The Good Life For Less: Refunds On Group-Buying Coupons

I don't know a single person who hasn't returned a gift or something else they bought that just didn't work for them. So why should a coupon/certificate from a group-buying website like LivingSocial, Groupon and Crowd Cut be any different?

They shouldn't be -- and many are letting you return "faulty" purchases for a refund or website credit.

For example, I once bought a week pass for a spa (which will remain nameless) for $20 on a group-buying site (which will also remain nameless). It seemed like a good enough deal, right? Wrong.

I looked on the site and realized that this "spa" was giving sample day passes away for free. Not only that, but appointments were hard to make when I tried, and one of the machines that provide one of the "spa treatments" happened to be broken and they weren't getting a new one.

Overall it wasn't a good deal for me -- so I was a happy to find that I could return it. I wrote an email and got reimbursed with credit from the group-buying site.

Another coworker of mine bought a deal for a painting company and had trouble getting a hold of them after multiple attempts. Since she paid such a large amount, she was able to speak to the group-buying site and get reimbursed on her credit card.

You may forget that returns can be made from those type of websites, so here's a link to a few of the more popular group-buying websites' customer service pages. (Remember that each site has a different policy.)

Living Social - Returns are on a case by case basis they say on their FAQs page.

Crowd Cut - On their terms page it says it does not refund vouchers, but you can try contacting them if you have trouble.

Groupon - They have something called the Groupon Promise and said they'll "refund you if they ever let you down."

Dealeebob - They want you to contact the merchant directly with order concerns, but have the dealeebob Guarantee where they will exchange, credit or refund your purchase.

DealStork - They say all sales are final on their FAQs page, but say you can contact them to discuss your situation.

And remember, just as with purchases made in stores, it's up to you to do your research first before deciding if it is a good deal. It will save you the time it takes to return it -- and nothing is more valuable than your time.

If you know of any other deals, share them with other 'Good Lifers' in the comment section. You can also read more money-saving blog posts here and text WCCODEALS to 84816 for a 'deals of the week' reminder.