Cashrewards Declined Surfshark Cash Back (Poll: Declined Cashbacks for Unsatisfactory Reason?)

Liamaseriously on 23/06/2020 - 20:20
Last edited 28/06/2020 - 16:51 by 1 other user

Hi all,

So I went through the 90% cash back deal for SurfsharkVPN back in April by Cashrewards. I went through the usual steps like disabling adblock, not opening other tabs and went through Cashrewards website as last click. The click history was recorded but tracking did not. I contacted Cashrewards after I waited patiently for a few weeks and uploaded receipt.

Now after waiting for more than 2 months the cash back was declined. When I contacted Cashrewards, they replied Surfshark has attributed the commission fee to “other marketing channel” and has paid cash back to that channel. Cashrewards said they did not receive the commission fee from Surfshark and that’s why they declined it.

I felt misled and am going to report to ACCC and FairTrade. I have asked for the Surfshark’s proof of cash back payment to “other marketing channel”.
Would you guys have any suggestions or experiences? I’d appreciate it. Cheers.

Poll

Have You Ever Been Declined Cashback for Unsatisfactory Reason?

Poll Options expired

  • 1
    Cashback value < $50
  • 0
    Cashback vaule $50 - $100
  • 0
    Cashback vaule >$100
Internet

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Cashrewards
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Third-Party

Comments

  • Prince K on 23/06/2020 - 20:24
    +2

    I feel you, this is so frustrating. I’m in the same big boat, made a large purchase via Cashrewards purely because of the cash back. I’d be paying RRP without it and obviously would not have gone ahead with the purchase if I had known. I’m actually staying away from these deals now, because you end up spending more than you’d save

    • iamaseriously on 23/06/2020 - 21:16
      +1

      Yea you are right. I’d be certainly staying away from these kind of cash back deals from now on.

      • SnoozeAndLose on 23/06/2020 - 21:19

        Have you talk to TA?

        • iamaseriously on 23/06/2020 - 21:24

          Not as yet. I have to wait until my account is 1 day old.

  • No Username on 23/06/2020 - 20:25
    +2

    Surf Shark Cash backs has always worked for me. Do you have any adware or other misc extensions that could be malicious? Also are you on public WiFi or using any networking devices like a PI-Hole?

    • iamaseriously on 23/06/2020 - 21:19
      +1

      No PI Holes nor any public WiFi. Just at my home via private wifi. Yea I didn’t have any problems with cash backs from Shopback before this purchase which made me put trust in Cashrewards.

  • mskeggs on 23/06/2020 - 20:29
    +9

    Ouch.
    It was fear of this that held me from buying deals for Nord or Surfshark.
    I think the only way that cashback works reliably is as a nice "bonus" of a few percent. Relying on it to make a purchase worthwhile is too risky.
    And I say that having received nearly every cashback claim I have made.

  • theHMASfriendship on 23/06/2020 - 20:34
    +3

    Welcome to OzBargain

    • iamaseriously on 23/06/2020 - 21:07

      Thanks. Been a lurker for a long time and Ozb helped me get some really good deals except for this bummer 😅

  • PissLUR on 23/06/2020 - 20:37
    +1

    You should have asked for a refund since the cashback was not tracked automatically (only manually recorded).

    That's a red flag.

  • jimbobaus on 23/06/2020 - 20:39
    -2

    Do you have the ShopBack browser add on?
    Often clicking the pop up to close it tracks the cashback for them but does not track it for your account. Another user on here a while back found out that the ShopBack add on tracks supported websites even when you don’t ask it to track it if the add on is installed.

    Also : member since 55 minutes ago 🤦

    • iamaseriously on 23/06/2020 - 20:59
      +1

      No I don’t have Shopback add on. Been a lurker on Ozb for a while. Just created account so that I can have discussions with members here.

  • jelko on 23/06/2020 - 20:41
    +5

    Hahahaha the ACCC or Fair Trade isn't going to care about your 'problem'!

    • iamaseriously on 23/06/2020 - 21:05
      +1

      Let’s see. If my “problem” is something that happens quite frequently to others and companies are profiting from it by misleading customers, it should be investigated and penalised. Imagine 10 out of 100 new customers not getting the cash back as promised and not bothered to report it.

      • whooah1979 on 24/06/2020 - 10:10

        You could add a poll to see how many ozb didn’t get the CR.

        • iamaseriously on 24/06/2020 - 13:27

          Great idea. Thanks for your suggestion. I will get to it tonight after work. Would be really interesting to see if there is any increased decline rate in big ticketed cashbacks. Please refer your friends also to participate in the poll if you don’t mind. Cheers

  • rompastompa on 23/06/2020 - 20:44
    +8

    Give TA a message to investigate.

    Be polite, truthful and to the point.

    • iamaseriously on 23/06/2020 - 21:13

      Thanks. Will try to contact him after my account turns 1 day old 🙂

  • witsa on 23/06/2020 - 20:55

    Don't cash rewards have a guarantee?

  • witsa on 23/06/2020 - 21:03
    +1

    https://blog.cashrewards.com.au/cashback-guarantee/#:~:text=….

    You won't get the full 90 dollars but you should be able to get 30 back I suppose

    • iamaseriously on 23/06/2020 - 21:10

      Good to know that. Thanks for sharing

  • Clear on 23/06/2020 - 22:11

    Any other browser addins? Like Honey?

    • iamaseriously on 24/06/2020 - 13:27

      No I disabled it too

      • Clear on 24/06/2020 - 13:29

        Prior to clicking through Cashrewards?

        • iamaseriously on 24/06/2020 - 13:44

          Yes I did. The main problem is Surfshark blatantly lied that they have attributed and paid cashback to another marketing channel. I have requested the proof of it and still waiting for reply.

          • Clear on 24/06/2020 - 13:47

            @iamaseriously: That's also a possibility.

          • rompastompa on 24/06/2020 - 22:38

            @iamaseriously: It appears another affiliate has taken your cash back.

            I'd be hitting up Honey Support and asking if they've received the tracking cookie as that seems the likely scenario (or back to Surfshark and ask who the other marketing channel is).

            This is a problem with having multiple affiliates/voucher/browser add ins.

  • Store Reptightarse @ Cashrewards on 24/06/2020 - 14:17
    +8

    Hi iamaseriously. Just been made aware of this post.

    Let me say from the outset that I'm disappointed you missed out on cashback. You must remember that your purchase did not track, meaning something went amiss from the outset. I will do all I can to help as I have solid contacts with all the VPNs. I'm happy to report my findings here for transparency.

    One thing I do want to mention is that I can't tell you how many PMs I receive screaming blue murder - then when I investigate I'm presented with evidence that commission was already paid to other cashback sites or affiliates such as Honey. That's when the members change their tone ("oh ye, sorry I did use Honey" or "ye, I did check Google for a better price" etc). You mentioned you disabled Honey… having it installed is a concern in itself. They're an affiliate just like us… only difference is they keep all the commission. We don't know if/when you disabled it. Chances are it stole the tracking cookie at some stage of your purchase journey.

    There's also plenty of evidence of attempted double-dipping going on, and it really saddens me. Not only does it make our life harder, it presents us as the bad boys on every occasion. Not saying for one minute you're in this boat, but just want to make others aware. As for a poll, I can assure you we pay out on all valid transactions, no matter the size. Thousands of members can attest to this. We track and commission hundreds of sales every week for VPNs and have paid out on all of them on or before the due date. The only ones that will complain are the ones that have had untracked claims denied for various reasons.

    But let's move on. Please respond here with your CR ticket number, and I'll follow this through with SurfShark and get back to you. Thanks.

    • iamaseriously on 24/06/2020 - 20:22
      -5

      Hi TA, CR ticket number is #319264. What I found shocking is not that it did not track, technical issues happen. But that the customer blaming and indifference from Cashrewards. I have categorically said repeatedly that there is no other marketing website I used nor double dipping. It should be cleared up by manual follow up through emails between CR and Surfshark nevertheless. At least contact me before declining my request which was submitted over 2 months ago.

      I expect an Australian company do more to ensure it’s partner business company pay out cashbacks as advertised, at least ask for the proof of their reasons instead of blaming the customer. It should be made accountable if it’s partner businesses does not honour their promises.

      I hope I expressed my message clearly. Thanks for reaching out to me anyways. Cheers

      • Store Reptightarse @ Cashrewards on 24/06/2020 - 20:46
        +6

        Hi again, and thank you for the details. I've reviewed the ticket and firmly believe our member services team followed the correct procedure. They can only disseminate the information passed onto them by the store. For transparency, here is the report provided to us by SurfShark with respect to your claim (see matching inquiry ID, attached as a private note in your ticket). That's all we have to hang our hat on right now. I will contact SurfShark directly and hopefully receive the information I require to resolve this issue. Please note they're based overseas so time differences will play a part in speediness of response/resolution. Thank you.

      • Store Reptightarse @ Cashrewards on 25/06/2020 - 19:41
        +8

        Hi again. Thanks for your patience. Surfshark has responded to my email. Here's an extract, and shows just what an impressive company they are. Please let me know what you'd like to do and I'll pass this on for you. Thank you.

        Hi TA, and thank you for bringing this issue to my attention. I have checked the transaction you provided, and I can see that the sale was attributed to the direct channel. It is highly likely that he/she is using an ad-blocker extension which has denied the tracking cookie from attributing the sale to Cashrewards, and therefore we had no choice but to deny his/her claim.

        Please let your member know that he/she has two choices. As a sign of good will, I can (1) provide commission to Cashrewards for the sale at which time you pass on the appropriate cashback amount, or (2) I'd be ok with providing your member a full refund. The choice is his/hers.

        Either way, please let me know and I'll get the ball rolling from this end. Thank you, and look forward to hearing back from you again.

        • iamaseriously on 26/06/2020 - 20:40

          Hi TA, thanks for getting back to me. If you could let Surfshark know that I’d like full refund back, that would be great. And please pass along the feedback that they have lost the trust of a customer.

          For our record and to clear things up, I have persistently said that I did NOT use ad blockers. But it did not track and things happen. So I promptly reported to CR about this. Surfshark declined my did not track inquiry for the sole reason of attributing it to “another marketing channel”. And from their reply that you have attached here, it is simply not true. It would be dishonesty if I see it correctly. Correct me if I am wrong.

          Anyways, many thanks for your help. You went above and beyond what I expected. Way more helpful than CR customer service team. Cheers

          • akyeeeahdude on 27/06/2020 - 10:32

            @iamaseriously: It doesn't really make sense though. I had no issues receiving the Surfshark cashback through Cashrewards. It seems a bit unfair that you're pointing the finger at Surfshark and saying they are deceptive. Great VPN service, by the way.

            • iamaseriously on 27/06/2020 - 10:44

              @akyeeeahdude: It’s good to know that you are happy with their VPN service. I am not saying they’re bad VPN, but pointing out how they declined a did-not-track inquiry with an untruthful reason.

              And I found your reasoning of if it did not happen to me it would never happen to others a bit flawed. I do not intend to offend you by any means and please take this as a good intentioned debating. Cheers

              • Store Reptightarse @ Cashrewards on 28/07/2020 - 20:43

                @iamaseriously: Hi. Can you please confirm you’ve successfully been refunded your total purchase amount by Surfshark as requested. I believe this was actioned around 4 weeks ago. Thank you.

  • whooah1979 on 25/06/2020 - 21:04

    Op, what browser are you using?

  • Laziofogna on 01/07/2020 - 14:27

    You fought Cashrewards, Cashrewards won.

    • witsa on 01/07/2020 - 17:47
      +1

      Well he got the choice of the deal he wanted or his money back so I would say it was a win win

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