Are You a Gift Card Junky??

It’s that time of year or soon will be. People will soon be combing the stores… online and otherwise for the perfect gift and it is becoming more and more popular to simply buy gift cards and hand them out. I don’t know about you, but I love Gift Cards. There’s just one problem with them. Okay, I have a few problems.

1. They are lost. I have heard more than one horror story about them being tossed out on Christmas morning with the gift wrap. Now that has to hurt.

2. They are tucked into their handbag and forgotten. I had a small credit left on one and the store wouldn’t accept it because it was two years old. That really ticked me off!

3. They expire… although here in Ontario, the government is putting a stop to that. Thank Goodness! I hope that they do this all over the country.

4. They come from stores that are not in your town… that happened to me last year and I had to go downtown Toronto to use part of it. Actually, it just gave me an excuse to head down to the Eaton Center! Luckily, that particular store (Lush) has just opened in a mall not too far away from me, so I’m hoping that I get another one this year… hint, hint Jamie.

5. If there is a processing fee for the Gift Card involved… that’s just plain wrong! Avoid that retailer like the plague!

*And did you know that more than 1/4 of all Gift Cards purchased are never used. The stores must love that! So, any horror stories of your own out there. Have you ever bought or received a Gift Card??