Don’t go near my purse. My wallet’s still smoking from my Mega Monday shopping spree. The good news is I didn’t burn through my checking account scooping up super savings at Macy’s and Target. Rather, I used the Christmas gift cards I received yesterday, so I could treat myself to a new pair of gloves, a slew of seamless undies (buy three, get three free—-score!), and some black trouser socks.
Do I know how to live on the edge or what?
According to the National Retail Federation, I am one of a declining number of people who actually uses every penny on their gift cards. The retail watchdogs just revealed the results of a new survey that found many gift cards given to friends and family members during the holiday season go unused. Since 2005, more than $41 billion in gift cards have not been redeemed, according to the National Retail Federation poll. However, there is good news for store owners. The survey found that when people use gift cards, they often spend more than the value on the card.
Personally, I try to get as close as possible to the value of the gift card because I don’t want to have to spend a dime of my own cash on my Christmas present. Very, very few stores refund the balance of a gift card, so if you are given a $50 gift card and spend $49.60 of it, the remaining 40 cents will remain on the card until you remember to use it on a future purchase. The problem is many people don’t bother to redeem cards that have less than five bucks left on them, which is how the 41 billion unused dollars come into play.
If you received gift cards yesterday from mom, dad, Uncle Joe or Santa, don’t let the money placed on them go to waste. Money experts suggest keeping track of how much you have left to spend on each card while using up the remaining balance as soon as possible. You shouldn’t have to worry about an expiration date; however, the longer you hold on to a card the greater the likelihood it could be misplaced or stolen, and used by thieves.