Consumerist
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promotions
Turns Out Buying Furniture Is Not A Good Way To Get Free Grocery Gift Cards
Thousands of St. Louis furniture buyers are clamoring for the free $25 grocery gift cards they were promised in exchange for buying more than $500 worth of furniture and then spending more than $100 per month at a grocery store. The complicated if not weird promotion was managed by BBZ Resource Management, an Arizona-based company that doesn't seem to have any intention of sending out the promised gift cards. More » -
follow ups
Best Buy Accepts 12 Year Old Gift Certificate Without Complaint
Jon wrote back with the results of his attempt to redeem a gift certificate that's over a decade old. More » -
gift certificates
Will Best Buy Accept A Gift Certificate That's 12 Years Old?
Jon writes:
More »While digging through a box of old books, I came across a Best Buy Gift Certificate my brother had given me several Christmases ago. It's for $40, and is dated 20-Dec-1996. I can't say if I've even bought anything from BB since then, but I'm certain I haven't thought about that gift certificate.
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stupid shipping gang
Continuing Adventures Of The Stupid Shipping Gang
Today's "Toothpaste For Dinner" Web comic features a visit from the Stupid Shipping Gang. A bigger version of the comic, and more adventures of the Stupid Shipping Gang, inside. More » -
the gift that never stops taking
Your Visa Gift Card Will Self-Destruct If Used Within 24 Hours
Stephanie bought a $100 Vanilla Visa gift card at her local CVS in Richmond, VA. She went right home and tried to use it to make some purchases online. When the card was declined, she studied the fine print that came with the card: "Funds may not be available for 24 hours after purchase." So she waited the 24 hours and tried it again the next day. Still no luck. When she called the customer service number she was told to go back to CVS. At CVS, a manager told Stephanie (and apparently many others before her) that by using the card within 24 hours she had rendered her card agreement invalid. Bang, there goes $100. More » -
gift cards
CARD Act Will Also Prevent Gift Cards From Expiring For Five Years
One unexpected benefit of the CARD Act, if it passes the Senate vote, is that Senator Charles Schumer of New York has included a provision that prevents abusive gift card practices. More » -
where's my money
RadioShack Electronics Trade-In Program Not The Fastest Way To Get Cash
A Dallas Morning News blogger decided to test out RadioShack's new trade-in program, where you mail them your unwanted cellphone, for example, and they mail you a gift card, which you can then turn around and use to buy 7,000 house brand AAA batteries. As you might expect, RadioShack didn't offer him as much money for his Blackberry Storm as he saw them going for on eBay, but the real problem came from the missed deadlines and delays in getting his gift card: what they said would take one week ended up taking 5 1/2 weeks, and might have taken longer had he not emailed them.
"DMN reporter tests RadioShack's gadget trade-in program; RadioShack tests reporter's patience" [Dallas Morning News] (Thanks to Trevor!)
(Photo: Robbert van der Steeg) -
bankruptcies
What Can I Do With My KB Toys Gift Card?
We've been hearing from a growing number of readers who still have balances on their KB Toys gift cards and want to know what to do. KB filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy and liquidated in December 2008, and stopped accepting gift cards on December 31, 2008. Gift card holders have only one option left, and not a very good one. More » -
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weasels
Ticketmaster Tries To Evade California Law By Calling "Gift Card" A "Discount Card"
See this gift card, the one that says "GIFT CARD" in big letters? Ticketmaster insists it's really a "Discount Card," and thus, not covered by the California law preventing gift cards from expiring. More » -
good news
Verizon Gives Customer $50 Gift Card To Apologize For Taunting Her With Unavailable FiOS
It's strange, the way some customer/CSR encounters go so well when others seem headed for failure before the first sentence is finished. When Nix called to complain about being mistakenly sent a $100 gift card offer that she can't take advantage of, the Verizon rep on the other end not only addressed the real issues, but later sent a $50 gift card to Nix as a goodwill gesture. More » -
If you transfer a prescription to RiteAid, you'll receive a $25 gift card. Emily, who tipped us to this, says the cashier told her you could do this for up to four meds, but their website says just two. Also, you can't use the gift card to pay for prescriptions. Still, hey, free money if you don't mind where you get your prescription filled. [Rite Aid]
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shrink ray
Shrink Ray Now Hitting Rewards Programs
We've seen food items, airline mile programs, and credit card limits all shrink as the economy worsens. Now it's time for other rewards programs to become just a little less rewarding—and somewhat sneakily, too, in these two stories recently sent in by readers.
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credit card fraud
Three Men Arrested In Heartland Data Breach For Using Fake Visa Gift Cards
The U.S. Secret Service has arrested three men in Florida on "hundreds of counts of credit card fraud" for using fake gift cards imprinted with account info stolen from Heartland Payment Systems last year. The Secret Service still thinks an Eastern European group is behind the Heartland breach, and that the Florida guys are smaller-time crooks who most likely purchased a subset of the stolen data. More » -
valentines
Oh No, People Can't Afford Stupid Crap This Valentine's Day
Yesterday I passed by a Godiva store in midtown Manhattan and saw that it was packed with frustrated looking men in suits lined up to the door. It reminded me of how manufactured this particular holiday is. After all, these men hadn't all shown up at the same store, on the same day and for the exact same reason, spontaneously; it took years and years of conditioning. But is there room in the new Poor America for the sort of spendy nonsense that Valentine's Day demands? The New York Times takes a look at how people are cutting costs, and ignoring mass-marketed fauxmance for cheaper and more personalized experiences. More » -
follow ups
Office Depot Comes Through On Promised Gift Card
Last week, Jake wrote to us wondering why Office Depot hadn't mailed the gift card they promised back in November. Someone from the company contacted Jake, and they all made up, and hugs, and happy Monday morning there's a gift card in the mail heading Jake's way now. More » -
office depot
Office Depot Comes Through With Stellar Customer Service, But Then Doesn't Deliver On Promise
Jake couldn't place an order for an Xbox 360 deal on Black Friday—yes, we're talking about a failed transaction from two and half months ago—but he got surprisingly helpful customer service from Office Depot. Margaret at the Office of the Chairman even gave him her personal number and promised him a raincheck of sorts in the form of a gift card for a future purchase. Her offer sounded almost too good to be true, and maybe it was, because as of February he still hasn't seen a gift card. And Margaret won't return his voicemail messages, not even to say the deal is off. Update: Office Depot saw this post, and they contacted Jake. More » -
lawsuits
Gift Card Settlement Refunds Quarter Million Dollars In Inactivity Fees
A Connecticut mall has to pay $259,000 in settlement fees to consumers who bought gift cards that had monthly inactivity fees. -
exxonmobil
ExxonMobil Gift Card Results In Higher Prices At Pump
ExxonMobil says their gift cards are "better than cash." They also say, "This cash card is not a credit card." But Rob in NY was hit with a credit card surcharge when he used his. More »
gift cards
New York, 2:54 AM
Mon Jul 6
6 posts in the last 24 hours
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