...to query a zero balance on a gift card?!

[Nessalina]

I got a £50 gift card from work when I left for maternity leave - I've just gone to spend it and there's no money on it! I feel super awkward asking the lass who sorted it out about it, but I don't see what else to do, other than chalk it up to a loss
I didn't keep the receipt that was in the gift card, so if it's gone out of her account, then there's no tracing it I assume? She's lovely, so I'm worried that a) she'll be mortified, and b) even if it has come out, she'll just stump up the £50 herself and put herself out of pocket which wouldn't be right.

sometimes they have to be activated and show a zero balance until they are (ive actually come across this) . I would query it with colleague

Some gift cards have a time limit on them could it be something like that?

Well I received a mothercare gift card CARD recently, you know the nice design card, with handwritten message congratulations Sindy etc - but no Gift card like the credit card thing in it!!! I ended up not saying it. If they lost it they'd feel terrible- if they found it in their handbag they'd realise and I'd hear from them... never heard!

Sorry... not helpful!!!

I'd say it to your friend... make sure she wasn't debited the 20 quid or whatever??

I only got it three weeks ago! If it was £20 I'd leave it, but £50 is a lot...

Three weeks ago and based on a collection from work colleagues? I'd say something.

Yeah, I'd say something too.

Hang on! This happened to me recently. I'd received a £5 Tesco gift card for as a goodwill gift for something I'd complained about.

I don't normally shop in Tesco, but I decided to pay them a visit so I could use the card before I forgot about it.

When I was at the till, I gave the card to the cashier and asked her to use the amount towards total grocery bill (which was about £70). She said 'It says card balance is zero'. I asked her to to check again, and she said 'It's definitely zero, sorry'.

So I took the card back. When I got home, I looked at my receipt for the groceries and the £5 had actually been taken off.

I think the cashier had scanned the gift card and it immediately indicated that the new balance in the gift card was zero.

Could this offer an explanation in your case?

Yes, say something. People donated their money for you, it's not fair that the money has ended up elsewhere (even accidentally!) without them knowing!

I'd ring Tesco HQ and see if they can trace anything.
I had a reverse problem in Boots once where a gift card was scanned and the money wasn't taken off it, although I took home the goods and it said I had paid. It's obviously an imperfect technology.

I mean, Tesco HQ or wherever the card is from.

I'd mention it too incase the money has got lost somewhere in the shop's system.

If it was from an office collection it was probably cash that was used to buy the card so it might be difficult to prove anything unless the person who bought it has kept the receipt

I agree - the card wasn't validated when your colleague purchased it. The cashier has to actually do something or other with it at the point of sale to make it usable.

I had the same with a £50 Next gift card.

It's to stop people just waltzing in to a supermarket, picking up a fistful of cards from the end of aisle display, and walking out again with ££££s worth of usable vouchers.

call the company - I think this is quite a common error.
I had similar with a Waterstones card & they rectified it.

I work in retail. Was it a set figure card ie, you can buy a £10, £20, £50 etc...... or was it a general gift card that any amount can be added to it? If the latter, once your colleague has paid the gift card has to go through the terminal system, the same as the payment system, to load the amount onto it. Could be possible the assistant in the shop made an error. If you know which shop and what date it may be possible to trace as their end of day takings will show the card payments £50 up.

oh, sorry, or if she paid cash, cash £50 up.

It was a set £50 card, the assistant said it was one of the ones sold in the supermarket, Asda or Morrisons.

It was only a partial payment I was making, so there should have been money left over!

You have to say something - if shop is at fault, maybe she also has receipt from when she bought it or proof through her bank .. definitely tell her

Thing is, if she bought the gift card in cash, that makes things very difficult indeed

Sounds like she might have paid for it via the self service machine, which means it won't have been activated at the time of purchase

I would say something too, the person issuing the gift card could have made a mistake so the money was not put on.

i would say something after I'd run the firm to check if you have to activate it to see balance. Otherwise, people will want to know what you've spent your gift money on, and you'll be caught in a farce of having to be thankful for a gift voucher you didn't get!

She may still have her receipt even if you don't have yours. It does sound like she paid for it at the self service check-outs, maybe along with some other shopping.

Put yourself in her shoes - you'd want to know, wouldn't you?

Easy to say in hindsight but you should have kept the receipt that came with the card. Not sure anything can be done without the receipt.

Ok, I've text her, and she's messaged back just saying 'oh that's rubbish, I think I put the receipt in the gift bag'. I'm pretty sure she did, but I will have binned it.
I've rung the customer services and they've said that its never been activated, so she must have either used the self scan or the cashier has forgotten to do it!
I've rung the local supermarket that was most likely for the purchase and a very nice chap did a check of all the £50 cards sold last month, but none matched mine, so I've bitten the bullet and texted her again to ask when and where she got it so that I can chase it up...

well at the least, you won't have to pretend to have a gift you didn't get! It's a shame though...