Gift Cards – are they really the perfect solution?

Grrr! I’ve just vacuumed the car, and found the gift card I lost not long after I was given it. And guess what? It’s past its expiry date! What’s more, this isn’t the only disappointment I’ve had with these ‘gift solutions’ over the years. I once took a card into a supermarket, only to be told that I first had to buy something in order to find out how much the card was valued at! Then there was the time I went to my son’s favourite cafe and ordered a gift card for his birthday present. Before I knew what was happening, the person serving me had printed out a paper copy of the purchase ‘for my records’, and emailed a digital copy of the gift card to my son! So he knew what his birthday present was, two weeks ahead of time!

I know I’m not the only one who now religiously crosses their fingers at birthdays and Christmases, and prays they won’t receive a gift card. Children are renowned for tucking gift cards into drawers while they plan how to spend them – only to forget they’re there until it’s too late (and parents  and grandparents then have to share in the disappointment!). Those who can least afford to, more often than not, end up having to add their own cash to a purchase to make the spend worthwhile, while others find their gift card isn’t redeemable at any of the shops they like to frequent.

If you completely lose your card, even if it hasn’t ‘expired’, there’s an almost zero hope a shop is going to replace it for you, unless of course, the card is a replaceable one – in which case you’ll be paying somewhere in the vicinity for $10 for the privilege. If the shop your card is attached to ‘goes under’, your gift card is likely to go with it. Oh, and did I mention that some cards having a locking pin which you must first track down from the recipient before you can redeem the value?

If you still think a card makes the perfect gift, be sure to check out the terms and conditions before you part with your cash. In some cases, you have to actually purchase the piece of plastic before you even get to the stage of loading on the dollars. Along with that comes handling fees, convenience fees (based on the value you load onto the card), an international transaction fee if the card is used overseas, and a postage fee for sending the card to the giver or recipient.

Which brings us to the question of just how you can gift dollars in a simpler way that still seems personal. Perhaps we should take our cue from the many cultures that find giving cash completely acceptable. Believe it or not, cash is a perfectly acceptable alternative to gift cards, especially when tucked inside a pretty greetings card or converted to foreign currency for someone who’s heading away on an overseas holiday. Even better, if you can track down a bank account number, direct credit the sum into the giftee’s bank account with a ‘Love from …’ in the reference code, and follow it up with a hand written note. Because after all, aren’t we supposed to be ditching plastic?!