With the new law introduced a few weeks ago, from late 2019 gifts cards expiry period will be extended to a minimum of three years.
Many retailers and the Australian Retailers Association (ARA) are not happy with the extension, but ARA executive director, Russell Zimmerman, says the new federal legislation will remove inconsistencies which were caused when NSW acted alone on similar legislation at the start of this year.
“Although the ARA was not impressed with the three-year extension, we called for an 18-month transitional period for retailers to get rid of old stock,” he says.
“Instead we were left with a 12-month transitional period, placing more strain on retailers already operating in an unstable environment. We will continue to lobby for exemptions to the new law to ensure the impacts on retailers are limited.”
Prezzee founder and MD, Claire Morris, believes the new law is actually a good thing for the industry. “It gives more flexibility to consumers so this is definitely a good thing,” she explains.
“We are delighted that every eGift Card we sell on our platform has a minimum of three years. We also have a unique product called the Prezzee Swap Card which allows the recipient to choose their own retailer gift card. Not only does this give customers more choice (we have over 70 retailer gift cards on the platform), it also has its own three expiry so a customer has three years to exchange and then another three years with the retailer they swap for.”
In December 2015, Prezzee launched Australia’s first gift card app, which allows customers to buy, send, store and redeem gift cards all via their mobile phone so you will never miss an opportunity to redeem a gift card again.
“The reason Prezzee was started was to give more flexibility and personalisation to customers. By always having your eGift Card on your mobile phone you will have a much higher chance of redeeming it.”
Indeed, eGift Cards can’t be lost. They are stored on your phone and even if you lose your phone, the cards are securely backed up.
“We expect to see an increase in gift card usage―having a longer expiry date means shoppers have more time to make their purchase.”
