Sprint has reached an agreement with Iowa and 35 other states to pay money for rebate checks that were promised for new phones but never collected. Attorney General Tom Miller says Iowa filed suit against Sprint and the company that processed its rebates — and the company has agreed to pay the states 22-million dollars. State Treasurer Michael Fitzgerald says Iowa’s share is $127,000.
Fitzgerald says they will be getting names from the company and estimate there will be 18 to 20-thousand names. He says they will put the names in the Great Iowa Treasure Hunt run by his office and try to get the money back to Iowans. Fitzgerald says they believe the rebates will average between 50 and 100 dollars. Miller and Fitzgerald says Sprint’s decision to turn over the unclaimed rebate money could lead to more companies doing so.
He says when a “major player like Sprint” steps up and decides to comply with the law, it is a strong signal to other companies that they have to comply as well. Fitzgerald says Sprint will now report unclaimed rebates every year. The rebates are considered abandoned property and that can happen when people move and don’t have a forwarding address, or simply forget to deposit a check. Attorney General Miller says you need to be sure you always take the proper steps to ensure that the rebate is sent to you.
He says you should be sure to follow through and get the proper paperwork in and then watch for the check. Miller says if you don’t get the check, then you should check with the company. If you still don’t get your check, and don’t get a satisfactory explanation from the company, you can file a complaint with the Attorney General’s Consumer Protection Division.