{"id":2048,"date":"2020-01-14T16:57:15","date_gmt":"2020-01-14T16:57:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.inboxdollars.com\/blog\/?p=2048"},"modified":"2022-02-22T18:05:43","modified_gmt":"2022-02-22T18:05:43","slug":"find-out-these-common-ways-retailers-cheat-you-out-of-gift-card-funds-and-learn-what-you-can-do-about-it","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.inboxdollars.com\/blog\/find-out-these-common-ways-retailers-cheat-you-out-of-gift-card-funds-and-learn-what-you-can-do-about-it\/","title":{"rendered":"Find Out These Common Ways Retailers Cheat You Out of Gift Card Funds…and 9 Things You Can Do to Fight Back"},"content":{"rendered":"

Don't Let Retailers Cheat You Out of Gift Card Funds<\/h1>\nGreetings blog readers. Today\u2019s topic is a friendly reminder with money-saving tips from your frugal friends here at InboxDollars!<\/span>\n\nWhile you may think of InboxDollars as just a great place to earn free Target card<\/a>, Amazon.com eGift cards<\/a>, and other retailer rewards, we've also got the low-down on how to make the most of your gift card rewards so you don't lose out on total funds.\n\nWith birthdays, graduations, and other holidays, there\u2019s a good chance that you\u2019ve received a gift card or two in the past year. Whether you love them for their convenience or loathe them for their hassle and impersonal nature, gift cards are multi-billion dollar business.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>\n\nBut gift cards have often proven to be a much better gift to retailers than to those who receive them. <\/span>A National Public Radio study estimated that over $41 billion in gift cards, issued over a 6-year period had never been redeemed<\/span><\/a>. $ 41 billion in free money went unclaimed. $ 41 billion. A large portion of this unredeemed windfall was on cards partnered with major credit card companies like Visa and MasterCard, meaning the dollars could be spent anywhere. That\u2019s a staggering amount of money to retailers, restaurants, and businesses across the country. \u00a0<\/span>\n\nFor many years, card issuers were allowed to use some downright Grinch-like practices to make sure cards weren\u2019t redeemed. Such a large portion of funds was going unused that <\/span>Congress stepped in and in 2009 passed legislation to regulate gift cards<\/span><\/a>. These laws helped tremendously, but it\u2019s still estimated that <\/span>roughly $1 Billion dollars in gift cards go unused every year.<\/span><\/a>\n\nYou don\u2019t have to fall victim to gift card Grinches if you read these handy tips to understand how modern gift cards (especially Visa and MasterCard branded) work.\u00a0<\/span>\n\nOh - and keep in mind these are tips for U.S. gift cards. International gift cards<\/a> are a different beast with different regulations - but the principles are the same. You have funds to use at a specific retailer based on the card issuer.\n

Here's the breakdown of 9 easy steps you can so you don't get cheated out of gift card funds:<\/h2>\n

1. Activate your gift card. <\/b><\/h3>\nSome gift cards need to be activated by calling a 1-800 number usually located on a sticker across the face of the card, inside cardboard packaging. Or you may have to look for the \u201ccustomer service\u201d label in the small print on the back of the card. Follow the automated instructions to complete activation.<\/span>\n

2. Add a zip code to your gift card.\u00a0<\/b><\/h3>\nSome gift cards require a zip code for verification for certain purchases, like online shopping or pay-at-the-pump gas stations. This is again done via the 1-800 number. The zip code doesn\u2019t need to be your actual zip code but you need to set\u00a0 an actual gift card zip code and remember what the the gift card zip code is.<\/span>\n

3. Set a PIN for your gift card.<\/b><\/h3>\nIn order to use some gift cards for in-store purchases, you\u2019ll need to set a PIN (personal identification number). Many gift cards will allow you to choose a PIN by entering it into the keypad at the card terminal when you first use the card. However, sometimes this doesn\u2019t work and it\u2019s always safer to set a PIN ahead of time through the 1-800 number. Some cards only provide menu options to delete the current PIN, prompting you to use the card at a card terminal again to set up a new one. In this event, listen for a menu option to speak to a live representative. Usually, they can set the PIN manually ahead of time so it\u2019s sure to work.<\/span>\n

4. Beware of gift card maintenance fees.<\/b><\/h3>\n <\/b>Many cards charge maintenance fees on card funds that remain active for long periods, so it\u2019s always best to use your funds as soon as possible, preferably within the first 12 months. Again, check the small print on the back of the card to be aware of this.<\/span>\n

5. Remember the expiration date for <\/b>funds<\/i><\/b>. <\/b><\/h3>\nDue to the new laws, gift card funds<\/a> can\u2019t expire for 5 years as long as the card is used at least once every 12 months. That means you initially have 12 months to use your card, either from the time of activation or from the month on the card\u2019s expiration date in the current year.\u00a0 \u00a0<\/span>\n

6. Remember the expiration date for <\/b>cards. <\/i><\/b><\/h3>\nWhile those rules apply to card <\/span>funds<\/span><\/i>, the <\/span>cards <\/span><\/i>themselves can be a different story. This confusing concept is usually identified by something like \u201cCard Expires 12\/1\/2019 but card funds never expire\u201d printed on the front of the card. If you\u2019re like most gift card recipients, you\u2019ve probably lost or forgotten to use a gift card which no longer works because the <\/span>card<\/span><\/i> expiration date is past. But in many cases, even though the card itself is expired, the <\/span>funds<\/span><\/i> remain active and are still usable. All you need to do to access them is call the 1-800 number, and choose the menu item to request receive a new active card. Unfortunately, you\u2019ll have to wait a bit to receive it, but once you do, your gift card funds will be active and spendable once again. \u00a0<\/span>\n

7. Go online to activate or manage your gift card. <\/b><\/h3>\nM<\/span>any gift cards issued by large retailers have web portals or even smartphone apps that allow you to access these card options without calling a 1-800 number. Check the packaging or back of the card for details.<\/span>\n

8. Keep track of your gift card balance. <\/b><\/h3>\nA handy tip to keep track of the balance of the card when you\u2019re out and about is to ask merchants to write the new balance on the card itself with a Sharpie. Most clerks have a Sharpie handy and often the new balance is printed on the receipt. \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>\n

9. Use multiple gift cards for a single transaction. <\/b>\u00a0<\/span><\/h3>\nPerhaps most importantly of all, don\u2019t be afraid to ask merchants to process multiple payments to use up gift cards with all the small amounts remaining. It\u2019s always polite to ask first, but most merchants these days are experienced with gift cards. If you have the current amounts written right on the card the transaction will be even easier. Don\u2019t be afraid to use that $0.94 remaining on one card, $20 on another, and some change from your pocket to make up the rest! <\/span>\n

Final thoughts on gift card hacks.<\/strong><\/h3>\nGift cards can sometimes seem like a lot of hassle. Expiration dates, PIN numbers, fees, and 1-800 numbers can be overwhelming when you actually try to spend that money. If you\u2019re putting off the idea of calling that 1-800 number or hopping online to manage your balance, just think about how much money that small effort is worth. But figure this. A gift card worth only $10 may require 5 minutes of annoying work (calling a 1-800 number or hopping online) to make it usable.\u00a0 But $10 for 5 minutes worth of work is like making over $100\/hour - just to make a call or hop online.\u00a0<\/span>\n\nI hope these tips have been helpful. These days every cent helps, so take ownership of your gift cards and don\u2019t miss out on your money!<\/span>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Card issuers still skirt laws to use some downright Grinch-like practices to make sure cards are difficult to redeem…roughly $1 Billion dollars in gift cards go unused every year. You don\u2019t have to fall victim to gift card Grinches if you read these handy tips to understand how modern gift cards (especially Visa and Mastercard branded) work.","protected":false},"author":13,"featured_media":2959,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[377,331],"tags":[429,435,200,433,432,428,430,31,30,431,434],"class_list":["post-2048","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-shopping","category-trending-now","tag-gift-card-fraud","tag-gift-card-help","tag-gift-cards","tag-gift-cards-expiration","tag-gift-cards-expire","tag-giftcard","tag-giftcard-fraud","tag-inbox-dollars","tag-inboxdollars","tag-redeem-expired-gift-cards","tag-redeem-gift-card"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.inboxdollars.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2048","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.inboxdollars.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.inboxdollars.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.inboxdollars.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/13"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.inboxdollars.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2048"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.inboxdollars.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2048\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.inboxdollars.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2959"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.inboxdollars.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2048"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.inboxdollars.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2048"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.inboxdollars.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2048"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}