Dec 26 Suckiness or And here come the giiiift cards!!

[CrazedClerkthe2nd]

Etiquette lesson

I know you've been waiting to ask a question, but I also expect to you to understand we are terribly busy and it's just not possible to get to everyone quickly. Also, yelling "Hey you son of a bitch we've been waiting here forever!" is probably not the ideal way to make me want to assist you.

Gift Cards, part 1

No I don't know how much is on the VISA/MC/AMEX gift card you have, you have to call the number and ask. No I will not call for you.


What do you mean you're sold out????

This is our busiest week of the year. You admit you didn't attempt to call ahead to see if we had what you needed. You bitch about waiting in line only to find out we don't have it and somehow it's all my fault that you can't get your damned 4GB 360. Please go throw yourself off the nearest cliff.

Gift Cards, part 2

There is $20.00 on the card. I don't care that you think there's supposed to be $30. I didn't buy the card and I didn't sell the card. No, I cannot add $10 to the card value for you. No my manager can't either. No it's not my fault that someone apparently put the "wrong" amount on the card.

Attention parents

Thank you so much for letting your little rascals completely destroy my store and scream with abandon while you waited in line. I just LOVE having to reogranize all my shelves and bins.

Gift Cards, Part 3

Ok, let's count up the fail here. You claim someone gave you a $25 gift card, but you don't have the physical card and you don't have a receipt indicating one has been purchased BUT you expect us to honor the card anyway? DENIED.

Attention parents, part 2

DO NOT bitch at me because you had to come in from the car to tell me it's ok for your 10 year old to purchase a blood and violence filled game. It's great you think 10 year olds should be allowed to buy whatever they want, unfortunately the rest of society, including my store, disagrees with you.

Gift cards, part 4

I am sorry your VISA gift card does not have as much on it as you thought. No I do not know why this is. No I will not run it a third time. No, I will not call the number to find out what's going on. No I will not honor the full value of the card because "it's the right thing to do." Sidenote: DEATH to VISA gift cards!

To Mr. Loudmouth

I understand you're upset. Usually speaking clearly at a reasonable volume is a great idea, but when you are speaking so loudly you are attracting the attention of the entire store, it's time to take it down a notch. I'm surprised that vein in your forehead didn't blow itself out five times over.

(note: the guy was upset we wouldn't give him a refund on an open system he had no receipt for. Rules are store credit only if no receipt).

BONUS: Fired the day after Christmas

A year ago, a guy who works at one of other stores got fired on Dec. 26th because he purposely misled young kids about how much was on their gift cards (i.e. telling them it was empty when it wasn't) and kept the excess credit for himself.) Smooth dude, real smooth.

[ThirdGenRetail]

Ye GODS but I hate Visa/Master Card/American Express/Whatever the hell the other one is gift cards. I have to keep turning people with them away from SCO, because they inevitably have LESS than the total amount on them, and we have to manually enter them... Which I cannot do on SCO.

Playing the "How much is left on this" guessing game is a pain, too

[SourRobot]

Yes, everything you said about the gift cards. Come on people, keep track of your crap! It's so easy. I hate it when one of those discrepancies come up, and after letting the customer know that they didn't have what they thought they did on their card/it's expired/it hasn't been activated/etc., they just stare at you. There is a number on the back of your card. No, I will not call them for you.

[LadyAndreca]

BONUS: Fired the day after Christmas

A year ago, a guy who works at one of other stores got fired on Dec. 26th because he purposely misled young kids about how much was on their gift cards (i.e. telling them it was empty when it wasn't) and kept the excess credit for himself.) Smooth dude, real smooth.

This is how a head cashier at the Bullseye I used to work at (the one that EVERYONE hated, and one of the two people that drove me to quitting) eventually got himself fired. Only he was doing it to everyone, not just kids. Everyone in the store hated him so much they helped keep tabs on him until he'd stolen enough that he not only got fired, he got arrested.

[Kristev]

Don't know the balance of your gift card. You mean, people don't write down what they spend with credit/debit/gift cards in a notebook to keep track of their spending?

What have I been doing wrong for so long, writing down what I buy unless it's paid for in cash?

[BrenDAnn]

You know, sometimes I hate that the giftcards at C-store only come in certain denominations. Now I'm glad that they do! No mistaking how much was put on one! I do get the "can you tell me how much is on my VISA/MC/whatever gift card?" and just shake my head and point them to the number to call.

[RedRoseSpiral]

I wouldn't suggest calling the number on the back of the card. My work has them as a reward and we found out that if you check the balance on them or call to get information the card is charged a few. We've heard it's as high as $15 in some cases. So, if you have one of these cards make sure you keep track of what is on it by writing it down. Calling the number on the back will screw you over big time.

[fireheart]

The only thing I like about the Prepaid mastercards that WE carry is that we can check the balance on them. What we can't do however, is tell you if other stores will take them. We also can't take the other Visa/MC prepaid cards for some odd reason. (Nobody in Ausland that I'm aware of does AmEx gift cards)

[chainedbarista]

No I will not honor the full value of the card because "it's the right thing to do." Sidenote: DEATH to VISA gift cards!

no, the right thing to do would be to put on your big boy/girl undies and suck it up, because expecting someone to cover your/the giver's 'fuckup' is wrong and asking them to do something that can get them fired.

ok, sarcasm aside; the worst thing i've seen are the commercials that try to pawn these damn things off as 'the new check/credit' card, where you can keep track of your finances better.

[Irving Patrick Freleigh]

Gift cards, part 4

I am sorry your VISA gift card does not have as much on it as you thought. No I do not know why this is. No I will not run it a third time. No, I will not call the number to find out what's going on. No I will not honor the full value of the card because "it's the right thing to do." Sidenote: DEATH to VISA gift cards!

In a fire, if at all possible.

[bankworking]

Whenever I get a visa giftcard as a present, I do my best to spend the entire thing at once. Generally, it goes to groceries, because it's not hard to get rid of whatever amount my family is likely to give me. And I do not try to use the SCO, and make certain to double check that the store is set up to be able to run a gift card plus another card for the remainder.

[Dreamstalker]

the worst thing i've seen are the commercials that try to pawn these damn things off as 'the new check/credit' card, where you can keep track of your finances better.

Oh, I hate those ads. A lot of places (especially online) have problems with the prepaid cards.

[MoonCat]

Wait, what? I use Visa gift cards online all the time (I don't have a credit card) and all I do is go on their website to make sure it's activated and to check the balance. I also keep a log of each card # and how much I've spent on each one. It's really not hard (unless one is an SC, I guess )

I shouldn't be surprised that someone expected you to take their word for it that they had a gift card, but that one made my jaw drop.

[Catwoman2965]

Oh I hate those as well. For the same reasons! And hate that people get snippy when its declined because we don't know the amount on it!

I also hate that certain wireless phone companies use them as rebates, instead of sending a check! I had the rep at the "can you hear me now" store tell me it was easier for the CUSTOMER as checks get lost etc. Yeah, ok, as Judge Judy once titled her book - don't pee on my leg and tell me its raining!" Its advantageous for the COMPANY not the customer. Most people don't use the full value. Fortunately, my bank will allow me to do a "cash advance" and get cash for the full amount, which I then deposit into my account. If I wasn't able to do that, i would have bought a GC to a store I shop at, paying with teh Visa card and used it there.

[MadMike]

I also hate that certain wireless phone companies use them as rebates, instead of sending a check!

Tell me about it. I hate rebates to begin with, and this makes me hate them even more.

I'm still not sure what the point of it it. Before, we'd end up with paper checks in the landfill. Now with these cards, we end up with plastic in the landfill.