Giftcardrescue.com Gift Card Rescue BEWARE: Deceptive and unethical sales practices Internet

13th of Feb, 2013 by User644743

I just read another review on here about a guy who sent in a $500 gift card that these folks refused to purchase without a receipt. At first I thought it may have been a review I wrote because it sounded exactly like my case and it happened right around the same time, but it wasn't my review. In September of 2012 I entered into an agreement with giftcardrescue.com to purchase an unwanted $500 gift card for the amount of $420. At no time when the offer was made did they state the requirement of a receipt. I sent the card in, they sent me a form requesting info on the gift card, a copy of my drivers license, and a copy of the receipt if I had one. I stated on the form that I didn't have one (it was a GIFT). I was promised a same-day response, but it took them four days to get back to me, and that is after I called for a status update. They informed me that they couldn't purchase my card because I lacked a receipt, and this caused it to be suspicious. I was directed to their Terms of Service, where it does state that they "may require" proof of purchase. Given subsequent communications between me and this company, and the response to the other aforementioned review on this site, it is apparent that there is no "may" about it. This is a standard practice that they DO NOT DISCLOSE at the time the offer is made. This company also wanted me to send in a self-addressed, postage-paid envelope within 60 days if I wanted my gift card back. I went around and around with them about this trying to get them to send it back at their expense for misleading me into a transaction that could never have been completed. They refused. Around about the time I was going to drop the envelope in the mail, my pregnant wife had to emergency deliver our child early. Our child has since had very time-consuming and demanding health issues. I completely forgot about all of this. Fast forward, 74 days after my last communication with the company, I remember that this is still outstanding and I reach out to them and advise them of what's been going on. They informed me that my gift card had been destroyed because the 60 day period had lapsed. Shame on me for letting that happen, but shame on them for misleading me into the transaction to begin with. I opened a complaint with the BBB for deceptive sales practices concerning the receipt requirement that isn't disclosed. This sparked another round of communications with a different rep of this company. During that communication, and in communication through the BBB with a 3rd rep, it has come to my attention that its almost assured they didn't destroy my gift card. They have repeatedly mentioned that the card might have been used or sold, that it was "donated" to their company, that they have other options besides simply destroying the card. I don't see how this is even close to ethical. This company refused to purchase my card but it was suspicious to them. After the 60-day window had passed, the card has become legitimate enough to either be sold or used. Their terms of service explicitly states that "Gift cards not claimed within the 60-day timeframe will be considered abandoned and will be disposed of." It does not state there is any other option. In fact, the ToS later goes on to say about fraudulent or stolen property: "The sale of stolen property or the perpetration of fraud on GiftCardRescue.com is strictly forbidden and violates the law. We strongly support law enforcement efforts to recover any stolen property that is listed on GiftCardRescue.com, and we urge the prosecution of
those responsible for knowingly attempting to sell such items on GiftCardRescue.com or otherwise engaging in criminal fraudulent activity." I guess since they found it suspicious enough to not purchase, that they are urging the prosecution of themselves if it turned out to be stolen or fraudulent. I've demanded that if this company sold or used my gift card instead of destroying it, the right thing to do would be to compensate me for it. I wasn't trying to rip them off. Yes I broke the ToS by violating the 60-day window, but I did come back a short time later and try to reclaim my card, and I have a pretty good reason for why that happened. And let's keep in mind that if they'd been up-front about the receipt requirement, NONE of this would have ever happened. They violated their own ToS by exercising any option other than destroying my gift card. In the name of good customer service, if they profited from my card they should do the right thing and honor the original offer they made me. This business has an F rating with the BBB and it's obvious why. They are deceptive, they have terrible "customer service", and are apparently completely willing to sell or use a card they think may be stolen or otherwise fraudulent. Huge red flags here. Plenty of other gift card sites out there that don't have F ratings with the BBB. I only wish I had checked them out more before I entered into what has become an awful mess.

Track this Report 0 Comment | Post a Comment