Has your gift card expired? Here’s the deal about validity
19 February 2024
Unfortunately, it happens to all of us sometimes: you’re going through the bottom drawer of your desk, an old purse, or a dark corner all the way down your closet et voilá… there’s a gift card that you’ve completely forgotten about. Perhaps it’s valid just yet and you can exchange your lost treasure for a lovely gift or great experience. Or perhaps you’re too late and your gift card has expired. Or perhaps you have no idea about the validity of the gift card.
Help! Now what? No need to panic. Below we will tell you everything you need to know about the validity of gift cards and what exactly you can do when a gift card has expired.
Validity of a gift card
Let’s start at the beginning: what exactly is a gift card? A gift card is a card with an amount of money on it. With it, as the lucky receiver you can buy something at the participating shops or providers of the gift card.
The card has a magnetic strip and barcode on which the amount of money is loaded. Because a gift card is often tailored to your interests, it feels a lot nicer and more personal than money in an envelope. And an added benefit? You don't have to spend the amount in one go. The remaining amount just stays on the gift card.
'But what about the validity of the gift card?' we hear you thinking:
Starting January 1st, 2022, gift cards are legally valid for at least 2 years.
Does your gift card only mention a date of issue? Then the gift card is valid for 5 years.
Is there no mention of a date of issue or expiry date on the card? And no mention of where you can find this information (Like for example on a website?). Then your gift card is valid indefinitely.
Tip: check the validity of the gift card you receive beforehand. That way you can always redeem your gift in time.
Redeeming your Choice Gift Card on Giftcard.co.uk
Hurray! You’ve received a Choice Gift Card! Time to redeem that wonderful gift. And great news: you can do so in the blink of an eye (in other words: in just 5 simple steps).
Step 1: Go to giftcards.co.uk and click ‘Redeem gift card’
At giftcard.co.uk you can redeem various Choice Gift Cards. These gift cards are available in different themes like Christmas, Father’s Day, Valantine’s Day and so on. Note: it’s not possible to redeem other type of gift cards here (like for example a Wayfair card. These gift cards can be redeemed on the website of the mentioned example (so at wayfair.co.uk in this case).
Step 2: Enter the 19-digit card number
Check the box at ‘I am not a robot.’ Do you see a green checkmark appearing? Perfect! Then click ‘next step.’
Step 3: Choose your favourite gift card(s)
A new page appears, on which you can see the balance and the validity. Click ‘choose a gift card,’ you now have the choice to exchange your gift card for one or more of the gift cards shown.
Enter an amount starting from 10 euros under 1 or more gift cards of your choice and click add.
Step 4: Receive your gift card(s) per email or by regular mail
Do you see a pink per email label on the gift card of your choice? Then you receive the gift card by email within one hour.
Does the gift card of your choice not have a pink per email label? Then you’ll receive the gift card by regular mail within 5 working days.
Step 5: Buckaroo payment environment
You are now in the secured payment environment of Buckaroo. Fill in the 19-digit card number and the security code and click ‘continue’. Your Choice Gift Card has now been redeemed. Congratulations!
Do you have any questions or do you need assistance? Please don’t hesitate to contact us
Gift card expired: now what?
Oops, you’ve completely lost track of the validity period of your gift card. Sad but true, your gift card has expired. Oh, the bad luck! Just when you were so looking forward to planning a delicious dinner with your restaurant gift card. Or to finally book that amazing experience.
Has your restaurant gift card expired? Or do you have another gift card that has passed its expiry date? Unfortunately, it’s not possible to renew the gift card. But before you give up, you can of course always kindly check with the gift card issuer. In exceptional cases, they may (whether or not for a small additional charge) still do an encore. In short: you already have no, but you might still get a yes.
Redeeming an expired gift card
Unfortunately, gift cards are allowed to expire by law. That means you are no longer entitled to them after the expiry date.
Some providers are willing to extend the voucher if you pay a small administration fee. A nice solution to save your beloved gift card from the dustbin!!
Tip: help yourself with a reminder
It’s only human to forget something. Luckily, we have some golden tips for you to never lose sight of the validity date of your gift card again!
Set a reminder in your (digital) agenda when the expiry date of your gift card is approaching.
Place the gift card near your computer so you see it when you go e-shopping.
Create a (digital) gift card folder in which you note all gift cards and their expiry dates.
This way you can always redeem your beloved gift cards in time! Happy shopping!
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