Gift token not right, then sell it

NEW YORK - Few things are more popular than free money in the form of a gift token ... unless it is redeemable at a store you don't like.

Enter the secondary gift card market. Sites such as online auctioneer eBay and SwapAGift.com let recipients exchange their tokens for cash - usually less than their face value - or for another gift certificate.

A Deloitte & Touche study found that this year 64 per cent of consumers intended to buy gift tokens, up from 60 per cent last year.

And as gift tokens have grown in popularity - they are the most popular present to give - selling them has also become a trend.

eBay had a US$20 ($28) Starbucks gift token up for auction on Tuesday with a high bid of US$17.50 and SwapAGift had a US$102 gift card from luxury jeweller Tiffany offered at US$100.

"It's the ultimate in re-gifting," said Deloitte & Touche spokeswoman Tara Weiner.

"A gift card is just another product and this is a way to put cash into your hand and value into the hand of another person who wants to shop at that store.

"The secondary market is alive and well and everyone's happy."

eBay had more than 7400 listings for gift certificates on Tuesday, most of which had been posted since Christmas Eve.

When swapping or selling gift tokens online, it is impossible to know if the token has the value the seller says it does.

But as with other transactions, a seller risks getting a bad review if the merchandise is not as advertised.

Hani Durzy, a spokesman for eBay, said the company had held talks with retailers to limit the posting of fraudulent or stolen gift cards.

"There are certain aspects to the gift card trade that may increase fraud," Durzy said.

"We don't want people to use eBay as a way to leverage something that they may have done illegally in the physical world."

A seller can offer only one gift token for sale a week and those sold on eBay have a limit of US$500.

- REUTERS