Somebody tell me something if you can (and by the way thank you). I wonder why it so often is that whenever there’s contests that pay wonderful amounts of money and that are televised/put on radio/etc. that the announcer almost always says at the end of that 90-mile an hour spiel describing exclusions/definitions “valid except in Alaska and Hawaii?” What is it with these states? They look like nice places and they’re states just like the rest so why almost always do contests exclude them from participation in numerous promotions/contests/etc.? It seems very unfair to me.
Also-I just thought about something having to do with this forum. I love to express what I’m thinking (and thank you for giving me this opportunity and medium for same). But sometimes I just look in here for an answer to a question and I’m sure a lot of other people do too. And I think that it may be a good idea for us who are just doing the latter (research, getting questions answered, and not really voicing anything) to go to the part of this which is the search engine. Because I bet your bottom dollar that as big as this forum is by now that if you want information that somewhere your question/inquiry has already been addressed. This might save quintillions upon quintillions of megabytes of memory. l Thanks and see you later.
I think you’ll need to be more specific and give an example of something excluded in Hawaii and Alaska. I’ve seen some offers excluse those places probably due to shipping but that’s about it.
And another thing (and please excuse me if I sounded like I was trying to direct the actions and entries of other people with that last entry-I really wasn’t…I was just wondering if there were any problems posed by being asked the same thing twice)…sometimes I hear the phrase “void where prohibited.” Where is it prohibited? If you try to engage in that contest will you or the merchant be arrested or cited or something?
Relax dopetalker, you’re among friends. Yes, using the search function is useful, especially when a similar question is asked a lot, but no one is going to jump down your throat for asking something that has ever been asked before.
“Void where prohibited” is for the most part just boilerplate. It’s just a form or protection for that “just in case” scenario. Say you are giving away a three pronged widget in a contest but the guy who wins lives in a backward southern county that outlaws widgets. Without such a disclaimer the prizegiver would be in a situation of breaking a law by giving the widget or facing a civil suit from the winner for not awarding the prize.
Well, a lot of special sales and promotions are void in Alaska and Hawaii (get a large pizza for $9.99!), because everything tends to be more expensive in Alaska and Hawaii, due to shipping costs. I don’t know why a contest would be void in AK or HI, though.
Actually, this was covered in another thread sometime back, but I can’t find it.
Alaska is routinely excluded by many retail outlets, contest offerors, etc. Many have no idea that the USPS ships here, as does FedEx, DHL, UPS and others.
It’s extremely annoying to run up against an obstinate retailer who just refuses to accept that Alaska is a state and that U.S. postal rates are basically no different to here than to Seattle.
UPS and FedEx air rates to Alaska are expensive, but again, most retailers have no idea that we now have ground transporation for those services, and even if told, refuse to send it that way, citing vague references to transiting Canada being a problem.
I don’t know about it being unfair, per se, but it’s certainly aggravating.
Certain forms of gambling are illegal in Hawaii. That may come to play in some cases. Lotteries are the easiest example though not exactly what the OP asked about.
The more general answer about “void where prohibited” is that the lottery laws vary by state and so certain activities permitted elsewhere may not be allowed under one of more state’s rules.
I remembered Tennessee to be one of these states. I couldn’t find the exact law, but I did find a number of contests in which Tennessee is singled out.
http://r.espn.go.com/espn/contests/rrhunt33/rules
http://magma.nationalgeographic.com/ngforkids/0204/contests/
http://www.rhino.com/fun/contests/flippedoutrules.lasso
Maybe some Tennessee Dopers can provide more info.
“Alaksa and Hawaii” The Freak States…From “The Simpsons.”
I remember my brother paid me money and he was stationed in the Virgin Islands (St Thomas) do you know my bank actually charged me an EXCHANGE FEE. I kept telling them The Virgin Islands USE American Money. They didn’t care. I had to have him send me US Postal Money orders from then on…
I grew up in HI, and I cannot tell you how many times I drooled over an enticing mail order ad on the back of my comics, or Dynamite!! or whatever, only to have all dashed by that dreaded, stop-you-in-your-tracks words- not available in Hawaii or Alaska. Yes shipping cost, I heard, It’s all true, I know, but hey, I’m talking for the bitter 9 year old inside!
Do they give you the “Alaska’s not a state” line? I live in Denmark and get that ALL the time. I know children who were TAUGHT IN SCHOOL that there are 48 states. I have been “corrected” by Danes regarding my “misconception” about my home “state”. One such conflict ended with the guy saying “Well, you don’t know much, if you don’t know about where you COME FROM!”
Others reluctantly agree, sighing “Well, I mean REAL states, though…” “I say, you mean, contiguous, on the continent?” and they say “No, I mean it’s just not REALLY American…” Ok, whatever. Sorry if this is off topic, just commiserating with someone back there who related the experience of Alaska’s statehood being sometimes less than common knowledge. Well, here, the fallacy is often backed by Danish tax money via schools! Or, “schools”.
Have a smurfy day
I believe California doesn’t allow some contests with alcoholic beverages. That is why so many beer promotions are “void in California.” Not sure about Alaska and Hawaii.
Yes, or variations on the same. Most recently, I inquired about XM Radio availabiity. The company told me that it was not available in Alaska or Hawaii because they did not want to violate international restrictions on broadcasting, so they were limiting the service to the “United States and its territories and possessions.” My reply was to the effect that it was curious that they would provide the service for, say, Guam, but not for Alaska or Hawaii, which have been states for over 40 years. I got a quick denial on that one, and some dark mutterings about satellite positioning.
I think the bottom line is market share and not wanting to have to deal with the unknown. The entire state of Alaska only has about 700,000 people, which is not exactly an economic bonanza for something like XM Radio. Other businesses that deal in the outdoors market do very well here.
In California grocery store promotions that involve alcoholic beverages AND fluid milk are illegal. I.e., stores can’t print up coupons of their offering discounts on these types of products.