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Office Depot's Ink Cartridge Recycle program is a complete scam!
I hope all customers will read my experience and be aware of Office Depot's Scam. If you want to recycle Ink cartridges you may try Staples who have a cash back program WITHOUT and hidden traps or scams. Everyone ought to boycott Office Depot until they operate a clean rewards program. Office Depot is at worse stealing money from thier customers and at best holding its customers' credits hostage to spend more money at their stores.
Office promotes its ink cartridge recycle program as offering $3.00 per ink cartridge cash back. They also state that the cash back will be credited into the customer's Worklife Rewards Account. The store advised that I can then use the Worklife Rewards credit to purchase anything from Office Depot. So I recycled 20 units of ink cartridge for a total of $60.00 cash back. At the Office Depot store, the manager told me that the cash back will be credited to my Worklife Rewards Account and that I will receive a gift card at the end of the quarter which I can use for purchases at Office Depot.
Two weeks later, I logged into my Worklife Rewards account and found to my shock that there was no credits in my account. So I called the customer service line only to be told that I will nto get the credit for the recycled ink cartridge UNTIL I spend an equal amount of purchases at Office Depot. This is a very cunning SCAM! Office Depot invites their customers to recycle ink cartridges offering $3.00 for each cartridge. Then, Offfice Depot misleads their customers in believing that they will get the cash back credited to their Worklife Rewards account. But they do not inform the customers that in order to benefit the credit in their Worklife Rewards account they must first spend an equal amount of money at Office Depot.
Why must I spend MORE money at Office Depot to get cash back on recycled ink cartridges which I had originally paid for already. These are in k cartridges I had originally purchased at Office Depot at full price (no discounts). Now, Worklife Rewards program customer service state that I must spend MORE money at Office Depot in order get the cash back.
Since I originally purchased the ink cartridges from Office Depot at full price, why must I now spend MORE money at Office Depot to receive cash back on the recucled ink cartridges? This is a trap! And a very clever SCAM by Office Depot.
If Office Depot is collecting ink cartridges for recycling they obviously have use for them. In fact Office Depot resells refurbished ink cartridges for as high as $26.90 for refurbished black ink cartridge and much higher for $30.69 for refurbished tri-color cartridge. They are re-using cartridges recycled by their customers to re-fill and re-sell and making a healthy profit already. Why must Office Depot trap customer to spend more money before handing over the cash back for recycled cartridges?
Office Depot must either pay cash for the recycle ink cartridges or immediately credit the customer's Worklife Rewards account for the amount of cash back. Office Depot must not trap the consumer and hold the cash back for recycled cartridges hostage until the consumer spends an equal amount of new purchases at their store. After all any cash back given for the recycled cartridges can only be spent at Office Depot.
I now recycle my ink cartridges at Staples. Staples operate a clean recycled program where they credit the consumer for the recycle rewards in the form of a rewards card. The Staples rewards card may be used at any Staples. Staples does NOT hold the recycle credits hostage until teh consumer spends more money at their stores.
Extremely Dissatisfied Customer of Office Depot
The complaint has been investigated and resolved to the customer’s satisfaction.
This is so true. I just got caught in this scam. $2 reward/cartridge advertised. I returned 27 cartridges over the past 3 months (years of accumulation). I went to purchase a $47 item expecting to use my reward points. They were nowhere to be found. I spent 2.5 hours on with customer service trying to find my rewards. Nope gone. I had not made additional purchases to go with the cartridge returns! OMG. What a complete scam! They got 27 cartridges promising me $2 per cartridge. But I got NOTHING!
This recycle program has changed. It used to be that you received credit the next month...now it's the next quarter. However, that isn't exactly correct either. The quarter ends on December 31 and I was told we would get our reward the end of January. We always recycle my husband's companies ink cartridges at Office Depot but with the changes to the program, I am advising my husband to shop at/recycle at Staples.
I found out that I will get no credit from staples, either, since you need to spend at least $30 for ink, My printers are on an e-commerce program sold at Staples, so I have ink automatically sent. So I took my inks to Staples for nothing, too. Both Staples and Office Depot have become rather worthless. I paid Staples fro Tech Service and they wiped my hard drive clean, then they said I did it. It was in their shop for over a week, just to transfer data to a new machine. I could have done it myself. I thought that I had gotten reward credit for my inks at Office Depot, but I was mistaken, since I have received nothing for the last 30 or so ink cartridges I returned. And asking the sales associate about it, is feudal. It is apparently not their job to know anything.
Thus far, my experience with the "Office Depot Rewards" seems to concur with the range of complaints on this forum ...
The question is whether the body of of evidence is yet reaching the point that Office Depot runs the risk of exposure to federal law enforcement action ... If only in terms of maintaining a good public image, the program should be more straightforward - or else eliminated entirely ...
Alienated customers are not apt to be repeat customers ..
agreed Office Depot rewards are a scam.. thanks goodness for staples and or Sams club
I used to recycle ink cartridges at Office Depot and get instant cash. A few years ago they changed the program and said they'd credit to my rewards account. After a year or so I realized I was never getting any credit so I asked the next time I recycled cartridges. They gave me all the details. Thereafter I was careful to not exceed their limit and only recycle cartridges when I was a making a qualifying purchase. Then I forgot about it. Another year or so later I realized that we were never getting any credit so I asked again at the store. They said to check the online account, which of course I promptly forgot. After another year, I started to get mad and logged on could find no record of any cartridges being recycled. After speaking to online help and the store manager, I'm pretty much fed up with Office Depot. Since they are buying all the other office stores, I will have to find a new place to buy ink and paper and pens etc. I don't think they realize that when you create a rewards program and make promises, you have to deliver and make it easy for customers or eventually they will figure you are scamming them. That's what I think and I will now avoid Office Depot and any stores they buy.
I used to recycle ink cartridges at Office Depot and get instant cash. A few years they said they'd credit to my rewards account. After a year or so I realized I was never getting any credit so I asked the next time I recycled cartridges. They gave me all the details. Thereafter I was careful to not exceed their limit and only recycle cartridges when I was a making a qualifying purchase. Then I forgot about it. Another year or so later I realized that we were never getting any credit so I asked again at the store. They said to check the online account, which of course I promptly forgot. After another year, I started to get mad and logged on could find no record of any cartridges being recycled. After speaking to online help and the store manager, I'm pretty much fed up with Office Depot. Since they are buying all the other office stores, I will have to find a new place to buy ink and paper and pens etc. I don't think they realize that when you create a rewards program and make promises, you have to deliver and make it easy for customers or eventually they will figure you are scamming them. That's what I think and I will not avoid Office Depot and any stores they buy.
Staples now makes you spend $30 in ink purchases only in order to get $20 in rewards if you are a base member. All the programs are a joke unless you are a business member. I just give my cartridges to schools and other programs so they can use them towards what they need.
I have rewards accounts at Office Depot, Staples and OfficeMax and recycle ink/toner at all three. I read the terms and conditions of each ink/recycling program and have never had a problem. To say that any of them are scams, is joke. Just read the terms and conditions!
I don't know about their money back program. I was going to give them a try but now I use Staples. I purchased their recycled cartridges and had problems. It printed for awhile then nothing. I return them. No problem they gave me more. After using those for a short time my printer started giving me Ink System Failure errors. Tried all of HPs tips and nothing worked. I read in a forum that others had the same problem and HP told them the printer cannot be fixed. :( I wish I never stopped using the HP ink. Thinking I was saving money winded up costing me a printer. Also Office Depots recycled cartridges leaked.
TAKE YOUR BUSINESS TO STAPLES! Office Depot Ink recycling has so many loopholes! Go to somewhere straightforward! Staples gives you credit every month - you don't have to jump through hoops to get any thing! I lost $60 in ink cartridges before I realized it was a scam! Stupid me... read ALL OF THE FINE PRINT! Don't listen to the uninformed cashier.
I'm guessing that Jamesmk88 here is employed by Office Depot to do online damage control, directed to gush over this "wonderful" company while trying to sound like a real customer. I'll second the original poster's comments and reiterate that the WorkLife Rewards program is a steaming pile of crap. And cleverly deceptive crap at that. If you try to recycle any cartridges within the last half of a quarter, those credits won't show up before that quarter expires - and then they're just gone. And of course, your 10%-back rewards, if totalling under $10, expire at the end of each quarter too. So, say for example that you bought $96 worth of printer ink in mid-December, and recycled 5 cartridges, you think you're entitled to $19.60 right? Wrong! You'll get $9.60 in 10%-rewards to your account, but that will expire Dec 31 and won't be paid to you, since you hadn't earned >$10 in rewards. And the $10 of cartridge credit? Well, that will supposedly "process to your account in 4-6 weeks". But by that time, the quarter in which you recycled them will have ended, and so that reward period will have expired. Making a purchase of equivalent amount (which I have done) doesn't speed up that 4-6 week processing time. In the end, Office Depot gets your cartridges back for free, and you the customer gets screwed. The best advice then? Screw Office Depot, and do your office shopping and rewards program with Office Max or Staples or some other place of your liking.
Yvonne, the 100% back in rewards promotions are actually a great deal. The key is you have to buy the items that qualify. Go by the item numbers listed in the flyer, not the description. Because they trick you there. I did the 100% back in rewards last summer, and got 2 packs of AA Energizer batteries, thinking I would get my 100% back in rewards. But when I looked at my purchase history, I realized I should have bought the AAA Energizer batteries. Look in the FAQ on www.myworkliferewards.com, go down to "Promotions", then "Which items qualify for 100% back in rewards", click on the date of the promotion you're looking for, and it will bring up a .pdf file of each item number that is covered under the 100% back in rewards. You can verify, by logging into your Worklife Rewards account, click on purchase history, click on the time quarter that you made the purchase, then click on the blue "transaction number" link to take you to your purchase. You can then copy/paste the item numbers that you think you should have gotten 100% back in rewards on into the .pdf document search, to see if the item numbers match. If they do, you deserve 100% back in rewards on those items (as long as you only bought 2, because you only get 100% back in rewards on 2 items per member per day). That's where they got me, because some of the items are SO SIMILAR, and only one item number is a part of the 100% back in rewards promotion.
BUT, I have spent HUNDREDS of dollars at Office Depot on items in the 100% back in rewards promotions, and gotten every penny back in reward cards (excluding tax).
It really is a great rewards program, AS LONG as you know how to play it. The ink recycling program really is great if you go through a lot of ink, but yes you do have to meet your quarterly spending requirement.
Also, you get 10% back in rewards on paper, toner, ink, and anything in the copy center. They did away with the 1% back in almost everything else in the store. But I go through a lot of ink, so I get a really good deal when I buy all my ink and paper at Office Depot, and then get 10% back in rewards on it at the end of each quarter. And of course I recycle all my empty ink cartridges there, and get $2.00 per cartridge. I recycle 10 each month, which is 30 each quarter, which is $60.00 each quarter in rewards on top of my 10% back on paper ink and toner, which is added to my 100% back in rewards on all the special promotions they've been running.
I LOVE it! I love Office Depot, and they do price matching too...either in the store or online. If you see it cheaper somewhere else, including Wal Mart, Best Buy, Costco and Staples, call them on the phone and they'll verify the sales ad at their competitor's website and match the price right then and there.
I think Office Depot is the best office supplies store in the world. They are very friendly in the store, the associates always help me out and love to see me and joke around with me, and their rewards program really makes it a pleasure shopping there every single weekend without fail.
James
I have been recycling ink cartridges for months. I have turned in at least 20 cartridges in the past 3 months. I looked at my rewards account and found I was credited $6.00. Now I buy there all the time. After all Office Depot is a toy store for me. When I looked up my purchases there was a list of at least 20 receipts during the quarter. I bought a $300 chair not to mention other things. What gets my goat is the 100% rewards program is supposed to give me back the money I spend on the items they specify. . The $6.00 I was allowed should have been $60.00. Why? Well, I bought 2 staplers which were on 100% rewards and a Sanford box of pens that was $19.99. I asked at the store if I had to keep track of every penny or would the store do it? I was told the store would do it. So, Office Depot has lied to me. Without the rewards program, I would not have bought as much as I did. After all, I didn’t have to have a stapler at home and at word.
I will buy their 100% rewards on purchases one more time, but you better believe I have the receipts and the ads. In addition, I wrote them asking for an explanation of why my money was not right. I may have to get used to Staples..
What do you people expect out of a rewards program, free cash without having to spend a dime at Office Depot? If you paid full price for the ink cartridges to begin with at Office Depot, then I don't understand why they're telling you that you need to first spend money at Office Depot.
I also recycle ink cartridges there, but I don't expect them to just hand me $3.00 per cartridge without spending a dime at Office Depot! In fact I go through about 10 cartridges per month, and recycle that many at Office Depot. BUT, I also buy all the cartridges at Office Depot and I also get 10% back in rewards on the money I spend on the initial ink cartridges too. So if I spend $100 on ink, I get $10.00 back in rewards. Plus, if I recycle 10 cartridges per month, I get $20.00 back in rewards on the recycling (it's now $2.00 per recycled cartridge, not $3.00 anymore).
The whole purpose of a rewards program is to reward customers for their loyalty to the company, not to hand over free cash. The writer of the complaint seems to expect Office Depot to hand over free money without him having to do anything except give them his empty ink cartridges that are used up. He acts like he's doing Office Depot a huge favor or something...when in fact he's not. Does he really think Office Depot just refills them with ink right there in the store? Of course not.
The ink recycling program is designed to get people in the store, looking around, and hopefully buying stuff. It's NOT designed to just hand over free money.
Also, he complained that the rewards card he'll be getting can only be used at Office Depot. What does he expect, them to give him cash instead or maybe write him out a check?
Maybe he would also like to bring in his dirty laundry to Office Depot too, and have them wash it and fold it all for him and then give him $3.00 per item that they washed for him.
I'm surprised he didn't go back to the Office Depot that he returned the ink cartridges to and demand his idiotic ink cartridges back!
I'm all for calling out a company if they are doing illegal or unethical things, but the Office Depot ink recycling program is far from a scam. For crying out loud, they pay you $2.00 per EMPTY ink cartridge so that it can be recycled, REGARDLESS OF WHERE YOU BOUGHT IT. I highly suspect this guy didn't even buy the ink at Office Depot to begin with, otherwise they wouldn't have held on to his PENDING reward credit until he actually spends $60.00 at Office Depot. He probably bought the ink at Wal Mart or Staples, otherwise the Office Depot spending requirement would have already been met and he would have gotten his $60.00 back in rewards, PLUS he would have gotten 10% back on the ink as well.
But no, he just expects an immediate $3.00 back per cartridge and doesn't think he should have to spend a red cent at Office Depot, he just wants them to hand him $60.00 in free rewards.
Get a clue people.
perfect answer, james
You [censored], I buy all my ink at Office Depot and they’ve pulled the same [censored] on me, cheating out of rewards for ink cartridge returns originally bought there plus with additional ourchases over the $10 minimum. This company scams and steals whenever they can by relying on the trust of idiots like youz dont make assumptions about [censored], [censored]
I just found out about this scam today. I had been taking cartridges in to Office Depot for 2 months now, and each time I logged onto my account and saw a zero balance I thought maybe it just takes time. I finally got frustrated today and called. The lady informed me that only if I spend money, the same amount to equal what the rewards would be, would I get any rewards at all. WHAT A LOAD OF CRAP! This person is right. I have participated in Staples rewards, but wanted to try Office Depot because they allow more per month. BIG MISTAKE. There went all of my cartridges. I am so mad, I don't understand why they need to decieve people like this. I read the terms of the recycle agreement hoping to find something about this "catch" but I found nothing. They suck and I will not be going there ever again. Its just too bad I didn't realize it sooner.
If you used your rewards card at the time of the ink purchase, you should have gotten that purchase counted towards the spending requirement. Also, if you check the receipt that prints out explaining the recycling program, you'll see that you should allow 4-6 weeks for the ink recycles to process. You weren't lied to, they just did a lousy job explaining it to you.