GiftCardRescue Blog

After a year in business, the gift card exchange website Mercardi.com has shut down today August 19th, 2010. We here at Gift Card Rescue would like to extend our services to the Mercardi.com community and guarantee you an unrivaled shopping experience. We are so certain that you will enjoy buying discount gift cards from us that,

We are offering an additional coupon for 5% off  your entire order to all Mercardi customers.

You can receive your coupon code by sending an e-mail to customerservice@giftcardrescue.com.

Attention Mercardi bulk gift card sellers, We would love to have the opportunity to win your business. Give us a call at 1-877-907-3822 or send us an e-mail and we will call you back.

Why Choose Gift Card Rescue?

• Fast Payment for gift cards
• Unrivaled Customer Service
• Email Updates at every Step
• Amazing Savings on Gift Cards
• Safe & Secure Transaction
• Option to trade gift card for Amazon.com™ Gift Card

Here are what some of our customers are saying,

““GiftCardRescue.com is a treasure trove of savings. I could not be more pleased with the excellent customer service. I receive prompt e-mails when cards are available from merchants I wish to buy from.” - L. Schroeder

““Amazing! I have purchased gift cards off of ebay and have had a couple of problems that took 6 weeks to fix. Gift Card Rescue is quick, prompt and accurate. Great site.” - Kelly J.

Click here to see all Gift Card Rescue Reviews or you can see our Media Coverage in outlets such as The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, and People Magazine.

Welcome to part one of the series on how you can make additional money just by buying and selling gift cards.

The concept is very simple. All you need to do is buy gift cards for less than their value and resell them at Gift Card Rescue.  Just by doing this some of our best bulk suppliers make thousands of dollars a week from by selling gift cards. It’s an easy side project to start that can quickly turn into a serious money making venture.

To start you want to look up what Gift Card Rescue is currently paying for different merchants. You want to focus your efforts on buying gift cards to popular stores like Best Buy, Walmart, Target, Home Depot, and Macy’s. The key to making the most money is offering a low percentage for the gift card. Read the rest of this entry »

The American Express gift card is one of the most popular bank issued gift cards, second only to the Visa Gift Card. The gift card can be purchased at participating banks and at drug and grocery stores in denominations of $25, 50, 100 and 250. They can also be purchased online here in denominations of $25, $50, $100, $200, $500, $700, $1000, $2000 and $3000 (subject to a shipping charge, in addition to the purchase fee).

Below are the most frequently asked questions about the American Express Gift Card:

1. Can I add more funds to the American Express Gift Card?
No, you cannot add more money to the American Express Gift Card. Once the original value on the card is used up, the card becomes worthless. For a reloadable bank issued gift card, you can buy a Reloadable Visa Gift Card.

2. What fees come with the American Express Gift Card?
Like most bank issued gift cards, the American Express Gift Card comes with fees, including a purchase fee of about $4.95 payable at the time of purchase. There is also a monthly service fee of $2 that is charged after 12 months of purchase. This is better when compared to the Visa Gift Card service fees, which are typically charged after 7 months of purchase and can be as much as $4.95. In addition, if your card is lost or stolen, American Express will replace any available funds still remaining on the card but will charge you a replacement fee of $5.95.

3. Can I use the American Express Gift Card to make purchases online?
Yes, but before you do that, you need to register the card with American Express (add your name and billing address to the card). This is necessary because the online merchant will then be able to match the name and billing address you provide for your order with the name and billing address on file for your visa gift card (just like they do for credit cards). Read the rest of this entry »

The Reloadable Visa Gift Card, as the name suggests, allows you to reload the card with cash several times over until the card expires. The Reloadable Visa Gift Card is an ideal choice for those without a credit card who want the benefits of a credit card, like shopping or paying bills online. They are also a way to build credit since some Reloadable Visa Gift Cards do report to the credit bureaus. It is also a good way to help teach kids and teenagers about money management since they can only spend the money loaded on the card.

There is however a difference between the Reloadable Visa Gift Card and Visa Gift Card. While both cards are accepted anywhere visa debit cards are accepted, the Reloadable Visa Gift Card has the following features that the Visa Gift Card does not have:

1. To purchase a Visa Reloadable Gift Card, you must be at least 18 years old and must provide a government issued ID.

2. Also, unlike the Visa Gift Card, you can use the Reloadable Visa Gift Card to get cash at an ATM, an important feature for many people that use the card for budgeting and cash management.

3. The Reloadable Visa Gift Card allows you to add money through direct deposit of your wages, tax refunds, or other disbursements, such as social security, child support, welfare or other payments.

4. Another important distinguishing factor is that the Reloadable Visa Gift Card allows you to pay bills online, including recurring bills and subscriptions. Some Visa Gift Cards claim to allow this but many consumers that have tried have been unsuccessful.

You can buy the Reloadable Visa Gift Card at the following stores – Walmart, ACE Cash Express, CVS, Kroger, Walgreens, some Supervalu stores, Safeway, and Rite Aid. For other locations, click here.

I highly recommend the Wal-Mart Reloadable Visa Gift Card for the fact that they just reduced the purchase fee to $3 from $8.94 in February 2009, which is the lowest I have seen so far. You’ve probably seen their commercials on TV about the $3 fee.

You can also get the Reloadable Visa Cards online at the following places:

All Access Reloadable Visa Card

READY Debit Reloadable Visa Card

PAYjr Visa Buxx Reloadable Debit Cards

The Green Dot Prepaid Card

Visa gift cards are a great way to teach teenagers about money management. They also make great gifts, whether for a wedding, birthday, high school or college graduation. Visa gift cards are convenient and work just like debit cards. You can use them anywhere visa debit are accepted, including online. They can also be replaced if lost or stolen, which makes them better than giving cash. Visa gift cards are issued by participating banks for any amount between $5 – $500. You can also buy them at denominations of $25, $50, $100 and $200 at most drug and grocery stores.

However, like other bank issued gift cards, Visa gift cards come with fees, including purchase fees, which are typically $4.95, monthly maintenance fees (which are charged after 6 or 12 months of purchase), and replacement fees, among others. They also carry expiration dates.

Nonetheless, Visa gift cards are very popular, which shows that consumers are happy with the convenience they offer and see the fees as a trade off.

For a list of where to buy visa gift cards in person, click here

For a list of where to buy visa gift cards online click here

If you are unsure of which Visa Gift Card to buy, you can check out the Vanilla Visa Gift Card or the All Access Gift Card, two of the most popular Visa gift cards.

The All-Access Visa gift card is one of the most popular Visa prepaid cards. The card can be used anywhere Visa debit cards are accepted. You can purchase one at most check cashing places and convenience stores, including at some gas stations. They are also available at most drug and grocery stores and come in denominations of $25, $50, $100, and up to $250. Like other Visa gift cards, the All-Access Visa card comes with fees, including a purchase fee of $4.95. The card is not reloadable or returnable once purchased.

Here are the most common FAQs regarding the All-Access Visa card:

1. What are the fees associated with the All-Access Visa card

In addition to the purchase fee of $4.95 that is payable at the cashiers, the All-Access Visa card comes with a monthly service fee of $2.95 that is charged after the 7th month of purchase. However, some have reported online that the service fee is actually $4.95 per month. There is no way to clarify this since strangely enough, All-Access Visa does not have information on their website (including FAQs) about fees associated with their cards.

The monthly service fee is charged until the balance is depleted so take note. Many customers who purchased the All-Access Visa card and held on to them got a rude awakening when they found out their funds have been wiped out by the monthly service fees. Also, while online balance inquiry is free, there may be a charge for balance inquiry request made via phone. Read the rest of this entry »

The Vanilla Visa gift card is one of the most popular Visa gift cards. You can purchase one at many drug or convenience stores and they come in denominations of $25, $50 and $100. They are accepted anywhere Visa debit cards are accepted but they cannot be used at merchants outside of the United States.

One of the nice features about the Vanilla Visa gift card is that they are replaceable when lost. Just contact Vanilla Visa online at Vanillavisa.com and a new card will be issued. There is however a $5.95 Re-Issuance Fee for replacing a card. The cards are not reloadable or returnable once purchased.

The Vanilla Visa gift card is activated by the cashier at the time of purchase. All you need to do is sign the back of the card and you can use it immediately. There is no need to call a special number to activate the card. Read the rest of this entry »

Below is the list of Gift Cards sold at Giant Supermarket. Not all cards are available in all stores. Call your local Giant store for complete list.

Books – Movies – Music – Entertainment
iTunes
AMC Theatres
Barnes & Noble
Blockbuster
Regal Entertainment Group
Joann
Ticketmaster Read the rest of this entry »

FirstMerit Bank is rolling out a no purchase fee Visa Gift card. The only spoiler is that the cards can only be purchased at FirstMerit’s Bank Branches and are not available online. This is exciting news for customers who live in Northeastern Ohio and Western Pennsylvania where the bank’s 158 branches are located.

Purchase fees on Visa and other bank issued gift cards are usually $4.95 so this is a huge savings, especially when you are buying a $25 or $50 gift card. You can choose from more than 50 designs (including a great selection of holiday designs).

The cards can be loaded with any amount from $5 – $500. And for an additional $5, you can get a gift card holder in form of a stuffed moose called Franklin. The only caveat with the FirstMerit Visa gift card is that there is a monthly maintenance fee after six months if there is still a balance on the card (they need to work on this – they should at least give a year if this is even necessary). On the whole, this is a great gift and a step in the right direction since purchase fees on gift cards are just inexcusable. Click here for details.

Folks,

Here is an idea to save you some money. You can buy gift cards at discounts of up to 20% off at GiftCardRescue.com. GiftCardRescue.com is our sister site and the publisher of this blog. In addition to offering discounted gift cards, the site also allows you to sell your unwanted gift cards for cash. Giftcardrescue.com will pay 70% of card value for your unwanted gift cards.

In addition, you can also exchange your gift card for another card of your choice, guaranteed. Choose from popular stores like Abercrombie & Fitch, Babies R Us, Best Buy, Brooks Brothers, Home Depot, Nordstrom, Wal-Mart for your exchange. Click here to go to the site.