Beware buying worthless gift cards this holiday season

The number one gift this holiday season will not be Barbie Dolls, it will rather be gift cards.

But before you snap them up the next couple of weeks for aunts, cousins, and everyone else on your list, we have a caution so they are not disappointed.

Eileen Pike loves to support local shops and small businesses.

But she was burned after buying her aunt $75 in gift cards to a movie theater, that shut down during the pandemic and never reopened.

“There was no way to get my money back for my aunt to get the gift we had bought her,” she said.

That’s a concern with  more and more stores and restaurants closing due to slowing consumer spending.

The savings site Retail-me-Not dot com warns shoppers to be careful buying  gift cards to struggling retailers.

Stores that closed in 2023 leaving many customers in the lurch include:

Bed Bath and Beyond.
Buy Buy Baby.
Christmas Tree Shops.
Tuesday Morning.

Make sure your retailer is not struggling when you buy those gift cards.

But there is another reason almost one third of holiday gift cards are never redeemed.

Yahoo Finance says reasons include:

The store is too far away….
 Inactivity fees have ruined their value…
The recipient loses the card….
They forget they  even have the card.

If a business you have a gift card to goes under, try calling similar businesses nearby:  They may honor them, to get you as a new customer.

That way you don’t waste your money.

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