Problems with Gift Receipts

Just after the New Year, I received this email from a reader:

I'm an avid reader of your blog, and wanted to share two incidences -- one that happened to me, another to a friend, which I felt might interest you and/or your readers.

Incident #1

For Christmas I purchased a jacket from a local retail store for my sister-in-law, and along with the jacket I gave her a gift receipt. I paid full price for the jacket. My sister-in-law found out she was pregnant, so decided that a pair of stretchy pants might be more appropriate for the short-term. Armed with her gift receipt, she returned to the store to exchange the jacket for a pair of pants. The salesperson informed her that since the jacket was now on sale (Boxing Day), she would only be given the sale price.

My sister-in-law (thankfully) showed the salesperson the date on the receipt and told her that the item was purchased at full price, not at sale price, and that was what ought to be honored. The salesperson wouldn't budge so my sister-in-law left the store.

Incident #2

A friend of mine purchased gifts for her nieces and nephews from Wal-Mart. The gifts she purchased went on sale before Christmas. She couldn't find her original receipt, but had the gift receipts, so she took those and the gifts to the store to have a price adjustment. When she got there, the cashier wouldn't give her the difference between the regular price and the sale price. So, my friend decided to return them and re-purchase the items at sale price to get the difference.

The cashier refused. She said that she would only give her the price for what the items were on sale, not what she had originally paid for.

In conclusion...

Both my friend and I called the respective corporate head offices, and having dealt with the higher-ups, we were both assured that we would receive the proper amount owed to us. Wal-Mart in particular said they were going to "look into it." Despite the positive outcome, I'm now completely wary of gift receipts. Their purpose, for me, is proof of purchase, without having the recipient know how much the gift was. But what's the point of a gift receipt if the original price isn't honored? I'll definitely be holding onto my original receipts in the future.

Anyone else have similar problems with gift receipts?

Comments

I actually had the opposite happen to me recently. My friend bought me an expensive baby item and gave it to me with a gift receipt. I already had one, so I researched the prices online and was going to exchange it for something else in the same price range. However, the gift receipt recorded the actual price she paid, which was $50 less than full price. I was a little disappointed that I didn't get the full price but happy that she got a good deal and couldn't really be mad since the store was giving me the price that they got for it. I actually didn't know that gift receipts had a record of the actual transaction in bar code but it's a pretty good idea to prevent what this commenter experienced.

[sahm]

I had the original receipt from my mom for a jacket she gave me. When I went to return the jacket, they would only give me a in store credit because I didn't own the credit card the purchase was made on. They told me the only way I would have received the money back was if my mom had paid cash for it. I was not a happy customer! I bought another jacket and will not purchase gifts from there!

[Amber Jones]

I received a gift from someone, and took it back only to find out that it had been clearanced down, and was now only a couple of dollars. I was a little upset, but at the same time, I had not paid for it in the first place, so it's still was extra money in my pocket regardless (not that it was much tho). I guess this process serves as a protection for the companies. Someone may come in and purchase the items on sale, but then take it back and try to scam for the full refund.

[Jonathan]

At Walmart, it's not just gift receipts (although they can add to the problem). Original receipt in hand, I returned an item I had purchased a few days earlier. The cashier scanned my receipt, scanned, the item, and kindly offered to put the current sale price of the item back on my credit card. I showed her my receipt with the price I paid for the item, but I had to get a manager before I could get a proper refund.

[Bill]

My parents bought a Wii game at Best Buy in October for a Christmas gift for my children. They already had that game so I tried to return it with the original receipt. I was told that they wouldn't take it back since it was over 30 days old. I insisted on speaking to a manager and the manager pushed some buttons on the computer and said that she couldn't get the computer to take it back since it had been purchased over 30 days earlier. I will never buy another thing at Best Buy!

[Bill]

I forgot to add that I wasn't asking for a refund. I was going to exchange it for another game and even had that game in my hand at the customer service counter, but they wouldn't let me do the exchange.

[Ellen]

sahm: It is common policy for stores to only give store credit if you do not have the original credit/debit card the item was purchased with. This is because people would try to purchase many things on credit, cancel the card or dispute the charges, and then return the items for cash. Then the store is in the negative.

As for return policies with the original receipt, always read the back of the receipt to know when you can return for a full refund. Price adjustments generally run for 14 days or so. Returns can vary from store to store.

I know in this economy, it seems cashiers are being told to do everything they can to avoid full refunds. Your best bet is reading the back of the receipt and knowing exactly what you should be getting before you get there. Don't try to get a full refund when the return policy time period has passed. It will just make cashiers less likely to want to help you out.

[daron]

I bought my wife a nice article of clothing for Christmas, and gave her the gift receipt with the article. She decided to return the item and purchase a less expensive similar item at another store, so took the original item and the gift receipt and was told they would only offer her an in-store credit. Unfortunately, in the meantime I had misplaced the original receipt and their offer was all she could do. Now she is stuck with a store credit to a store that is historically over-priced, but she did go ahead and purchase the less expensive item and will use the in-store credit for gifts later this year.

[Anitra Smith]

Better a gift receipt than none at all... We got a LOT of clothes for my daughter at her baby shower. Unfortunately, people did not believe me when I said that giant babies run in our family. I ended up with a lot of summertime clothing and almost no winter clothing in the size that she needs to wear NOW (January). I spent last week running around to various stores trying to return items that still had tags (but no receipts - almost no one gave me gift receipts). Most stores then honor the lowest sale price on that item. I don't have a problem with this, I know there are people who game the system.

At Kohl's, they wouldn't even do that. They would let me _exchange_ at the lowest sales price, if I could find another item at _exactly_ that price. Otherwise, they would refund me HALF of the lowest price. I ended up getting $1.20 for the three-piece outfit I had to return.

[Eric]

Don't forget gift cards. I've been screwed by BestBuy because they refused to issue a new gift card, but insist on returning ( split no less ) a balance to a used up gift card.

It's insane and I've sworn off gift cards completely and asked people not to buy them for me.

[thomas]

Both those situations are BS and I'm glad they were called out on it. If you didn't have receipts, then that's tough. I do recall one time returning a pair of shoes and making the cashier go through this huge catalog of store receipts (logged by transaction number I guess) in order to find my transaction and give me the right amount back.

These situations you have to do 3 things: 1)remain calm 2)ask for a manager and 3)Don't give up.

[Stuart]

Looks like the walmart issue is now the subject of a class action lawsuit. http://www.kcrlegal.com/walmart-kohls-gift-receipt-investigation.aspx

[Julie]

Anyone who would like to share their experiences with a reporter working on a story regarding this issue, PLEASE contact me! [email protected]

I would be honored to hear from you, and your story may be very helpful to putting an end to this! Thank you.