sammie wrote:
We are in CA and there is a law regarding gift certificates that says:
Q.4. Can the holder of a gift certificate or gift card redeem it for cash? A. This depends on the policy of the seller. The gift certificate law states that a seller must either redeem a gift certificate or gift card sold after January 1, 1997, for its cash value, or replace it with a new certificate or card at no cost "
why didn't you quote the whole answer? the next sentence is pretty material.
i found what you quoted here:
http://www.dca.ca.gov/...al_guides/s-11.shtml anyway, i read that first sentence as "a retailer has to do one or the other--redeem it for cash OR issue a new card, but they can choose to do one and not the other if they wish.
here's the part you left out:
[quote=
http://www.dca.ca.gov/...al_guides/s-11.shtml]
A. This depends on the policy of the seller. The gift certificate law states that a seller must either redeem a gift certificate or gift card sold after January 1, 1997, for its cash value, or replace it with a new certificate or card at no cost.
18 However, California's Legislative Counsel has concluded that a seller is not required to redeem a gift certificate in cash when requested by a consumer.19 Thus, some gift certificate sellers redeem the gift certificate for cash or a combination of merchandise and cash, while some issue a new certificate for any balance remaining after the original certificate is redeemed. A gift certificate or gift card without an expiration date is valid until it is redeemed or replaced.
20 Notwithstanding any policy of the seller, effective January 1, 2008, a gift certificate with a cash value of less than ten dollars ($10) is redeemable in cash (not a new certificate or merchandise) for its cash value.
21 Cash for purposes of this section includes currency or check.
22 Where a seller accepts funds toward a gift certificate from one or more contributors as a gift for another person (the "recipient"), the seller must give each contributor a full refund of the amount paid toward the certificate if the time in which the recipient may redeem the funds by purchasing a gift certificate is clearly disclosed in writing to contributors and recipient and the recipient does not redeem the funds by the time disclosed.
23[/quote]