Rhode Island rebate law responsible for Pepsi shortage :: TurnTo10

Quote:

A Sunday advertising circular is promoting free Pepsi 12-packs and 2-liter bottles, if you mail in a rebate form.
However, a new Rhode Island law is limiting how stores handle rebates in advertisements such as the circular Pepsi distributed.

According to the law, if the ad includes a net price that is based on a rebate, then the rebate must be given at the time of purchase.
. . .
As soon as a Pepsi truck driver delivered a shipment of 12-packs, they were flying off the shelves.

At a Stop & Shop in Cranston, the Consumer Unit noticed that all of the shelves were empty of 2-liter Pepsi bottles.

A Pepsi spokesperson told NBC 10 that, "By the time the company became aware of the new law, it was too late to change two ads that our customers had planned to run this week. All future ads have been revised."

The spokesperson also said the Rhode Island production facility is working at capacity to try and produce enough soda to meet the demand.

This story comes to us from Fark, of course.

These two chains are, in effect, setting their price for Pepsi at zero. That was not their intent, but it seems that they are attempting, to keep up with the increased sales. I wonder if they have a rain check policy in place that promises the customer who finds the item is sold out to purchase it later when it becomes available. Or whether they have a policy that limits the quantity any single buyer can purchase.

Here's some of things economically insightful Farkers had to say:

2006-08-22 11:06:36 PM TechnoHead

Thank you, Rhode Island, for ruining it for all the people who actually mail the rebates like me.

The mail-in rebates are based on the fact that only a portion of the people actually claim it (someone in this thread quoted 40%, it sounds about right) so the company can offer a $100 rebate because they know it really means $40 on average.

Now that they have passed this stupid law to protect the lazy ass idiots that can't even fill in a form properly let alone walk to a mailbox, the rebates are going to be substantially reduced.

On the plus side, I am glad all the important problems in the world have been solved that we can now legislate to protect the terminally lazy.
. . .

2006-08-22 11:42:39 PM radiojunkie2878

Two things that they failed to mention:

1. The Pepsi isn't actually free, you still need to pay the sales tax which is 7% on 10 bucks (before the "rebate") so it's 70 cents for four 12 packs... still not a bad deal... Can't expect the state to not take their cut...

2. Local news is reporting that several fights have broken out at supermarkets around Rhode Island tonight... Mostly around the times that the stores get new deliveries of Pepsi... All over free soda... gotta love Rhode Island...
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2006-08-22 11:53:21 PM mtrac

I like rebates. Never had a problem with them. People who don't remit them subsidize those that do.

2006-08-22 11:53:52 PM relaxitsjustme

Let me add my voice to the group that has done everything correctly, mailed it off on time and still ended up having to fight for my rebate. I refuse to buy based on rebates anymore.
. . .

2006-08-23 12:18:18 AM kmmarasco

I live in RI.

I have seen the hordes of obese middle class white people fighting and clawing over cases of bubbly goodness, the whites of their eyes so large at the very thought of free soda.

I just want my damn soda and all these fat bastards are taking it from me.

I still have a $100 rebate that has mysteriously been postponed because "we're updating our systems so everything needs to be reprocessed." More like "we're packing our stuff and moving to Taipei."

TAGS: farkonomics, rebates