[abowers]

I'm not objecting to your article--gift cards should be chosen with care, but just a couple thoughts:

"Out Of Luck If It's Lost Or Stolen: If you lose your gift card or it is stolen, you're most likely out of luck. Unlike credit cards that provide protection, gift cards don't. While some retailers are more lenient with this and will reissue the card if you can provide proof of your most recent purchase, most won't. If you are lucky and you can get the gift card replaced, there's a good chance you'll also be charged a replacement fee of up to $10. A gift card is, in most cases, the same as carrying cash with no protection."


With Starbucks Gift Cards, for example, you can register them online when you receive them to protect the balance. If lost or stolen, you can "freeze" that gift card, and they will send you a replacement.

"Exchange Gift Card For Cash Fees: If the recipient can't find anything and decides to cash out the card, they will either be out of luck or pay a lot to do so. Many gift cards simply aren't redeemable for cash. Those that will let you redeem your remaining balance usually come with "processing fees" as high as $15."

Mall gift certificates are like cash, and i.e. if you have a $40 mall gift certificate, and only use $17 of it, you will get $23 back in cash. This has been true of gift certificates I've had at 4 different malls, in different states.