This post is based on reader Rachel's experience. If you've run into a similar issue, feel free to share in the comments~

What happened

A few months ago, reader R bought a Visa gift card at Safeway, but when she got home she found that the last three digits after the card number had been scratched off, and she couldn't check the balance. It was also hard to reach customer service—no one answered the phone. Everyone in the group also shared their suggestions and experience to help figure out a solution.

That day, R kept calling Vanilla customer service, but it was very hard to get through. Some members who had dealt with a similar situation suggested keeping at it by phone

After a long wait, customer service finally answered. Because the full card number was missing, they couldn't look up the information. So they asked R to email the company a copy of the receipt and photos of the front and back of the card to resolve the issue. After submitting the information, about 1–2 months later, R received a new Visa gift card

How was the Visa gift card stolen?

I had already heard about quite a few cases of stolen Visa gift cards, so I reached out to R right away to ask what happened.

From the photos R took, we can see that the outer packaging of this Visa gift card was fairly worn, with signs of repeated crumpling in the upper-right corner. In general, with a product like a Visa gift card, not many people would keep picking it up, looking at it, and then putting it back on the shelf. So a package that looks this worn was very likely tampered with.

At first glance, there was no obvious sign of damage to the Visa gift card itself. So I suspect the side may have been cut open and then sealed back with glue. R took a photo after opening it, and there were traces of glue on the Visa gift card. We can infer that someone first cut it open, removed the card inside, copied down the last three digits of the card number, put the card back, glued the side shut, and then hung it back on the shelf.

As for why they scratched off the card number, I personally think it was to delay the victim's ability to use the card, giving the thief more time to move the money off it. We know a Visa gift card can't be used before it's activated, and activation usually happens only after payment, at checkout. A thief can't activate a Visa gift card on their own, so they first damage the packaging and get the card number, then wait for the buyer to activate the card before figuring out how to steal the funds. They may have recorded the card's magnetic stripe, cloned the card, and then used the clone to spend the balance in person after activation. Or they may have recorded the card numbers of many similar cards and repeatedly checked whether any of them had been activated; if they found one that had, they'd figure out a way to spend the balance online.

General steps to take

First of all, you should definitely contact the merchant, Safeway, and the issuer, Vanilla. The former can provide proof of purchase and activation, and the latter can handle cases of abuse like this with Visa gift cards. This time, R resolved the issue with the help of Vanilla customer service. What if the issuer of a similar Visa gift card won't cooperate?

If more than a month goes by and neither party resolves it, the simplest option is to dispute the charge on your credit card, since this also falls under receiving an item that doesn't match what was promised. In general, after a dispute, the merchant will proactively contact you to resolve the issue under pressure from the credit card company. In this case, the dispute is with the supermarket; if the supermarket can't resolve it, it will also contact Vanilla, the issuer, to sort it out.

If the dispute fails for some reason, you can also file complaints with the BBB (for the merchant that sold it) and the CFPB (for the company that issued the Visa gift card).

If it still can't be resolved, you can bring out small claims court as a final weapon. Of course, you may not even make it to court before the merchant proactively reaches out to negotiate. After all, for a large company, the cost of going to court is much higher than the value of a single Visa gift card.

My advice

For a high-value item like a Visa gift card, be careful when buying one. Here are a few tips I think are especially important:

  • When buying a Visa gift card, pay attention to the packaging; don't buy one that's too old or shows signs of damage or being pried open
  • Try to take a Visa gift card from farther inside the shelf and choose one with newer packaging
  • You can ask a store employee to get a brand-new Visa gift card from the cabinet; these are usually fine
  • Keep the receipt and the activation slip for the Visa gift card after purchase
  • If possible, open the Visa gift card on the spot after checkout and check whether there are any issues inside
  • If there is a problem, contact the merchant or issuer right away, then follow the general steps above to resolve it