Over at Racked, a reader is reporting that despite taking advantage of Starbucks new “reward card” they were being screwed out of the promised free syrup. What’s up with that, Starbucks?

I started to use a Starbucks pre-paid card when i saw your promotion that when a purchase is made with a registered card, syrups would be free. After looking at the transaction history on my card, only one time was the syrup free, that was the transaction on 04/17/2008 for $3.92. All the others i was charged the full price. It’s not that big of a deal, its a matter of Starbucks advertising one thing but actually not delivering. Has this promotion been terminated? If not, what is the issue? One would think with sales slowing down and the stock price at half of what it was, something like this for loyal customers would work properly.

Starbucks wrote back with an apology “for the inconvenience” and said it was a training issue: “In addition to partner education, we are also working to make it easier for partners to ring up your purchase correctly at the point of sale,” said the big green caffeinated mermaid.

This is the second time we’ve heard reports of people not actually getting their Starbucks rewards. They’ll probably get it figured out eventually, but in the meantime… check your receipts.

Racked Mailbag: Starbucks Cards Not So Rewarding [Racked]
(Photo: MyNameMattersNot )

Want more consumer news? Visit our parent organization, Consumer Reports, for the latest on scams, recalls, and other consumer issues.