HOUSTON — Chances are pretty good that you got a gift card this Christmas. The National Retail Federation reports Americans spent nearly $30 billion on them this holiday season.
After clothing, gift cards are the most popular present. For the most part, people are pretty good at spending them.
Paytronix, a company that tracks restaurant gift card sales, said around 70 percent are spent within the first six months.
You may want to know the rules for your gift cards before you stash them away in a drawer for a rainy day.
Some cards, mainly the generic cash ones, think Visa or MasterCard gift cards, will start charging inactivity fees if you don’t use them within a year. Those fees can drain money from the card.
For those store cards, the longer you keep them, the bigger chance you have of the store going out of business or just losing the card altogether.
So what happens if you do lose the card or forget all about it?
In Texas, you have three years from when it was issued or until the card expires, whichever comes first. Then it becomes unclaimed property in the Texas Comptroller’s Office. You can file a claim to get that money back, but it really is easier to spend the gift card sooner than later.