BCRider

Depending on the you or the OP wants then yes, this could be the case.

To Zeriman, unless you want to chase down doing a return then I'd say that it's high time you learned to do your own wheel work. It's no more complex than doing all those other bike related jobs, just a bit more tedious.

If you do keep them and the damage is limited to just a small crack around one spoke then I'd say true it up and ride it for now but keep a close eye on the spoke. Put a bit of tape around that spoke to identify it. Also check for swelling or cracks around other nipples. I rode an old Araya rim with a sweeling and crack around one spoke for years without issue. I only recently had to swap out the rim when I noticed that 4 or 5 other spokes had suddenly developed cracks or swelling of their own.

Swapping a rim is a good way to get your feet wet with wheel building. If you find a rim with the same ERD as the old one then you can use the same spokes and nipples provided they still turn easily. If they are corroded and only move with a lot of twisting and snapping then I'd suggest getting new spokes and nipples. And there's no need to actually spend $80 on the rim. If the wheelset uses rims of around that price then you should certainly fight for a refund. But if they are budget rims then get a budget replacement. For budget rims I've had excellent results over the years riding on Vuelta and Ambrosio rims. Yet they don't seem to command high prices. I consider these two brands to be definite performance sleepers.