Gift card traps

15 November 2010

About $1.5 billion worth of gift cards were purchased in the last financial year. About three in four participants in a recent CHOICE survey told us they’d received at least one gift card in the past 12 months, with a similar proportion giving one as a present in the same period. More than half experienced the biggest pitfall of gift cards – it expired before they were able to use its full value. We looked at 15 gift cards from major retailers and found three to recommend. We also examined how stores handle lost and stolen cards, and other drawbacks.

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A new website, www.cardlimbo.com.au, allows you to sell unwanted gift cards from about 100 retailers for 60% to 90% of their value and buy second-hand cards for 70%-96% of their value. Cardlimbo also allows you to donate gift cards to charity

Click here to read the full article featuring Cardlimbo by consumer advocate group, Choice.