I recently won a Bop-A-Lots DVD at Momsational, and while I was exchanging emails with Erika to claim my prize, it turned out that I am not eligible for it. They have a rule about the winners being legal US residents [Open to legal residents of the United States 18 years of age and older"], while that’s not my case. Now, I am not a US legal resident -I live in an exotic kingdom by the sea, far far away [poetic, huh? :)]-, but I somehow have a second home in the US. So I usually have my prizes shipped there, because I am used to contests with the condition of “US shipping addresses only“-which I have- to obviously avoid high shipping costs.
I never pretended to be a US legal resident -this blog would be enough of a hint, I suppose-. I even ask for my prize “to be shipped to…”, and never say “I received my prize”, but “my prize was safely received”. So I felt like if I were misleading others, or like cheating. I felt like if I had violated the rules of all the contests I won prizes at, so I got back to each one of them to ask if I were eligible for what I won or not [thank you for opening my eyes, Erika :)].
1) BAYB contest: I won a review, so there are no residency issues here.
2) Clutter Control Freak’s creativity contest: I told Eva back then that I was not from the US and would just have my prize shipped to someone, which was done. I just double-checked anyways and they didn’t have any rules for their contest [I have no idea why CCF's links never work on my blog].
3) Dad Balance contest: I won the traditions book -that was safely received-, but I just realized this blog belongs to the same network of Momsational, so the same rules apply. I am waiting for Derek’s answer about this.
4) Pj Mommy contest: I looked everywhere around, and I didn’t see any rules. I’ll still write to her for my own peace of mind.
5) Goji Capital contest: They said in their blog entry that their contest was open worldwide. Cool contest!
6) SEOlogs MBL contest: Their contest pages disappeared, but I won a hosting package. That’s a worldwide prize by default. Or not?
7) Mamanista contest: I looked everywhere for any rules, but I found none. However, Mamanista replied to my email promptly to assure me that I hadn’t violated any rules at her contest. Phew!
8) JoeTech’s contest: Joe didn’t have any rules either, and the prize was cash via PayPal anyways, but I’ll still double check with him.
9) The Domestic Diva’s contest: No rules here either, but I still emailed the Diva about this, you never know.
I guess that’s pretty much it! Next time I enter a contest I’ll make sure to ask if they require legal US residency or just a US shipping address.
And if you are running a contest on you blog, please underline any rules you might have.
December 18th, 2007 at 4:58 pm
I have no problem shipping to “residents” of the US. I put that because I heard the shipping to over seas is extremely high. I really can’t afford a whole lot, but I will do what I can. As I see it, you aren’t violating anything. I will ship to the “address” you provide in the United States. I don’t understand why it is a problem, really, if it is within the US. Anyway, thanks for stopping by and entering the contest. Good Luck~
December 18th, 2007 at 5:03 pm
Thank you for answering my question Sarah. I was told that there are some prohibition laws in some countries (or even some US states) sometimes, that make that some contest require legal US residency.
I still want to make sure about this matter every time I enter a contest from now on.
:)
December 18th, 2007 at 6:01 pm
The only reason I put ship to US only is because of the cost of shipping. On certain contests I have been able to ship to Canada as well.
Other contests where I give away $ is not a big deal :)
thanks for mentioning us
http://blogaboutyourblog.com
December 18th, 2007 at 9:49 pm
My contests are open to anyone who is able by their local laws to enter.
December 19th, 2007 at 11:40 am
Hi Mary - thanks for starting this conversation. Contest laws are pretty scary when you dive into the details, and it’s no coincidence that big companies have long pages of contest rules (with corresponding large legal bills!).
I think that many bloggers that run contests consistently are leaving themselves wide open for lawsuits, because there is really no way to run a contest that abides by the laws in every country on the planet.
That being said, I wanted to let you know two things:
1 - We can’t award you the prize you won from Momsational. We have to stick by the rules we have set out, or leave ourselves open for even more problems later. :(
2 - We certainly aren’t going to ask you to return the prize you won from Derek’s Dad Balance blog. I’m a stickler for rules, but goodness, I’m not an idiot. ;) We will just choose another winner from that contest and give a second prize to a winner that is a legal US resident.
So please enjoy the book you received ‘on us’ and thanks for your support in the past. Hopefully we’ll see you around our site in the future!
Warm regards,
Wendy Piersall
CEO
eMoms at Home
December 19th, 2007 at 12:17 pm
Thank you for your answers everyone.
Wendy, this is more of a self-reminder to carefully check the rules of contests I enter in the future -or ask about them-, than a post to complain about not getting my prize as Momsational. I have no reason to complain, each one sets the rules that suits them.
Thank you for the traditions’ book. I don’t mind paying back the book’s price and shipping expenses. Please let me know if I should do that. :)
December 19th, 2007 at 2:31 pm
Oh, I didn’t take it as complaining Mary - no worries there! :)
And I definitely don’t want anything back from you for the book you won. Sometimes it’s just fun to do the right thing - no matter what!
-Wendy
December 19th, 2007 at 2:33 pm
Thank you very much Wendy! :)