If a Vanilla Visa or other gift card purchased at Walmart isn’t working, read this blog post to find out why (and where to turn for help.)

Did you purchase a Vanilla Visa gift card or another gift card from a Walmart store that isn’t working? Please read below to find out what’s most likely happening and how to fix it.

There are many store, restaurant, and Vanilla Visa gift cards at Walmart. To buy a gift card at Walmart, select a card from the rack and take it to the cashier. The cashier will scan the card, enter the dollar amount you want to load onto the card, and accept payment. When the transaction is complete, the system will activate the gift card.

Though most people assume activated gift cards can be redeemed immediately, that is not always true. Gift cards purchased at Walmart may be redeemable as follows:

• STORE AND RESTAURANT GIFT CARDS. Most national brand store and restaurant gift cards (such as Chili’s, Red Robin, Subway, AMC Theaters, Olive Garden, etc.) purchased from Walmart can be used immediately after purchase. For example, you should be able to buy a Subway gift card at Walmart and use the gift card to buy a sandwich at Subway shortly after.
• GAMING, STREAMING AND ONLINE USE GIFT CARDS. Gift cards primarily intended for online use (e.g., eBay, Spotify, Apple, Google Play, Xbox, Nintendo, etc.) may not work immediately after purchase. To stop gift card fraud, some merchants delay gift card redemption for 24 to 48 hours (or more). Before purchasing a gift card, see if you can find waiting period information on the gift card packaging or display rack. After purchase, you may also check the receipt for an activation period.
• VANILLA VISA GIFT CARDS. Vanilla Visa gift cards and other bank-issued gift cards purchased at Walmart may also be subject to delays. Check the Vanilla Visa gift card packaging or receipt for information about when the card will be usable.

If there is no waiting period listed and your card still doesn’t work, read the terms and conditions of the gift card to see if there are other restrictions or limitations. For example, a Vanilla Visa gift card may not be usable on certain websites.

The most important place to look is the terms and conditions (T&C) of the purchased gift card. You should find a link to a website on the back of the gift card. By reading that information, you may discover that the gift card has a waiting period (as described above). You may find the gift card is not usable on certain websites or redeemable for particular merchandise. For example, gift cards purchased in the United States are generally only redeemable on U.S.-based websites. So it may be that your card works fine, but you’re trying to use it on a prohibited site. Alternatively, the card may only be redeemable in physical locations or online. Restrictions should be clearly stated on the card itself, on the packaging or in the T&Cs.

Here’s a Tip: If you check a card’s balance too many times (e.g., several times within an hour), the system may automatically block the card from being used to protect the funds from fraud. If you can’t figure out why the card isn’t working after reading the T&Cs, contact the gift card company directly to see if there is a hold on the card for any reason.

Gift cards at Walmart are made available by one or more third-party suppliers. If you have difficulty using a gift card, you may have to do some investigative work to figure out which company to contact.

Here are my suggestions:

• Walmart Customer Service: Walmart should have a transaction record of the purchase. That information may include the type of gift card purchased, the activated card’s last four digits, and the dollar amount added to the card. The receipt or other transaction record should also include the purchase date, time and location. Unless you purchased a Walmart gift card, however, the store would not have access to the card balance or transactions on the card. Walmart’s job is to activate and load value onto the gift card. That’s all they have access to.
  
  Keep reading for contact info.
• Brand Customer Service (e.g., eBay, Best Buy, Google Play, etc.): The brand can check the balance on the card and see when and where the card got used, but it doesn’t have access to the original purchase. For example, if you bought an eBay gift card at Walmart and discover that it does not work, eBay can tell you the card’s balance and when and where the card got used, but it cannot troubleshoot a problem with the original purchase at Walmart.
• Gift Card Issuer Customer Service (Incomm): In general, Incomm is the third-party provider of gift cards at Walmart. Incomm supplies many popular brand gift cards, including Vanilla Visa gift cards. Incomm has access to the activation transaction–the bridge between Walmart and the brand gift card purchased–but can only confirm card-level transactions on Vanilla cards. If the gift card is store-issued (e.g., Best Buy, Target, etc.) Incomm can only investigate the activation.
  
  Keep reading for contact info.

With each company only able to see a piece of the puzzle, it can be challenging to know how to get help. And you may have to talk to multiple parties to reach a resolution.

As noted, several companies are involved. So read through this list to see which one is likely to be able to help:

1. Contact the Brand

On the back of each gift card, you’ll find the issuing brand’s contact information (website and telephone number). Type the URL into a browser precisely as written. Please do NOT search for it online because scammers create look-alike websites to capture card information from people who accidentally land on their sites. If you contact the company online, creating an account will likely result in better customer service and a way to track the issue.

2. Contact Incomm

If you have a Vanilla Visa gift card or Vanilla Mastercard gift card, check the gift card packaging to find the correct gift card issuer. Giftcards.com also sells Visa gift cards so I get a lot of questions about Vanilla Visa. But only the company that issued the gift card can help.

Check the gift card packaging to find the correct gift card issuer.

• For Vanilla Visa Gift Cards:
  Find the current phone number on the Vanilla Visa FAQ page in the “Contact us” section.
• For Non-Visa Gift Cards:
  For all other types of gift cards purchased at CVS, contact Incomm directly.

3. Contact Walmart

If you believe the store mishandled the transaction, report the problem to Walmart. Talk to a manager and file a report if possible. Here is a link to the Walmart Customer Service page.

4. Contact the Federal Trade Commission (FTC)

Finally, if you think you’re the victim of a gift card scam, contact the FTC at www.ftccomplaintassistant.gov or call their toll-free number at 1-877-FTC-HELP.

When you buy a gift card at a store, pay close attention to how the cashier handles the gift card. I recently purchased a gift card from a grocery store, and the cashier showed me that the numbers on the receipt matched the numbers on the back of the gift card I handed her.

After making a purchase:

• Keep the purchase and activation receipts until the card’s full value has been used.
• If you’re giving the gift card to someone else, take a picture of the front and back of the gift card, along with the receipts. Give the originals to the recipient along with the gift.
• If the gift card doesn’t work, both of you will have the information needed to investigate.

Here’s a blog post on what to do when a Visa gift card is not working online. 

Related Articles