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Gift Cards Sold On eBay May Not Hold Value

Local 4 Viewer Contacts Ruth To The Rescue

POSTED: 5:16 pm EST March 17, 2005

Bargains on gift cards sold on Internet auction sites may be too good to be true.

Deanna Blevins told Local 4's Ruth to the Rescue that she found an eBay auction promising $100 gift cards for $80. She said she just moved into a new home with her husband and thought the auction price would be a good way to save money.

"But as I was looking at it, I was wondering how legitimate it was," said Blevins.

Ruth to the Rescue connected Blevins with Internet auction expert Donna Klein, also known as "The eBay Lady," for assistance. Klein said some gift card auctions are legitimate and could save consumers money.

Klein said that if a person has received a gift card that they are not able to use, they may auction it for money. But consumers should beware they could be purchasing stolen goods online.

"People recruit others to shoplift merchandise," said Klein. Klein added that others will return the merchandise and get a gift card instead of cash.

"And those gift cards end up on eBay," said Klein.

Consumers should be cautious of gift cards for sale with an odd price, such as $346.58, and sellers who want to make a quick sale and leave bidders hanging, Ruth to the Rescue reported. Once a scam artist has a bidder's money, they could send a gift card with no value, Local 4 reported.

For more information on avoiding scams from "The eBay Lady," click here.

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