Ok, I just have to know- what were you thinking my "death penalty for lenovo" idea was? Like kill the board? Just CEO? All employees? lol @ you actually considering it, then determining that technically it wouldn't be legal.


Anyways, yeah that sucks that you like dells enough to be loyal to them for almost a decade, only to bail now because of no coupon failure explanation. Ultimately, as bad as what lenovo did to me was, I like their notebooks enough to put up with their crap (barely).

 

You tell 'em!

 

I'm getting the same message. The coupon details have been changed mid-week. Well, I hope that the new one is as good as this one WAS. I was all set to pull the trigger on a 1720 for $919.

 

You could probably get the right rep on the phone and get them to match it. If they were making money on it at that price with the coupon, they're going to make money on it without at the same price.

Hey Lemur, is your issue that the website doesn't have a pop-up that immediately explains why the coupon doesn't work, or would you be satisfied if you could call in, and a CSR explained the why/when of it?

 

I think the website should provide an explanation. With paper coupons, the details about the validity of the coupon must be on the coupon to be enforceable . It's not enough for sellers to just put a phone number on there and say "call us". So by analogy the website should provide the information rather than require that people phone in. But manufacturers have a pretty nice way to create a sense of urgency by saying that the quantity of stock available for the rebate offered by the coupon is limited. They are not legally required to tell the customer how many units are available. They are required however to have clearly put aside a set number of units for the rebate. "Clearly put aside" does not mean they have to publicize it but they have to internally document how many units are part of the rebate.

 

Well, I gave it a shot and called in the config and explained that the coupon details changed.. which apparently the phone rep was able to see, but was unable to help me get the original deal. The best they could do was $100. So.. we'll wait and see what the next coupon will be...

 

And I was about to get my 1520 for $909...