My $40 government-issued converter box coupon was declined by a retailer who said it had expired even though the expiration date on the card had not passed. In fact, the card wouldn't actually expire for several days. I had to call the Retailer number on the back of the card to help me sort things out.
The customer service agent explained that the coupon can be processed in one of two ways. It can either be swiped like a credit card, or data from the card can be entered through a web site. Using the website method may cause your coupon to be declined if you try using it near the expiration date. The reason is that the web site only allows the retailer to enter the expiration date as month / year and for some reason this can cause the coupon to appear as though it expired. (I was also told that three unsuccessful attempts to process the card will "lock it out" for 24 hours.)
The swipe method can reliably tell the actual expiration date of the card. Large national retailers like Walmart and Target usually use the swipe method. Circuit City also swipes; that's where I successfully used my coupon on the day before expiration.
Bottom line: If your card is about to expire, make sure you visit a retailer that uses the swipe method. As a side note, I used my first coupon a couple of months prior at a store that uses the web site method and had no problem. But I later had a problem at this same store when I tried to use my second card a few days before its expiration date. Hope this helps someone avoid the problem I had.
The customer service agent explained that the coupon can be processed in one of two ways. It can either be swiped like a credit card, or data from the card can be entered through a web site. Using the website method may cause your coupon to be declined if you try using it near the expiration date. The reason is that the web site only allows the retailer to enter the expiration date as month / year and for some reason this can cause the coupon to appear as though it expired. (I was also told that three unsuccessful attempts to process the card will "lock it out" for 24 hours.)
The swipe method can reliably tell the actual expiration date of the card. Large national retailers like Walmart and Target usually use the swipe method. Circuit City also swipes; that's where I successfully used my coupon on the day before expiration.
Bottom line: If your card is about to expire, make sure you visit a retailer that uses the swipe method. As a side note, I used my first coupon a couple of months prior at a store that uses the web site method and had no problem. But I later had a problem at this same store when I tried to use my second card a few days before its expiration date. Hope this helps someone avoid the problem I had.
