Hobby Rewards

[yozzer]

Interesting discussions on Forum about Hobby Rewards, I have joined and have pre-ordered the 'Coronation' locomotive and have been told it qualifies. I also checked my other pre-order, Beatles Singles Train Pack, ( on order since January and due just after Christmas i have been told ) and as confirmed in other postings this does not qualify, so the obvious thing to do was to cancel and reorder, except if I do that, yes I do qualify for the rewards, but the new price is almost £2.00 higher than the price I got it for plus the value of the rewards. So be careful if you follow the cancel and re-order route.

[DarkRedCape]

I have 33 (or 34) pre-orders with Hornby, some I’ve had for well over a year, so cancelling and re-ordering the majority of them is going to be a problem.

I would have liked this system to include pre-orders that are already in the system.

I got an email saying that because I have pre-orders pending, they were going to boost my initial 200 points to 400, but as of yet, it’s still at 200.

[Bulleidboy]

I have not studied the "small print", but I would be surprised if Hornby were to give you Reward Points until your model was paid for. Is it possible that with pre-orders you will get points when the item is paid for? If they were to give you the points now, what would be stop you using them, and then cancelling the pre-orders you got the points on?

[DarkRedCape]

Is it possible that with pre-orders you will get points when the item is paid for?

 

 

This is what I am hoping for. I’m just wondering if it’s existing pre-orders, or only pre-orders made after the introduction of the Rewards Point system.

 

 

I have several pre-orders that are scheduled to release this winter, so I guess I’ll see then. Hopefully someone will be able to answer it before then.

[sxbiker]

Customer services told me that pre-orders placed before the Rewards Scheme was started did not qualify for points.

[sxbiker]

You have to weigh up any price increase for items placed before the Reward Scheme against the value of any points you get.

For me some items benefitted from cancellation and replacing, whilst others did not.

[Bulleidboy]

I think price increases rule out cancelling and re-ordering - well they do in my case.

[Bulleidboy]

The "T&C's" state: "You will earn points on any pre-orders. These will become active 14 working days after receipt of your product. During the wait for delivery of your pre-order, these points will appear as pending.

[DarkRedCape]

I’d also be worried about the possibility of losing my position in the queue for a particular item. Some of my pre-orders are also now unavailable.

[DarkRedCape]

If you go to the Hobby Rewards section of the website, then go to Hobby Points, it shows you your pending points.

The only one of my pre-orders on the list is the new Club exclusive Coronation, suggesting that it’s only orders after the Rewards system went live. Which if indeed is the case, is extremely disappointing.

[atom3624]

Once rebuilt, obviously returned, was it the original 'Coronation' or 'D o Hamilton'?

Al.

[ColinB]

Most of my pre-orders are from 2021 so I am saving a fortune, as the price I should pay does not include the price rises. On the 2022 pre-orders I got 10% off because I had bought a couple of locos previously off Hornby so they gave me a 10% voucher. So I am not too bothered about any reward savings. I only joined the rewards scheme so I could order the loco as it was a colour I like and Duchess locos are good runners. I just included the price of joining the scheme in the price of the loco, even then it was still good value. I was even more surprised when I got 10% off an already reasonable price.

[JJ73]

See also :- Who's joined the new Hobby Rewards? :: Hornby Hobbies 🚂

[What About The Bee]

Like many, I am happy with the announced program. Once I confirmed there were no fees, I joined instantly. I will puchase directly from Hornby anyway, so this is a nice perk.

I looked at the Forum to see what others might think of the Hornby Rewards program. I also looked at some other message boards.

There has been quite a bit of debate as to Enthusiasts canceling pre-orders, only to reinstate those orders. In this way, they intend to maximize their reward points. While I can understand why this would function, it is fundamentally just system manipulation. 

I found this under the terms and conditions:

÷÷÷

Consequences of misuse

In the case of improper use for which the Member is responsible, Hornby Hobbies Ltd retains the right to terminate the membership or withdraw Points or Rewards, refuse to issue Points or a Reward or refuse to accept the redemption of Points or a Reward.

÷÷÷

I thought for quite awhile about the method offered here and on other forums. Is the cancel/reinstatement manipulation equivalent to "misuse"? I am hopeful that this assessment is overly cautious, and Hornby does not see the manipulation as "misuse". Yet it could be.

For me, I will just let my pre-orders stand as they are. I have no intention of potentially ruining a long term benefit by getting myself terminated for a negligible number of near term points. Your mileage may vary.

[DarkRedCape]

I personally don’t see how cancelling pre-orders and then re-ordering those same orders is improper use of the system. Hornby are still getting their money. They will have been well aware people would do this.

People have the right to cancel a pre-order if they so choose. If they happen to then re-order what they cancelled, so be it.

[DarkRedCape]

I’ve just had one of my Dublo pre-orders ship from Hornby, the money has gone out, and my hobby reward points haven’t changed.

I’m disappointed that this is how the system works, I personally think Hornby should have included all existing pre-orders. It would have shown some loyalty to those of us who have thousands of pounds ready to hand over to them.

[Bulleidboy]

Which Dublo model is on its way?

[DarkRedCape]

The R30109 Princess Coronation “City of Lichfield”. It was listed as unavailable just yesterday, but now it shows as being back in stock. I really hope this happens with the Sir Nigel Gresley Dublo, I really want that one. I’m guessing cancellations on pre-orders.

I have two others on pre-order, the Merchant Navy and the A4, but no news on those so far. They are both scheduled for release this winter though.

[Bulleidboy]

Many thanks - I too have the Merchant Navy on pre-order.

[Fazy]

If you cancel an order that is sold out the loco becomes available. So it is unlikely but not impossible that if you cancel an ordered to reorder trying to save on the rewards. someone could order it before you can. Leaving you without the model.

[DarkRedCape]

Exactly Fazy. That’s why I’ve just left my pre-orders well alone, especially since some of mine have been on order for well over a year.

I have the stock alert set on the Sir Nigel Gresley, so if that pops up, I’m having it.

[Bulleidboy]

Also, if you cancel a pre-order that has been in place since say January 2021, and then reorder now, the likelihood is that the "new" pre-order is going to cost you substantially more than the original.

[DarkRedCape]

There is also the issue of Hornby saying that if people manipulate the rewards system, they may simply refuse to issue the rewards points.

Which means you’d effectively be cancelling a pre-order, get no reward points, and then likely pay more for that item than you were going to because the price will have undoubtedly gone up since the original order was place. Aye aye aye…

[SteveM6]

Does anyone else think that cancelling and reordering to gain a few extra points somewhat undignified?

I have one pre-order outstanding, ordered at the launch price with club discount. Its an excellent deal as it stands so I certainly won’t try to fiddle the system for a few more shekels.

[Bulleidboy]

I haven't done the sums, but looking at the price increases since a pre-order was made perhaps twelve months ago, I cannot see there is any benefit in cancelling and re-ordering.