Entrants to a Dare Iced Coffee competition have been dealt a cruel blow after many  received emails telling them they had won, only to later be told it was all a mistake. 

The ‘Daremergency’ promotion gave customers the opportunity to win a share in up to $1million, plus the chance to win a share of $500 every hour, if they purchased a specially marked bottle with winning tape underneath the lid.  

One entrant received an initial congratulatory email from Dare – before the company backtracked hours later.  

‘This morning at 11am I got an email saying I’d been chosen as this week’s provisional winner of a $1,000 gift card and all they had to do was validate my entry and that I didn’t need to do anything unless contacted,’ they wrote in a Reddit post. 

‘Sweet! Amazing! I’m having the best day ever!’

By 4pm, Dare had sent a follow-up email saying it was all a mistake. 

‘We regret to inform you that a technical error occurred, and upon review, we can confirm that you were not a valid winner in this instance. Accordingly, please disregard the communication from this morning that was sent in error,’ it read. 

‘We understand this may be disappointing, and we sincerely apologise for any confusion this may have caused.’

Aussies who entered a Dare Iced Coffee competition have been dealt a cruel blow after dozens of entrants received the same email telling them they had won (stock)

Dare Iced Coffee fans were left disappointed after initially being told they had won $1,000

Dare Iced Coffee fans were left disappointed after initially being told they had won $1,000

The disappointed fan felt they ‘never want to buy a Dare again’. 

‘Talk about building me up to tear me down,’ they wrote. 

‘The terms do have clauses about technical errors and all the usual to cover their own ass, but this is still frustrating as hell. 

‘Should I respond to them? Did anyone else have this happen to them?’

Another user said the same thing had happened to a group of friends, indicating just how widespread the mistake was.

‘All my mates that entered this got the same email, so looks like they may have emailed every entrant,’ they said. 

‘Don’t think they’ll cough up anything, unfortunately.’

‘Hubby just had the exact same thing happen – we’d already spent it in our heads,’ a third commented on the Reddit thread. 

The promotion (pictured) gave fans the chance to win a share of $1million if they purchased a specially marked Dare Iced Coffee with winning tape underneath the lid

The promotion (pictured) gave fans the chance to win a share of $1million if they purchased a specially marked Dare Iced Coffee with winning tape underneath the lid

 ‘Thought I was the only one – extremely disappointing considering that such a large business can have an error like this. I’m definitely considering sending them an email given this unfortunate experience,’ a fourth wrote. 

‘Same thing happened to me, I naturally called them a s*** head, and won’t be buying their coffee again,’ a fifth shared. 

Some users suggested pushing Dare for some form of compensation for the error.

‘Try to milk (heuheuheu) them out of a gift voucher or something. Surely they will cave to PR pressure,’ one wrote.  

‘I Dare you to respond. Also, you could say you’re a big fan, you got your hopes up, and would love even a 50$ voucher? Can’t hurt to ask,’ a third shared. 

Dare Iced Coffee is a brand made by the listed food giant Bega Dairy and Drinks.

A Bega spokesperson said they were ‘really sorry for the mix-up’. 

‘Unfortunately, due to a technical error, some participants in our Daremergency promotion were mistakenly notified that they had provisionally won,’ they said. 

‘We know this is disappointing and may have led to confusion. While we wish we could give a prize to everyone, we need to play by the rules. 

‘Those affected have been contacted straight away to clarify the situation and we’re working with our agency partner to ensure this doesn’t happen again. We appreciate everyone’s understanding as we sort this out.’

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