I have a lot of unused gift cards. I'm sitting on about $500 worth, which is better than the $1,500+ I was sitting on a few years ago. I tried to make it a point to spend them down, hoping to get to 0, but no such luck.
Beyond the issue of not really knowing what to buy, I find the friction of them holds me back from bothering with them most of the time.
For example, I have a gift card to a Speedway gas station for $25. The date on the back is from 2012, I've been sitting on this for over a decade. If I want to use it, I need to go find a Speedway, instead of getting gas in my usual pattern, and then I can't just fill up the tank. I need to just pump exactly $25, which seems like a small thing, but I'm then not leaving will a full tank. The alternative is having to split the charge over multiple forms of payment... can this be done at the pump or do I need to go see the teller? These are a bunch of questions and friction that aren't worth it. If the total is less than $25, then I have a card with just a few dollars on it, which is even less likely to be used, as the friction remains, while having an even lower payoff.
I've been debating handing them out to random people on the street, but I'm not sure if that is actually helping anyone, or just shifting the obligation.
al_borland•2w ago
Beyond the issue of not really knowing what to buy, I find the friction of them holds me back from bothering with them most of the time.
For example, I have a gift card to a Speedway gas station for $25. The date on the back is from 2012, I've been sitting on this for over a decade. If I want to use it, I need to go find a Speedway, instead of getting gas in my usual pattern, and then I can't just fill up the tank. I need to just pump exactly $25, which seems like a small thing, but I'm then not leaving will a full tank. The alternative is having to split the charge over multiple forms of payment... can this be done at the pump or do I need to go see the teller? These are a bunch of questions and friction that aren't worth it. If the total is less than $25, then I have a card with just a few dollars on it, which is even less likely to be used, as the friction remains, while having an even lower payoff.
I've been debating handing them out to random people on the street, but I'm not sure if that is actually helping anyone, or just shifting the obligation.