Reading Time: 6 minutesDid you know that Americans don’t sleep as much as they did back in the day? After all, more than 50 years ago, people had around 7.9 hours of sleep. Now, the average hours of sleep per night is 6.8 hours. One primary reason is the poor mattress quality.
If you’re looking for better sleep each night, you must ensure you know what kind of mattress suits you best. There is no one-size-fits-all when it comes to bed mattresses. That’s why it’s better to know what to look for when you buy a mattress during a sale.
Are you ready to learn how to buy a mattress? Read on and know how to avoid the scams that might rob you of the comfort you deserve:
Buying a Mattress: How to Avoid Scams
Many people get shocked when they see the price tag of mattresses. After all, regardless of your type, you need to spend around $1,000. This will ensure that you get a comfortable one without compromising the support.
The most common scams retailers make are the insane markups in price when selling their products. They do this to cover their overhead costs and turn in a nice profit. The good news is that there is a way for you to avoid paying more than you should.
Your solution to this problem is to find mattress companies that sell directly to their customers. With the internet spreading far and wide, many companies prefer doing their businesses online. They do this to ensure the price stays low while giving value to your money.
Here are some other tips you can use to avoid getting scammed by money-hungry companies:
1. Don’t Get Hyped—Look for Real Results Instead
Sadly, the mattress industry earns a lot by hyping up products. Most makers will often try to come up with products that come with the latest sleep technology. As years went by, they started offering memory foam, gel memory foam, and mattresses that adjust to your body temperature.
Products will come and go, but staying skeptical is better until you see proof. That means you must wait for the numbers to pour in and let statistics speak for their quality. For example, it’s safe to assume that memory foam mattresses are great since many people who have tried them say that it’s comfortable.
That’s why it’s essential to search for honest reviews and ratings before buying a mattress. This will help you better understand how comfortable a new product is. If you get swayed by the hype, you might buy a mattress you aren’t comfortable with.
2. Check for the Reviews’ Credibility
Looking for online reviews is one of the easiest ways to ascertain product quality. But it’s always important not to get scammed by retailers that only show their best reviews while hiding the rest. The worst you can encounter is a seller that boosts their reputation by putting up some fake reviews.
That’s why it’s essential to always be on guard when looking at sellers with only positive reviews. Make sure to read their reviews with a critical eye. Check whether the people reviewing the mattress have the same issues as yours to understand if this product will help you get comfortable.
Generally, you need to read about 10-15 reviews to understand whether the mattress works for your situation. If you want to know whether a website cherry picks its reviews, look at the rating distribution. You might not have the complete picture if the seller only shows good reviews and 4-5 star ratings.
3. Look for a True Money-back Guarantee
The most reputable mattress sellers around will often offer a one-year money-back trial. Only a handful of companies do this, so you should look for ones that offer a trial period of at least 90 days. You won’t know whether it works until you try the mattress in your own house.
A month-long money-back return won’t cut since people often take months to adjust to their new mattresses. It’s also essential to ensure that you avoid companies that only offer comfort returns or those that only offer store credit. It’s often a trap to ensure that no matter your choice, you’ll buy in the same business.
You need to ask direct questions about your retailer’s return policy. Knowing the exact meaning behind these is crucial since language can sometimes confuse you. Remember, a comfort guarantee isn’t a money-back guarantee.
Also, another trend is that brick-and-mortar retail stores aren’t likely to offer an actual money-back trial. Regardless, you need to ensure that all the costs of returning the mattress are refunded during the money-back period. It’s also essential to see whether the retailers honor the money-back guarantee.
4. Read the Mattress’s Warranty
Most people avoid reading the warranty due to the sheer denseness of its contents. But as long as you know the keywords to watch for, you won’t fall for these mattress scams. For example, look if you’re pro-rated during the valid warranty period.
The best type of warranty is non-prorated. This means you won’t have to pay for something during the replacement period. You still need to check whether you need to pay for the shipping costs and other possible fees.
The pro-rated warranty isn’t something you’d like since you’ll pay an increasing portion of the mattress’s cost when replacing it. This happens regardless of the type of warranty issue you encounter. It’s common for most businesses to recoup their losses at your expense.
Another thing you need to watch out for is the warranty length. Take note that if a warranty offers an extended period often comes with a caveat in the long run. It’s often used as a marketing tool to make the mattress sale easier.
Why Long Warranty Periods are Possible Scams
The main reason the long warranty period is suspect is the average useful life of mattresses. After all, the average useful life of mattresses is a maximum of 10 years. The 20+ years of warranty can become attractive but always read the fine print first.
For example, these warranties will often require a certain level of indentation before qualifying for a warranty replacement. That’s where people get scammed since the indentation needed is often absurd. In most cases, your bed should have a 1.5” or more indentation length.
The comfort layers of the mattress will often become soft or break without becoming indented. That’s why companies can get away with replacing nothing when something goes wrong with your bed. That’s why you need to look at the actual language printed in the warranty to understand its exact coverage.
5. Do Your Research
Arming yourself with information helps avoid getting carried away by the hype. It’s more difficult now since you have many options besides the standard innerspring beds. If you want the best deal, you can try leaning towards specialty mattresses.
When finding a bed, you need to find a bare mattress “core” you find comfortable. It doesn’t matter regardless of its material—springs, foam, latex, or air. All these options will have their differences, but starting with the basic models will help you see what works best for you.
If nothing works, you can try the high-density or latex foam mattress. After that, you can move on to memory foam, increasing the complexity after each step. That way, you get a more concrete idea of what you find more comfortable.
This helps in removing all the additional expenses that come from unnecessary features. That will ensure you get the right amount of comfort layers that make the difference in your sleep experience. Going in blind, you’ll most likely get overwhelmed by the sales talk and jargon and pick an expensive mattress with unneeded add-ons.
6. Don’t Buy Used Mattresses
There are a lot of people that sell their used mattresses on platforms like Craigslist. But the truth is that you should always buy these brand-new ones. They’re personal items that you should never share with strangers.
Mattresses are the same as toothbrushes—don’t let anyone else use them. It’s gross, and no washing can change that, especially when it’s been around for a few years. You can read this buying guide if you want to buy the best memory foam.
Buy a Mattress Today!
You need to avoid scams when you’re looking to get the most out of the money you spend on a mattress. The least you can do is to read mattress insider reviews to check a retailer or manufacturer’s reputation. Don’t go in blind, or you’ll fall into one or more of the pitfalls made by unscrupulous sellers.
Do you need to buy a mattress? Contact us today, and we’ll help, or shop online for any mattress purchase!
Learn more about how a better mattress and mattress topper can improve your sleep and health. Download our Mattress Buying Guide now!
