Gift card gift? Negative balance

[biosurfer1]

I got a Mastercard gift card a while back somehow (usually get Visa) and I use them for gas purchases since all the gas station around here charge extra to use a credit card, but if you use visa/mastercard gift cards as a debit card you get the cheaper price, and I can buy them with my credit card so I get the points.

Anyways in the past, when the card reaches its limit, the pump simply shuts down, however I used this Mastercard a couple times and was wondering how I got 3 fill ups out of it since it is a $100 card so I checked the balance online and saw this:



Negative balance? I checked my receipts and sure enough, I was able to purchase $148.17 in gas with the card. Glitch in the system? The card isn't registered to me so I'm not sure what the deal is.

[Por_sha911]

Looks like a glitch.

Its times like these when we find out what or morals are. Do I contact them and pay what I owe or am I tempted to cut up the card and walk away?

[Rick Lee]

Originally Posted by Por_sha911

Looks like a glitch.

Its times like these when we find out what or morals are. Do I contact them and pay what I owe or am I tempted to cut up the card and walk away?

Those prepaid cards come from a pool of funds and most people don't use every penny on the card (that's what the issuer is betting on). So you're really using the funds from someone else's discarded card that had something left on it. I don't think you're screwing the bank at all. They expect most people to throw the card away with a few dollars left on it. Now multiply that by a few million cards issued every day.

[biosurfer1]

I will say these cards are a pain in the butt to clear out if there is less than $5 on them. Can't use them as debit cards since it does an pending charge of $5 (had to call to figure that one out), can't use them as credit cards unless the total is exactly what's left on the card, and then you have to do separate transactions if the balance is leftover and you have to know the exact balance of the card for the first transaction.

I can see why people throw them out with small amounts left on them.

Oh and Por_sha, I called the bank to find out if I really had a $200 card and explained what happened and I was told it must be a mistake or pending charge that didnt reverse (its not) because the card will not authorize more than loaded....so I dropped it.

[Baz]

Whenever I have been given gift cards I just used them at the local grocery store until the gifted amount runs out. Even if there's only $2.00 left - the debit machine will take that off the total due and then I just pay the balance - with cash usually.