Short version: Panasonic customer service is bad, and I may be screwed out of a free
12v drill body I was supposed to receive as a promotion when I bought an impact driver.
Long version: December of '05 I bit the bullet and decided to upgrade my cordless drill situation. I'd been eyeballing the Panasonic Digital Impact Driver for a while, and finally sprang for it while they were having a promotion for a free 12v drill body. I sent in the rebate form in early January and haven't yet heard or seen a thing from Panasonic.
In mid-February I filled out an online form at their website asking them when I could expect my drill. No response.
A week or two later contacted someone who told me to call someone else, where I heard a recording to try checkmyrebate.com. I don't think I was able to get anyone on the line at the second number. IAE, checkmyrebate.com didn't help, it didn't recognize my shipping info or my email address.
So I called the first or second number again and a lady said to call their rebate center in Tennessee. It was here that a woman told me that no longer handles Panasonic rebates. I did some googling and finally found the lucky number...
Called the number (some Panasonic office in Washington) and a woman said I'd have to wait the full 10 weeks before I could open a "rebate status request form". So I waited.
Just got off the phone with them again, and they said they'd "have someone look into it" and that they'd call me if they had questions. I'm calling back to get someone else on the line right now.
JP