‘I just want my money back’: One woman’s frustrating journey after gift card mishap

Most of us buy gift cards, hand them out and don’t think twice whether they will actually work for the person on the receiving end. Helen Gong did that back in May. She’s an insurance agent and gives gift cards to clients as a thank-you for their loyalty.

Then, one of her clients reached out to her.

“She said she tried using the card I gave her and the cashier told her it was empty,” Gong said. “It was so embarrassing for me.”

That was one of five, $200 gift cards Gong had purchased at Walmart. After her client called, she checked the other remaining cards.

“All had been wiped out, there was no money on them,” Gong said.

She kept the receipt and the cards, presented them to store associates and was told to call Walmart Corporate, which she has done multiple times since May.

“I kept calling them every week asking about their progress, but they kept telling me they were investigating. I don’t understand, I have the receipts showing I paid, I have the cards in my hand that were not used, why is it taking so long?”

Gong reached out to CityNews after failing to get answers from the store. We contacted Walmart and hours later, Gong was refunded for the full amount.

“I am very happy with the response but I feel as though this should have been easier to deal with,” she told us by phone after she was notified of the refund.

“This was definitely a scam issue, so I should have gotten my money back immediately.”

Walmart did not address the delay but did respond to the issue.

“Walmart Canada issues and processes thousands of gift cards daily and incidents of gift card tampering are extremely rare,” a spokesperson said.

While rare at Walmart, gift card tampering is not new. According to the Retail Council of Canada, in 2021, $3.8 million in losses were reported due to gift card fraud. Not all involved tampered cards but many did.

Gong’s case is still being investigated but scam artists have, in the past, targeted gift card kiosks. They place stickers on cards with alternate barcodes. Once someone else purchases them the scammer wipes them clean.

Stores like Walmart are aware of these types of crimes and many work hard to prevent them.

“To further protect our customers, our gift card displays are in high-traffic areas and our associates are trained to regularly monitor gift cards for signs of tampering,” a Walmart spokesperson said.

But Gong believes those safeguards did not protect her. She now plans to only purchase gift cards online — not in-store. Consumer experts say if you do buy in-store, carefully inspect the card, register it immediately online after purchase and keep your receipts.

Police also suggest any similar gift card scams be reported to them.

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