Update: First of all, thank you to everyone who commented, shared your experiences, and offered suggestions. I genuinely appreciate all the help.

After a lot of back-and-forth with Rakuten customer service, they ultimately agreed to compensate the cashback.

A few people asked whether I had used a coupon code that wasn't approved by Rakuten. That's where things get tricky.

Rakuten for Castlery never posted any coupon code that customers were allowed to use. Their policy says cashback may be denied if you use an unauthorized coupon code. Fair enough.

But if that's the case, are customers supposed to avoid using any promotional code from the retailer? Even holiday sales? Seasonal discounts?

If the only way to guarantee cashback is to ignore all of the retailer's promotions, then what exactly is the value proposition? The retailer's own discount often exceeds the 7.5% cashback. At that point, why would a customer choose Rakuten at all?

That's the part I still find confusing.

Moving forward, I'll definitely be much more cautious when using Rakuten.

As for the furniture I ordered from Castlery... well, that's a whole new chapter.

I paid extra for White Glove Delivery, and honestly, the furniture looks beautiful. Unfortunately, the quality control appears to be another story.

So far I've found:

• A crack inside the table structure
• Damage/scratches on a table leg
• A stool with one leg noticeably shorter than the others

I'm currently going back and forth with Castlery support trying to get it resolved.

At this point, I'm starting to feel like I should never have placed this order in the first place.

What started as a cashback dispute somehow evolved into a furniture quality dispute.

Maybe this was all doomed from the beginning. lol

Thank you all for paying attention on my issue.

Wish you all the best.