{"id":352917,"date":"2015-01-19T06:00:09","date_gmt":"2015-01-19T13:00:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.creditrepair.com\/blog\/?p=352917"},"modified":"2022-03-29T20:35:57","modified_gmt":"2022-03-30T02:35:57","slug":"cashing-in-on-unwanted-and-unused-gift-cards","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.creditrepair.com\/blog\/finance\/cashing-in-on-unwanted-and-unused-gift-cards\/","title":{"rendered":"Cashing In On Unwanted and Unused Gift Cards"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"shutterstock_156021878\"<\/p>\n

Americans are sure fickle about gift cards they receive.<\/p>\n

According to data from CEB TowerGroup http:\/\/www.executiveboard.com\/exbd\/financial-services\/tower-group\/gift-cards\/index.page<\/a>, about $750 million in gift cards went unused by recipients in 2014, destined for hidden landing spots like under the sofa cushions, buried at the bottom of a pocketbook, or left on a bar only hours after receiving it in the first place.<\/p>\n

CardCash<\/strong> says 77 million Americans gave a gift card in the past year, with total gift card sales rising to $140 billion by 2016. Unfortunately, 23 million gift card recipients who got cards last year haven’t used them and may never use them, a potential “loss value” of $1 billion. Thirty-two percent of that number say they won’t use their cards because “they forgot about them.” The average American has around $100 in unused gift cards, the company says.<\/p>\n

That \u201cunused value\u201d is only a speck though, in the overall U.S. gift card market, which stood at $124 billion in value at the end of 2013, but $750 million is $750 million, and there\u2019s really no good reason why gift cards should go unwanted or unused.<\/p>\n

To fix that problem, note there are some creative ways to redeem value out of gift cards, whether you want to use them directly or not. Here\u2019s a look:<\/p>\n

——————————————————————————————————-<\/p>\n

The \u201cTop Five\u201d U.S. Gift Card Brands, According To CardHub.com<\/p>\n