I recently bought a candy bar. A Baby Ruth to be exact...chocolate, peanuts, and other tasty ingredients. On the outside of the wrapper was an advertisement to "Play Treasure Quest Online for your chance to win $1 Million! Plus: 1 in 20 wins a candy bar instantly!"
I didn't pay much attention to this when I bought the candy bar, and I paid no attention to it as I opened the candy bar in preparation for eating it. I had forgotten that there was even a contest involved. I was only after the chocolate. However, after eating the candy bar, I glanced down at the wrapper and saw the word Congratulations! inside. Yes folks, I was a winner!
Before you all come to me asking to borrow money, I will tell you, that I did not win the $1 Million. I won a free candy bar instantly! Except that my candy bar has yet to appear...
According to the package these rules apply. I will just include certain parts that I found particularly interesting.
To claim the On-Pack Instant Win Prize(s): Potential winner must mail the entire original winning Game Wrapper (keep a photocopy for your records) along with his/her name, address and phone number on a 3" x 5" card by certified or registered mail, return receipt requested to: Nestle "Treasure Quest" On-Pack Instant Win Game Prize Claim, P.O. Box 72512, Rockford, MN 55572.
I took the liberty of looking up the mailing costs of such an endeavor at http://www.usps.com/. To mail a 1 oz envelope Certified Mail with a Return Receipt from where I live to Nestle would cost me $4.64. This was the least expensive option for acceptable mailing to claim my prize. The second option was Registered Mail with a Return Receipt which added up to a whopping $10.14. Plus you should add 5 cents minimum for the cost of a photocopy.
When I started writing this blog today I was just thinking about the insanity of paying $0.39 to get a "free" candy bar. But as I read the fine print again, I realized just HOW insane the whole thing is. The sad thing is that somewhere in hicksville someone is probably stuffing an envelope with their winning wrapper, excited at the prospect of being a "winner". The real question is, will they actually mail it when they find out how much it costs? That would be the true measure of whether they are a winner, or a LOSER!
As for me, I had my moment of glory, and I choose to save my $4.64 with which I can buy 18 candybars at the sale price of $0.25 that I paid for my winning wrapper Baby Ruth.
You know, I have to wonder, if there is some kind of agreement between Nestle and the United States Postal service. Maybe Nestle gets a kickback or something. If all 5,700,000 winning wrappers were turned in for claim, that would be a minimum of $26,448,000 paid out to the USPS. More if people chose to use registered mail. It boggles the mind!
I didn't pay much attention to this when I bought the candy bar, and I paid no attention to it as I opened the candy bar in preparation for eating it. I had forgotten that there was even a contest involved. I was only after the chocolate. However, after eating the candy bar, I glanced down at the wrapper and saw the word Congratulations! inside. Yes folks, I was a winner!
Before you all come to me asking to borrow money, I will tell you, that I did not win the $1 Million. I won a free candy bar instantly! Except that my candy bar has yet to appear...
According to the package these rules apply. I will just include certain parts that I found particularly interesting.
To claim the On-Pack Instant Win Prize(s): Potential winner must mail the entire original winning Game Wrapper (keep a photocopy for your records) along with his/her name, address and phone number on a 3" x 5" card by certified or registered mail, return receipt requested to: Nestle "Treasure Quest" On-Pack Instant Win Game Prize Claim, P.O. Box 72512, Rockford, MN 55572.
I took the liberty of looking up the mailing costs of such an endeavor at http://www.usps.com/. To mail a 1 oz envelope Certified Mail with a Return Receipt from where I live to Nestle would cost me $4.64. This was the least expensive option for acceptable mailing to claim my prize. The second option was Registered Mail with a Return Receipt which added up to a whopping $10.14. Plus you should add 5 cents minimum for the cost of a photocopy.
When I started writing this blog today I was just thinking about the insanity of paying $0.39 to get a "free" candy bar. But as I read the fine print again, I realized just HOW insane the whole thing is. The sad thing is that somewhere in hicksville someone is probably stuffing an envelope with their winning wrapper, excited at the prospect of being a "winner". The real question is, will they actually mail it when they find out how much it costs? That would be the true measure of whether they are a winner, or a LOSER!
As for me, I had my moment of glory, and I choose to save my $4.64 with which I can buy 18 candybars at the sale price of $0.25 that I paid for my winning wrapper Baby Ruth.
You know, I have to wonder, if there is some kind of agreement between Nestle and the United States Postal service. Maybe Nestle gets a kickback or something. If all 5,700,000 winning wrappers were turned in for claim, that would be a minimum of $26,448,000 paid out to the USPS. More if people chose to use registered mail. It boggles the mind!
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