cwb27
Dec 12th, 2006, 12:20 AM
(Long winded) Public service announcement.... :)
My experience with this is thru Best Buy with iTunes gift cards, but it may be applicable to other retailers and gift cards as well.
Background:
The standard method for check out with these cards, the card's barcode is scanned, then the cashier swipes the magnetic stripe of the card in order to verify and activate the card.
The story:
I bought 2 separate iTunes gift cards from Best Buy in one transaction. The cashier scanned/swipped the first card no problem, then scanned and attempted to swipe the second card only to get an error on the screen stating (and I'm sort of paraphrasing) "Only 1 gift card permitted per transaction".
The cashier attempted to perform the scanning/swiping of the card again only to receive the same message again. The cashier consulted with another cashier who outright said "You will need to process them via 2 separate transactions". The cashier continued with various methods until saying they got it to work on one transaction.
I didn't think anything of it, cause hey, I don't work there and don't know the systems. :)
Fast forward to the next day when I finally get a chance to unpack all the shopping from the prior day and look at the receipts.... I looked at the receipt and clearly showed the following:
1 - $20 iTunes Card @ $20.00
1 - $20 iTunes Card ACTIVATE @ $0
1 - $50 iTunes Card @ $50.00
.... Ergo... The $50 card was scanned in and I was charged for it, but it was NOT activated... :(
Solution:
The card was purchased from a Best Buy that was out of town, so I headed to the one here in town with the $50 card and my receipt in hand.
Spoke to a girl at Customer Service who knew exactly what had happened..
After speaking to her manager she did the following.
-Credited me a $50.00 Best Buy gift card. (A direct credit, nothing needed to be done with my Mastercard I originally used for the purchase)
-Used the Best Buy gift card to re-purchase (and properly activate) the $50 iTunes card.
Just wanted to pass this along in case this type of situation happens to anyone else here... It seems to be easily corrected and there is very little hassle involved (besides needing to go back and explain what happened).
My experience with this is thru Best Buy with iTunes gift cards, but it may be applicable to other retailers and gift cards as well.
Background:
The standard method for check out with these cards, the card's barcode is scanned, then the cashier swipes the magnetic stripe of the card in order to verify and activate the card.
The story:
I bought 2 separate iTunes gift cards from Best Buy in one transaction. The cashier scanned/swipped the first card no problem, then scanned and attempted to swipe the second card only to get an error on the screen stating (and I'm sort of paraphrasing) "Only 1 gift card permitted per transaction".
The cashier attempted to perform the scanning/swiping of the card again only to receive the same message again. The cashier consulted with another cashier who outright said "You will need to process them via 2 separate transactions". The cashier continued with various methods until saying they got it to work on one transaction.
I didn't think anything of it, cause hey, I don't work there and don't know the systems. :)
Fast forward to the next day when I finally get a chance to unpack all the shopping from the prior day and look at the receipts.... I looked at the receipt and clearly showed the following:
1 - $20 iTunes Card @ $20.00
1 - $20 iTunes Card ACTIVATE @ $0
1 - $50 iTunes Card @ $50.00
.... Ergo... The $50 card was scanned in and I was charged for it, but it was NOT activated... :(
Solution:
The card was purchased from a Best Buy that was out of town, so I headed to the one here in town with the $50 card and my receipt in hand.
Spoke to a girl at Customer Service who knew exactly what had happened..
After speaking to her manager she did the following.
-Credited me a $50.00 Best Buy gift card. (A direct credit, nothing needed to be done with my Mastercard I originally used for the purchase)
-Used the Best Buy gift card to re-purchase (and properly activate) the $50 iTunes card.
Just wanted to pass this along in case this type of situation happens to anyone else here... It seems to be easily corrected and there is very little hassle involved (besides needing to go back and explain what happened).