How to Avoid Common Gift Card Mistakes During the Holidays
Learn which fees, packaging flaws and payment demands to check so your holiday gift cards keep full value.
To avoid common holiday gift card mistakes, check fees and expiration terms, inspect packaging, and buy from stores you trust. Never share card numbers or PINs, give the recipient the terms and receipt, and refuse any demand to pay by gift card. A gift card is a prepaid card loaded with funds for a named store or network.
Holiday racks and rushed checkout lines raise the chance of tampering, overlooked fees, and pressure tactics.
Verification note: Program terms and availability can change. This page was checked against linked sources on November 03, 2026.
What do fees and expiration terms allow?
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau notes federal law bars sale of a gift card that expires in less than five years from issuance or last load, and issuers must replace the card free if funds remain after a printed date expiration and replacement protections. That printed date does not erase a remaining balance. Keep the terms with the card so the recipient can request a replacement.
Issuers cannot charge dormancy, inactivity or service fees during the first 12 months of inactivity, and afterward only with clear disclosure and at most one such fee per month. Read the fee schedule before buying, compare cards at the rack, and use the funds before fees can start. Give the recipient the written terms plus the purchase receipt to prove purchase if the card is lost or disputed.
How do you pick a safer card off the rack?
CNN reporting FTC attorney Rebecca Plett notes buyers should reject torn, re-glued, scratched or sticker-altered packaging, because tamperers copy numbers and PINs and drain value after activation how tampered cards lose value. Inspection reduces risk but cannot guarantee safety. Pull a card from the back of the row, and check that the scratch-off PIN cover is intact.
Buy gift cards only from stores you know and trust and avoid online auction sites, where cards may be counterfeit or fraudulently obtained. A low price on a resale listing can mean zero balance or a stolen number. When possible, buy the card at the register and keep it in sight during activation.
Why do payment demands mean hang up?
The Internal Revenue Service states it never asks for or accepts gift cards for a tax bill and never calls to demand immediate payment by gift card, prepaid debit card or wire transfer IRS warning on gift-card tax demands. A call, text or email claiming taxes, utilities, bail or tech support needs gift-card payment is a demand to ignore. Hang up and contact the agency or company through a number you find yourself.
Florida consumer officials mirror federal guidance that only scammers tell targets to buy a gift card and read the numbers off the back. No real government agency or legitimate business, including IRS, Treasury, FBI or utilities, demands gift-card payment. A gift-card number plus PIN lets a thief steal loaded funds even while you hold the card.
- Caller stays on the phone while you travel to the store
- Caller asks for card numbers, PINs, or a photo of the back
- Caller demands secrecy or immediate activation
What should you keep if value goes missing?
Give the recipient the card terms and the purchase receipt at the time of the gift. The receipt shows store, date, activation, and amount loaded. Store a photo or copy apart from the card for holiday travel.
Federal Trade Commission guidance says if scammed, contact the issuer immediately, keep card and receipt, and report at ReportFraud.ftc.gov steps after a gift-card loss. Fast notice improves the chance of a freeze or trace. Keep the card, receipt, and issuer phone number together until the balance reaches zero.