Avoid rebate card mix-ups

Retailers say you can cash in on rebates more than ever this holiday shopping season. That means a lot of people will get those plastic rebate cards in the mail. But all those cards can start to look alike so how can you make sure the card you're activating isn't some other offer?

Those with Bedford Camera and Video say about 80 percent of their electronics will carry rebates sometime between now and Christmas because manufacturers need people to buy. Janet Robb with the Arkansas Better Business Bureau says rebate cards are convenient, but people confuse them with other offers.

"It's very complicated sometimes to be able to tell what's a real credit card, what's a debit card, what's a rebate card," she said.

Robb says there's nothing wrong with pre-paid debits. You load them with money like you would a bank debit card. Just read the fine print because they could charge you for transactions.

Robb says because people tend to confuse them with rebates, pay close attention when activating a card. To be sure the card you got in the mail is your rebate card, look for the manufacturer logo on it or the letter accompanying it, expect the activation process to be simple, and if an operator asks for personal information like your social security number you're not dealing with a rebate situation.