Gift card denied to pay for OBC..

[ar1950]

I think its just the lack of knowledge of the employees.

 

I hate these cards! :rolleyes:

 

FWIW, the last gift card that I got said on the front that it was a Visa debit card, but, the only way it would work was to enter that it was a credit card on the card swiping machines. I hate 'em too.:cool:

[SLCfirsttimer]

:confused:I just called today over on PCL and wanted to purchase some OBC using a Visa-Gift Card (given to me). The gift card was for $50.00 but all I wanted to use from the gift card was $40.00 The PCL rep said the card was denied and could not give me a reason. I told her it was a gift card...but she still said no reason was given why it was denied. I went over to the Visa-Gift card website to check to make sure that there were enough funds still there to cover $40.00 charge or any extra that PCL might charge to process it. The entire $50.00 credit was still good.

 

I have read that folks have used these gift cards to purchase OBC and thought I would use it that way. I have used gift cards to purchase bottles of Wine through PCL...and they worked fine. Just not sure why it didn't work this time for an OBC purchase.

 

:confused:Anyone know why it didn't work? Also....would it be better to just use the gift card using the form you e-mail for gifts instead of calling PCL?

 

Thanks in advance.

 

For my upcoming cruise I used several gift cards to pay approximately $600 of my fare, all of them but one worked just fine. Called Princess and asked them if they could try it, came back as denied. When I called the card issuer, they said the charge that was being submitted was $57.50, the card was only for $50. Not sure where the extra $7.50 was being added, with all of the other cards I used the exact amount of the card was being charged.

 

I think it may be something with that specific card issuer, rather than Princess, but I did not pursue it.

[Iamcruzin]

I work in retail and these gift cards can be a nightmare. First of all if you don't know the balance on the gift card and the purchase is more than what you think is on the card then the card will be declined and a hold will be put on the card until the retailers system communicates with the bank that issued the card and they figure out that the transaction did not go through. This was clearly not the case for the OP. The other problem is that some of the cards are for purchases of merchandise, or restaurants. They don't have a cash value where you can convert the card into another form of payment. This is the case for the OP. So basically you can't buy a gift card or OBC with a gift card. I tried to make a split payment with an American express gift card for airline tickets and It couldn't be done. I find the best use of these gift cards are to use them on items that you know you won't return such as food in the grocery store or for gas. It is also best to use them up at one time so you don't have a balance. The biggest problem with the gift cards is that they can't be reloaded so if you have to return something that was purchased with the card you will most likely get a store credit.

[MauiLvrs]

We used a Visa gift card to pay for our FCC without issue.

Fuel for the car ... was problemattic ...

They can just be a pain sometimes.:mad:

[monakayk]

Sounds like they work sometimes and then at other times not. Strange.....Maybe they work when PCL rep knows to use them as a credit card instead as a debit card?:confused:

[bhopal21]

I work in retail and these gift cards can be a nightmare.

 

That my friend is an understatement!;)

 

I would never give one to a friend or purchase one because they can be so problematic.

 

Mike:)

[Working 2 Cruise]

Sounds like they work sometimes and then at other times not. Strange.....Maybe they work when PCL rep knows to use them as a credit card instead as a debit card?:confused:

 

As stated before, just use that card for small purchases and either call Princess to gift yourself OBC or just do it onboard. Much easier. It appears some cards work while most are not to be applied to cruise related expenses. Don't know why but that's the way it is.

[caribill]

I work in retail and these gift cards can be a nightmare.

 

Details on a $5 rebate card from American Express:

 

"Funds do not expire. A $2.00 Monthly Service Fee shall be assessed against the card balance 7 months after card issuance."

Edited March 15, 2014 by caribill

[Colo Cruiser]

Details on a $5 rebate card from American Express:

 

"Funds do not expire. A $2.00 Monthly Service Fee shall be assessed agaist the card balance 7 months after card issuance."

 

Which is illegal here. And alot of other states.

Edited March 15, 2014 by Colo Cruiser

[MauiLvrs]

Which is illegal here. And alot of other states.

 

and maybe the "Funds do not expire" as well.

 

Maybe some ar a "Gift Card" and others are a "Pre-paid VISA" and therefore may behave somewhat different.

 

It is usually a pain to buy bas for the car ... but not for the plane :confused:

For the plane we specify how much we want to buy.

Safeway runs a $1

Costco runs $150

 

Unlike a "real card" the gifty ones seem to be generally problematic with all of the validation negotiations.

[caribill]

It is usually a pain to buy bas for the car ... but not for the plane :confused:

 

When paying for gas at the pump, a hold is placed on a card for at least $50, even if only wanting to get $5 of gas. This could easily be more than what is left on a gift card. It is just easier to say "no" to using gift cards there.

 

When paying for gas at a cashier, there is no problem using a gift card.