Chew

By signing up for DirecTV in November, I got a $100 Visa Gift Card. I want to use it on Amazon for something over that amount. According to the FAQ, you cannot use a Gift Card and a credit card on the same purchase.

So, how can I use the card on Amazon?

Can I buy a Amazon gift card with the Visa card? I don't see a yes or no to that on their site.

The other option might be to buy a Amazon gift card prior to purchase for [Total purchase price amount of the item I want - $100]. Apply it to my account, add the item to my cart and then add the Visa Card.

Anyone have any advice on how to properly use my Visa Gift Card?

Obi-Wanma

First, if the Visa gift card doesn't have your name on it, to use the card with any online merchant, you have to activate the gift card with your real name and address. You should be able to do that on a website that should be listed on the card. If it does have your name on it, than you should be able to skip this step.

You will not be able to buy anything with the VISA gift card that is over the amount of the card, unless you have some other credit on your account already that is paying part of the purchase. Amazon will treat the gift card just like a credit card, and if you try to charge more than what's on it, it will be rejected.

There's no reason you shouldn't be able to buy an Amazon gift card with the VISA gift card though, Amazon doesn't know that it's a gift card when you make the purchase.

Chew

I just tried that: Amazon didn't reject the payment method, but Visa did decline the purchase.

Groucho

I just went through this with a $50 Visa gift card. Coincidentally, to buy Borderlands (featured as your avatar). Since you cannot use multiple forms of purchase, I waited until I had a $10 credit at Amazon from another purchase, and bought the game. I still have a few bucks left over. Not sure what to do with them, will probably let them rot.

I hate, HATE, credit card "gift" cards.

Jay G.

I don't see any reason why not; to Amazon it's no different than if you bought an Amazon gift card with a regular Visa.

In fact, when I worked as a cashier at Target, I would do basically the same thing for people wanting to pay with two credit cards; I'd suspend the transaction, charge them for a Target giftcard for the amount to go on one credit card, then resume original the transaction, use the giftcard, and have them pay the balance with the other card.

Chew

Exactly right, there's sooo many annoying restrictions with them.

Chew

See 2 posts above yours.

Obi-Wanma

That's weird, Visa shouldn't decline the purchase unless it's more than what's on the card, Visa doesn't know what you're buying, other than that it's something from Amazon.

Guess you could try it the other way around, like you said (purchasing a card in the amount that it is over $100 with your credit card).

Jay G.

Do you follow the Amazon MP3 Deal of the Day thread?
http://forum.dvdtalk.com/music-talk/...-new-post.html

You could probably buy one or two mp3 albums with that credit.

Jay G.

Did Visa say why? Did you call up and ask?

That alternative would be to buy an Amazon gift card with a regular credit card for the balance, then make your purchase using the Visa Gift Card and the Amazon gift card.

Obi-Wanma

Also, going back to the first part of my first reply, it can't hurt to check with the gift card issuer if there's something that you need to activiate before you can use it for an online purchase.

Groucho

Thanks for being smarter than me. I routinely buy albums based on that thread, and this never occurred to me.

Chew

I went to the myprepaid.info site where I registered the card (which does have my name on it) and that's where I saw the Amazon purchase was declined.

I'm just remembering now though: there was also a $1 Amazon authorization on the card. I'll bet it was declined because of that $1 hold and I really only had a balance of $99?

Chew

Amazon lost out on my purchase today because of this (not that it's their fault). Newegg swooped in during this time with a 10% off coupon email and I just bought what I wanted there instead.

I might just use the Visa card for gas or something.

Thanks for all the replies.

Everythingn

be good to yourself instead

Sean O'Hara

These cards are rip-offs -- they're basically interest free loans to the credit card companies (or worse, they charge inactivity fees, which make them negative-interest loans), so the CC companies want to make it as difficult as possible for you to use all the money.

arminius

Hey, thst's a really good idea. Easy to use up the card.

Jay G.

I really don't think that the credit card companies want to make it difficult , it's in their best interest to make it as easy as possibly, so more people buy/use them.

However, they're trying to implement a gift card system on top of the existing credit card system, which has all sorts of security requirements and checks due to the large amount of credit card fraud. So you need to do things like register your name/address to the card (since credit cards use name & address info for verification). And there's no way for a retailer to check a balance on these cards (since this was never implemented for credit cards). And the pre-authorizations that online retailers do for credit cards can mess up the gift card balance temporarily. In short, this implementation is problematic as best.