Stopped working after 4 months

The card reader completely stopped working after 4 months of occasional use. It would not even power on after plugging it into my laptop or any other computer.
I tried to uninstall the driver software but was unable to delete some of the files as they were locked. Printed out directions from the Sandisk website on how to uninstall and reinstall the driver. Directions were short and very general, not Windows XP specific. After unchecking the read-only box in file properties and applying the change, the files would go right back to read-only. Windows just would not delete the files or change permissions. Granted, I am not Bill Gates, but it should not be this difficult and I consider myself computer intermediate.
The Sandisk website does not provide a Technical Support phone number. In order to get support, you have to sign up for an online account and provide serial numbers, purchase dates etc. It is impossible to contact someone to get general questions answered.
Needless to say, this is too much of a hassle and I just went out and bought a different brand card reader that does not require driver software to be installed.