Thursday, January 27, 2011
Gift Certificates- Michigan Attorney General Consumer Protection Office
There are a lot of questions regarding redeeming gift certificates or gift cards for GlitterSniffer Cosmetics. Here is the company's official stance:
The Michigan Attorney General has pretty stringent laws regarding gift cards/certificates, which can be reviewed here.
As many people received their gift cards/certificates without purchasing them I decided to followup to see what recourse, if any, the people in possession of them had.
I called the Michigan Attorney General Office Consumer Protection Division at both 517-373-1140 and 877-765-8388. I called both numbers as the toll free number was busy. I spoke with Cleo, an agent in the Michigan AG Consumer Protection Division. She was unsure what the process would be for handling the free cards/certificates but set up a call back with me so she could speak with the Legal Department.
As many people received their gift cards/certificates without purchasing them I decided to followup to see what recourse, if any, the people in possession of them had.
I called the Michigan Attorney General Office Consumer Protection Division at both 517-373-1140 and 877-765-8388. I called both numbers as the toll free number was busy. I spoke with Cleo, an agent in the Michigan AG Consumer Protection Division. She was unsure what the process would be for handling the free cards/certificates but set up a call back with me so she could speak with the Legal Department.
I received a call back later this afternoon but was unable to answer. Cleo left me a message and provided the following information:
Any gift card/certificate that was purchased is governed by the Michigan Gift Card Law and must be honored. Failure to honor any purchased gift card/certificate may be in violation of the Gift Card Law.
The free gift cards/certificates are not covered under the Gift Card Law as no money changed hands. However the AG Office is willing to listen to any complaints filed and mediate on behalf of the consumer to reach a resolution. She directed me to this form should a complaint need to be filed.
It seems that GlitterSniffer Cosmetics is well within their rights regarding the free gift cards/certificates, but may see some issues if they are not honoring any purchased gift cards/certificates.
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I wanted to follow up and add people have purchased Giftcards and what will happen if GS is not honoring those at this time? The site is back up. I'm also eager to see this outcome.
ReplyDeleteMegan- My understanding is that the Michigan AG would need to be alerted if purchased gift certificates/cards were not being honored, should anyone who purchased one wish to followup. I am unsure of the penalties if they are not honored.
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