Some changes I found happened or going to happen.
Cashrewards' cashout threshold will be increased to $10.01 from 12th June 2017.
It accepts cashout by Paypal transfer now(no fee) as many may notice.
Term 5.10.2
"For each calendar year, you may only submit: up to a total of 3 Cashrewards Claim and each Cashrewards Claim must not exceed $30.00 in value."
Is this new?Be careful with your large amount purchase on Lenovo or eBay.
Information Source:
No,it is about missing cashback claim.For example,due to the high cashback amount for a Lenovo laptop,I think you may not be able to claim it if it is not tracked.
Pretty sure the cash rewards claim is only applicable for transactions which don't go through as expected and might need to be followed up by Cashrewards for manual credit.
Yes agree. Claim. Not cash out or withdraw
Cashrewards seems to be missing quite a few cashbacks. I had four eBay transactions that were not tracked for two weeks. Later, CR sent an email advising people to manually submit cashbacks for that period from eBay. Three per YEAR limit? That's silly.
I've had to manually process multiple cashbacks from Viator and Deluxe Products too. Does CR really want users to play cashback roulette?
If it's costing CR too much in processing fees to chase up $2 cashbacks then they should fix their system and pressure stores to live up to their promises. I always make sure adblockers are switched off and CR is activated. Dan Murphy's and AliExpress cashbacks are 100%, but many other sites are 50% at best.
then they should fix their system
You mean the affiliate networks should fix their system? Tracking is done via affiliates and each store is using their own. Some are cookie based while others are session based. Some networks like Commission Factory are reliable and work really well while others like Shareasale are not.
Both have the same affiliate networks, but for sure they don't have the same payout policy. For example, Cashrewards will only payout 1x $20 Woolworths Online new user cashback per Cashrewards account, however PricePal pays out the $20 multiple times in the same account.
That's part of Cashrewards policy - to not pay out - nothing to do with affiliate networks. Which I think is quite shifty because if PricePal are paying out multiple $20 cashbacks then it means Cashrewards are receiving the $20 from the affiliate network but keeping it for themselves.
I'm replying to his comment about cashback not being tracked. Not their payout policy.
@Clear: Yes but what I'm trying to say (in a really roundabout way) is that we all assume that because they have the same affiliate network that whatever shows as 'tracked' with one must therefore show as 'tracked' with the other. The reality is there are many more moving parts than just the affiliate and it is entirely possible, though not probable, that human intervention behind the scenes could remove/void/untrack purchases.
We look at the 'My Account' page and assume it has been automatically created by computers, that all transactions are dealt with at the machine level and is therefore fool-proof. However every employee of the cashback site has the ability to change what is shown and not shown in our 'My Account'. Why are we to believe that both parties are 100% honest? If you look at the policies of both of the cashback providers in question I would say Cashrewards policies are far worse off for the conusmer (i.e. higher cashout threshholds; not automatic payouts - you need to manually request payout; internal policies to withhold cashbacks received from the affiliate networks but not to payout to their customers).
@tomclancy: Alright now I get what you were saying. I was more talking from my experience with using affiliate networks. Often the commission is tracked, but not paid out for reasons including coupons being used and the user clicking through someone elses affiliate link. Obviously the latter being less likely with Cashback websites unless people are trying to double dip.
FFS the cash rewards claims debacle continues on and on. Since my last run-in with this mob I've been extra careful to follow everything to the letter in Casey's email to me. That didn't stop a 7% Amcal cashback from not registering on a mere purchase of $20. If claims are limited to 3 every year, are they hoping people won't claim on smaller items in case larger purchases screw up?
I think that's the case. I manually put through every single missed cash back I'm entitled to, even if it's for 50c. If I didn't it's just free money for CR, money they promised to me. I always wondered how much it must cost CR in labour to manually process lots of small cashbacks, and looks like they're finally sick of it.
I estimate over the past year I have had to manually put through around 15 cashbacks, and I'm a very light user of CR. It's quite silly when booking multiple trips or hotels during one evening, and half the cashbacks are recorded and the other half aren't, from the same site.
The ultimate solution is for CR to properly process cashbacks, but that appears to be a bit too hard.
Right now I'm waiting for a few hotel bookings to pay out, which are listed as '90 days from booking completion'. Sometimes I've waited 180 days and still no cashback. An email to CR was required to get it processed. Are these limited to three per year now too?
I have a Expedia booking from 2015 December as pending.
It tracked initially. Then rejected after 3 odd months I asked why it was rejected. And then got a We don't know . We will reopen it response.
Now 16 months later. Ive enquired a few times and all i get told is they are still waiting for a reply.
However in this case I have a feeling it's not cr fault as the hotel websites for cash back rarely work and if they do takes months
The hotel's were for about $600 and cash back was about 5%
Obviously I've given up on that transaction. But pretty frustrating
Cashrewards have a bad reputation with a fair few on here.
Every store will always have a bad reputation from a few vocal unhappy customers.
Some customers are like the joker, they just want to watch the world burn.
I know because I work in retail.
For the world to see, my current CR account balance.
It's clearly working great for me and proves that it tracks.
Why the hell are you sitting on $450? Cash it out! Go crazy! Buy eneloops!
Will withdraw :)
Only 224.92 atm is available, the rest is tracking and pending (not in a hurry)
Already have enough Eneloops.
@cwongtech: 1% net gain is nothing, but the 3% interest earning still gives you money to buy items that don't rise in price (eg 85c bread)
I hope it continues to work well for you mate
and proves that it tracks
Not entirely. It proves that $451.84 tracked. To be fair it doesn't prove anything about the transactions that didn't track.
In my past reading of OzBargain comments I would say there are a higher number of tracking complaints about Cashrewards, compared to PricePal. However no doubt there is a higher number of CR users (especially with TA onboard) so I couldn't definitively say which has a higher proportion of complaints. I have already given my own experience with both cashback sites here which clearly is in favour of PricePal.
Us consumers will never have a true comparison of tracking success between both sites (yes I know they use the same affiliate engine but there are front ends to consider and also company policies to get through) because it is ultimately a black box on both sides.
Not entirely. It proves that $451.84 tracked. To be fair it doesn't prove anything about the transactions that didn't track.
I didn't say it doesn't track, things are bound to go wrong from time to time, but for me it tracks well for the sites I use it on CR, and the support function is great.
Sites I've used CR with 100% accuracy:
-Ebay
-Aliexpress
-Sony
-Wiggle
-House
-Geekbuying
-Tmart
-Agoda
Sites I've used CR that required manual intervention (and successful payouts):
-Adrenaline
-Easyflowers
I'm also sure scientology had heaps of supporters in its early days and they've got diehard supporters today too.
Sure. However scientology asks for money. CR provides a solid chance at free money you spend. Better than no money back at all.
Yes there will always be issues with tracking, there's so many variables and thus a support ticket system exists.
Depends how you look at the T&C change. It might mean CR is confident enough with its tracking procedure now it believes that PEBKAC is the main problem, or its to discourage support ticket abusers?
@cwongtech: support ticket abusers? You mean people who go use CR in good faith expecting them to honour their end of the deal?
Agree.Pricepal runs payment every months automatically and pays out regardless of amount.
Andrew here from Cashrewards. We recently introduced a cashback payment guarantee, as a world first in cashback, to provide confidence for our members, given the myriad of issues that can occur with affiliate tracking. See this from Scotty re all the difficulties with cookie/cashback tracking etc https://www.ozbargain.com.au/node/219624#comment-3213356
Please note - the correct details of our guarantee are here http://join.cashrewards.com.au/guarantee
Unfortunately there is a mistake that was made inadvertently by our lawyers when they wrote the guarantee section of the terms and conditions and our bad was not checking this properly before uploading. We are correcting the terms and conditions asap to match the on-site guarantee page which has always been the intent of the guarantee.
i.e A maximum of $30 per cashback claim applies to the guarantee and a maximum of 3 claims per member per month and 10 claims per member per calendar year. This is necessary as this level of cashback not tracking generally indicates user error and Cashrewards will not be receiving payment from retailers on these purchases.
Also let's be clear; Cashrewards accepts all cashback claims beyond the guarantee maximums however a successful outcome depends on us being able to get paid by the store. The Cashrewards guarantee means that we will pay out of our own pocket irrespective of whether we get paid.
Cashrewards is the first and only cashback site globally to guarantee members their cashback. Cashback sites generally will not pay out to members at all if they do not get paid. With the new Cashrewards guarantee our members can now shop and earn cashback with confidence.
Also in regards to the number of claims and inaccuracy of tracking with Cashrewards vs other cashback sites, as has been pointed out on this forum, Cashrewards has many times more people using the service than other similar websites and accordingly does have more cashback claims, hence why it may be perceived that Cashrewards tracking is unreliable when it fact it is no more so than any other comparable site.
Cashback is a wonderful thing, in that essentially its money back on a purchase you most likely would have made anyway. Unfortunately the reliability of tracking means a small percentage of purchases do not track. The guarantee is designed to solve this issue as much as possible for our members.
As always keen to hear your feedback on how we can improve.
Your policy screams greed greed greed.
Its truly digsuting when companies try to hide greed by saying its a customer benefit
So a customer does the right thing and is promised a cash back and if it doesn't get tracked through no fault of their own . They are limited to $30 per transaction and 3 times per year.
I suppose you would be grateful if one of your partners let's say woolworths one day turn around and tell you they will only pay you the first 1000 transactions per year even though they promise you a set margin for every transaction from day one.????
You can spin it any way you want but don't play the nice guy when essentially you are ripping customers off
You guys have a good business idea/model and you've played the Mr nice guy role since day one. And now………
Its truly digsuting when companies try to hide greed by saying its a customer benefit
Lets be real here. Every company is in it for profit. How they come about this is from how they conduct business. They are clearly ready to take feedback and have a ticket support system for when things go wrong..
You can spin it any way you want but don't play the nice guy when essentially you are ripping customers off
Not sure how a 100% guarantee is greed.
They made the decision that if your tracking always goes wrong its due to user error.
maximum of 3 claims per member per month and 10 claims per member per calendar year.
That's 3 claims guaranteed per month. If a store doesn't track that much, and they see a pattern with a particular store they'll fix it.
Of course I agree. A while ago I made a 10k purchase on grays online
I followed the process. As I've used cr hundreds of times and it didn't track. Not a big deal
Manually asked them to track it. And they did. Brilliant. Love cr
With this new guarantee. Through no fault of my own my $300 odd cash back is limited to $30. How is this fair?
To me there shouldn't be a limit on the number of mistakes a company is to fix.
Please read Andrew's response carefully. There is no maximum threshold to any claim you submit. The guarantee simply means we will pay you up to $30 even if the merchant doesn't pay us. Any further/additional claims you submit over this amount will be added to your account as pending until the merchant confirms the purchase and that in fact it was attributed to CR and not another cashback site, including OzB (yes, OzB). Once they approve the transaction, your status changes to approved and you can cash out the funds.
What you need to remember, and I've stressed this on many occasions, is that we want your transactions to track! We get paid, you get paid, and everyone is happy. It's a pain in the backside for us and for you when tickets are raised. What we've done with the guarantee is added a further layer of protection for our members - something no other cashback site in the world has done (and probably never will). Andrew should be applauded for this, not chastised. Also, I've requested your CR email address via PM so I can check Adblock activation on your account. Thanks.
Cashrewards accepts all cashback claims beyond the guarantee maximums however a successful outcome depends on us being able to get paid by the store. The Cashrewards guarantee means that we will pay out of our own pocket irrespective of whether we get paid.
I understand that. But we don't know nor can verify whether you get paid or not . What eve agreements you have with the partner is your business.
I was fortunate enough to get my $300 claim manually approved but a simple "we didn't get paid for it so here is your $30" could also have been been a possibility
Don't get me wrong. I love your website and you and your ceos attitude. It's very refreshing but I feel that a few of those terms and conditions are heading in the wrong way.
Just my 2c
But we don't know nor can verify whether you get paid or not .
If you have a click-thru recorded with a matching transaction and no double dipping (trying to use two cashback sites at the se time) CR can do their talking to the store and sort it out.
Large majority of the whingers here on Ozbargain don't even raise the support ticket. It's like saying "oh my God no one wants to hire me boohoo what is this government doing" without actually applying for any job openings.
See, your grays online transaction is a perfect example of fixing something up.
If you give the documentation, you'll get the cashback. Simple as that.
If derpymcderp can't buy a cheeseburger (keeps selecting fries) from the touchscreen 3 times in a row in one day, he probably needs help, and McDonalds will still make those 3 cheeseburgers AND apologize to derpymcderp about the machine. If multiple people say there's something wrong with the ordering machine then McDonald's will investigate.
It's about setting limits, like how in Tennis you can "challenge" the umpire a few times. Otherwise the player can challenge every single shot without consequence.
The tennis challenge example is a good one .
But! If you get the challenge right you don't lose a challenge.
Plus! If you win the challenge. You get the full point or full replay not a partial compensation!
And your reference to my grays example is also a good one
However I will only be eligible for $30 through no fault of my own if I had made 3 claims that month
My current balance at present is about $9000 which I am very happy about. However I do a lot of transactions and if they start getting untracked this will be a big negative for me.
I have a friend who made a 10k purchase with 10% cash back she followed the instructions as per usual. And it didn't track. She manually got added on and I think she is quite a big user. Would hate to be in her shoes if it was rejected for whatever reason
For the record. The following happens to me 80% of the time when making certain purchases
Login
Click on link to store
Make purchase
Sign out
Sign back in
Click on link to store
Make purchase
Sign out
Sometimes only purchase 1 tracks. Sometimes only purchase 2 tracks.
I'm doing the right thing. I don't know how else I could have done it
Sign out
Sign back in
I sign in the target store and add to cart before I go to click the CR link.
Not sure why you're signing out and in..?
Signing out might be the culprit here, it forces the login cookies to be cleared.
Well I have to do 2 separate transactions for various reasons.
I'm not the most technical person but logically I assume thay if you're doing 2 transactions is better to sign out and then in so the process starts fresh.
I can easily imagine cr saying you have to do it separately rather than once…….
@hellohello123:
Do you walk out of the store and back in if you want to split purchases into two receipts?
Because that's what you're doing.
When you "signout" its the equivalent of saying "treat me like a new customer/guest please".
It forces the cookies associated with tracking your cart and your account information with that store to be emptied.
I suspect it also flushes away the CR tracking cookies as well.
This is most likely the root cause of your second transaction not tracking.
I do pretty much exactly as you do, except without signing out. Two transactions one after the other (different delivery addy) and they both track.
If you still want to sign out, that's fine (not necessary though), but click the CR link a second time before you sign in.
The purchases needed to be on separate transactions for personal reasons.
However your example also means that if you want to buy two separate things because they are gifts and you need to give the receipt. The mail in cash back if they had one. Would mostly be done separately than combined
I don't know how cookies exactly work but if you think logically.
Whenever I'm shopping on cr. If it's been a while or I've opened a few windows I will always double click the goto button on the merchant to ensure I get the cashback
The point is to minimise the time from CR to checkout. Next time you signout and signin, click the CR link again after you signout.
@cwongtech:
absolutely always do,
sometimes i click it s few timrs to be sbsolutely sure, esp a large tranasaction
I have only had one cashback issue so far. I'm still unsure whether it was user error, but I had turned off my ad blockers etc, turned on cashrewards and made sure my cashrewards app was working.
Anyway I've recently gone over the $100 mark (on 12 purchases since Jan 2016). Overall a good experience.
They never paid out on my Lenovo claim
Numerous arguements back and forward, all over $100 bucks or so, couldn't be bothered
This is why this CR guarantee doesn't sound so good. If the total cashback is under $30, then it's alright. Any higher amounts and you're playing with fire. If everything is done exactly the same every time with smaller amounts tracking and cashback paid, why do occasional purchases run foul of CR? Not only that, it seems to be the higher percentage payouts or larger amounts too. I have no hard evidence to support that last claim, only anecdotal and personal experiences.
Other cashback websites don't pay out of their own pocket when a merchant doesn't pay. $30 out of pocket is reasonable.
Do other websites have many tracking issues though?
@niggard: Yes. Since CR is the biggest and most used in Australia/OzB you don't hear much about the others as they're a minority. At least they're not Shopandmint who don't pay out and don't respond at all.
I have affiliate links embedded in my own websites and one of the biggest issues I have is the merchants not paying. In most cases the purchase/click itself has been tracked, but the merchant declines the payment as an unauthorised coupon was used or the user clicked through someone else's affiliate link.
Some affiliate networks are far better at tracking than others. Cookie based (common) are no good when people are running an AV or browser plugin that actively stops tracking cookies.
I do like the fact they do pay out of pocket
its pretty good either way
I was just annoyed that it wasn't approved
but it seems like the cashback promise dipping into their pocket is definately a good thing
Most of my purchases have been tracked
well an update,
I know im going to cop a lot of negative votes for this, but I dont care, it needs to be said
ive been PMing the rep on here and the replies have been pretty bad
the final correspondance was, you are free to take your business elsewhere
basically since message 1 , i ve been telling and asking how a guarantee that sounds good and makes it sound like they are doing a favour is just pure greed and hypocrisy
I continually kept on using my example, which actually happend in real life recently,
I made 3 hotel transactions, that did not track, I followed the instructions perfectly, and as I do with other purchases, nothing different, these didnt track,
my argument was that , these 3 I now have to manually get them tracked, and there is a max of 3 per month, I was about to make a $10k purchase with cashback at 10%, so according to their new guarantee, I will now not get this cashback
ive repeated asked them to explain how this is beneficial to the customer and its just lining their pockets with cashback
as suspected their first excuse was oh it takes up to 7 days to track, (which in my experience can, however generally cashback is within 24 -48 hours)
however its now been a week and its hasnt tracked
their next reply was please send us your email, which ive elected not to for personal and business reasons,
even if they make an exception and adjust it, it doesnt stop this happening in the futre
every single reply to specific questions as to how fair it is has been, "oh send us your email" or "tracking is not an exact science"
and actually doenst explain or justify the guarntee and they still are behaving like they are doing us a big favour
like I said, im not here to gain support or agreeance,
im not here to gain support or agreeance,
Not much chance of that happening.
their next reply was please send us your email, which ive elected not to for personal and business reasons,
So how can they find out what went wrong if they don't know your email?
My house is on fire and I call the fire brigade, but I won't tell them my address because it's personal information. Oh no my house burned down. It's the fire brigades fault.
ive repeated asked them to explain how this is beneficial to the customer and its just lining their pockets with cashback
Its $30 paid to the customer without any sort of verification, with the rest pending after investigation.
im not here to gain support or agreeance
You are here to voice your disgruntled opinion because you couldn't get your way and you couldn't them to agree to your claim of their greed.
You are here to voice your disgruntled opinion because you couldn't get your way and you couldn't them to agree to your claim of their greed.
Greed you say? Have a look at this!
does anybody know or have ideas or even loopholes to get more cashback
I think we have a double dipper here!
You know what one of the scenarios could have been? He may have tried to double dip cashback on booking.com with PricePal's 3% and Cashreward's 8% resulting in 11% total cashback. Since the transaction can only go to 1 affiliate…. it went to PricePal and he only got 3% instead of CashReward's 8%.
Caught red handed!
@cwongtech: Indeed. When people claim to have followed the procedure and refuse to give details you know something fishy is going on.
is there anyway to use CR and (say for example) FlyBuys to purchase items (say Uniqlo)?
So max $90 cahsback per year ? Sounds restrictive