This “Cash for Appliances” program is just great [/sarcasm]
Posted By RichC on May 30, 2010
I “tried”’ to take advantage of the $100 Cash for Appliances rebate program back in March/April by reserving a reservation, purchasing a new dishwasher, recycling the old dishwasher and filling out the rebate paperwork, but I have been thwarted by the system. Once again our bureaucracy is too much for me to figure out. This will be the last time I’ll be nudged by politicians or participate in government programs which attempts to stimulate the economy or whatever. What a bureaucratic farce.
Sadly the ‘taxpayers’ are on the hook for a rebate advertising campaign, development of a website and associated online infrastructure and a paid staff to administer an appliance stimulus program. Still knowing this upfront, 
I decided that I would be patriotic and replace our aging dishwasher and doing my part in spending and installing a more energy efficient model. For this, I was promised a $100 rebate after weaving my way through the compliance steps. I mading a reservation (limited numbers), then scrambled to purchase an appliance within 3 days, recycled the old at an authorized recycling facility (a pain for the self-installer BTW) and submitting my filled out paperwork and original receipt to a rebate facility in Texas – key administrative location (notice it is not Ohio).
Now after waiting the appropriate amount of time, I’ve received a postcard indicating that my purchase did not meet the terms and is invalid … “Purchase location was on in the state of Ohio.” Hmm … I had 3 days to make the purchase and not finding the model (energy efficient and approved model) we wanted at several local appliance stores, proceeded to start to “order” from Lowes. They indicated that the program was so successful that their inventory was depleted and that I would have to be put on the waiting list and that they would ship it from one of their out of state warehouses. I sat down in their store, made a couple calls finding it in-stock at an out of state store and they shipped it the next day (mistake, ehh?)
Now, I wonder just how much of a difference it makes to purchase the dishwasher being sold by Lowes and ship from their out of state warehouse and me purchasing and having it shipped?
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