Posted on 02/24/23
| News Source: WBAL TV
Some people love them, some people hate them. Worse, a large number of us who receive them on special occasions are indifferent to them, or even forget about them entirely.
Such is the sad fate of gift cards -- millions of which go unused each year and have a collective value estimated to be in the billions of dollars.
Almost two-thirds of American consumers have at least one unspent gift card tucked away in a drawer, pocket, wallet or purse. And at least half of those consumers lose a gift card before they use it, according to a new report from Credit Summit, an online provider of financial advisory services.
The report said there is as much as $21 billion of unspent money tied up in unused and lost gift cards. Of those surveyed, a majority of respondents said their unredeemed cards were worth $200 or less.
The Credit Summit report is based on a December 2022 survey of 1,200 consumers aged 16 and older. (Of the respondents, 60% were female, and the income range of those surveyed ranged from less than $25,000 to more than $150,000 per year.)
"Gift cards are extremely popular and almost everyone enjoys getting them. But many people leave them sitting in a drawer to redeem on a special occasion. Use them, don't save them," said Rebecca Stumpf, an editor with Credit Summit.
"If someone has given you a gift card, they want you to spend the money," she said.
A separate study on gift card usage found the average amount on unused gift cards last year was $175 per person, up from $116 in 2021.
"I thought with high inflation, people would go to town with their gift cards. but I was surprised," said Ted Rossman, a senior industry analyst with CreditCards.com and Bankrate.com.
According to a July 2022 survey of 2,372 U.S. adults conducted by CreditCards.com, 47% of respondents said they have at least one unused gift card voucher or store credit.