Don’t forget to Redeem Your Gift Cards

photo credit: arvindgrover

Do you ever forget to redeem your gift cards that you receive for the holidays or other occasions? I am a big fan of purchasing gift cards for friends and family during the holidays. My wife and I also like to receive them – provided they are from a store or restaurant that we like. I understand that they can be viewed as the easy way out in terms of gift giving and lack that personal, thoughtful touch. But I ask – Is it better to give a gift card that the person will use or spend the money to purchase an item that they will never use?

Several of our holiday purchases were gift cards this year. We were able to buy gift cards at discount prices for several of our family members by taking advantage of special promotions offered. For example, a local shopping mall was offering 25% of the card value on some of their gift cards. These cards could be redeemed at most stores located in the mall. We ended up purchasing a $100 gift card for $75 plus a small activation fee. I love to get deals like that! While I believe that gift cards are a viable option to give to others, it is very important to recognize the potential downside of them. From personal experience – I have seen family members forget to redeem their gift cards. I myself have actually done this in the past. That is why it is very important to recognize the possible negative impacts of gift card giving when you purchase or receive one.

The following list are a few things to keep in mind that will help you remember to redeem your gift cards you received for the holidays.

• Keep Track of Gift Cards – Tracking holiday gift cards is an important step in preventing them from expiring. I remember years ago I received a Blockbuster card for Christmas and put it in a secret hiding place in my wallet. We will just say that the secret hiding place was “really secret” – even to me. I found it about two years later! Of course it was worthless when I took it into the store.
• Read the Terms – Make sure you read the terms on the gift cards. It seems that most are good for 1 year before they start losing value. Paying attention to the terms of the card will help you to make sure you are able to maximize the value on the card.
• Multiple Stores – Check to see if you can use the gift card at multiple stores. Sometimes you may receive gift cards that could be used at a different store or restaurant. Read the details on the card to see if it can be redeemed at a sister store or restaurant. You are more likely to use your card up quickly if it is somewhere that you like to shop or eat.
• Use them early – I recently heard a scary report that almost 50 national retail chains could go out of business this year because of the recession! You don’t want to end up holding on to cards for companies that may be going out of business. Most of the time, when companies file for bankruptcy, you can’t redeem your cards. I think it is very important to redeem your cards soon after you receive them because of the struggling economy.
• Redeem for Cash – You may want to consider selling the gift card at a discount to someone else if you don’t like the store or restaurant. Why sit on it and not use it if you can get something for it. You can sell unwanted gift cards for cash using several websites.

Do you like to purchase and receive gift cards during the holidays?

Tagged as: holiday gift ideas