Plainville Christmas shopper warns of ‘gift card draining'

If you’re looking for a last-minute gift, what’s easier than a gift card?

But buyer beware.

There’s a "Grinch-y" gift card scam that cost consumers $228 million last year alone, according to the FTC.

And a Plainville man is feeling that frustration right now.

“It’s terrible that people are stooping to this, you know, to this level, any time of the year,” said Ron Morrissey.

Morrissey and his wife mailed two Vanilla Visa gift cards to a loved one earlier this month, one for Christmas and another for his birthday.

But while watching NBC CT earlier this week, Morrissey became worried.

“We were watching the Today Show,” he said. “They were talking about the gift card scams.”

‘Gift card draining’ is a scam NBC CT Responds notified you about last holiday season.

And this week, NBC News senior consumer investigative correspondent Vicky Ngyuen warned about yet again after her coworker lost thousands of dollars when she realized the gift cards she gifted no longer had cash on them.

Police say scammers steal the cards, copy the card number and security code, and carefully reseal it.

So when you load money on it, the scammer drains it.

“We had no idea that it was tampered with. It was completely sealed when we purchased it,” said Morrissey.

When he reached out to his family member in Oklahoma, Morrissey found out one gift card for $160 had already been spent by someone in California.

“We were very upset about that. He just bought a new house and he’s kind of struggling himself and it was a substantial amount of money,” he said.

CVS, where Morrissey bought the gift cards, sent a statement.

“We’re working with our gift card vendor to investigate the issue and will work with the customer directly on a resolution.”

The store says gift card scams are a challenge to all retailers and that CVS asks its employees to check racks daily for tampered cards.

“You hear about it on the national news, but you don’t think it’s going to happen locally. It is happening locally and it’s right here in Plainville,” said Morrissey.

A spokesperson from Vanilla Gift says it doesn’t comment on individual cases, but reviews every complaint on a case-by-case basis to devise a solution.

Since NBC CT Responds reached out to Vanilla Gift, Morrissey says the company is issuing his loved one another $160 gift card.

We asked him if he’d buy gift cards moving forward.

“No no. I’ll be writing checks and sending checks. This is it for gift cards for me,” he said.

To reduce your risk, you can hand cash or a check to someone in person or send a virtual gift card online.

Some police say it’s nearly impossible to know which physical gift cards have been compromised.

But if you still do go that route, buy it with a credit card and look for a gift card that’s closer to the register or better yet behind the counter.

And if you get a gift card, spend it quickly.

Vanilla Gift sent NBC Responds these tips for consumers to “reduce the risk of fraud and enable us to promptly assist in the unlikely event it occurs":

• Carefully inspect the card packaging before purchase for any potential sign of tampering, no matter how small.
• When purchasing a gift card, retain or take a photo of the receipt. If you give the card away as a gift, include the receipt or photo of the receipt as well.
• If you receive a card as a gift or purchase one for your own use, open the package immediately and inspect the card. If any part of the card number, expiration date or security code is missing or appears altered, immediately contact the customer care number on the back of your card.
• When reporting an issue, promptly provide all requested information to ensure customer care can determine what occurred and resolve the problem as quickly as possible.
• To check your card balance and review transaction history, verify you are using the website URL printed on your card. If you see a transaction you don’t recognize, contact customer care immediately.
• Vanilla Gift urges customers who believe they are a victim of fraud to call the phone number on the back of their card immediately.

CVS added these tips for consumers:

• Inspect the barcode on the gift card before you buy it. If you can peel it off, it’s a fake.
• Ensure the barcode printed on the gift card matches the bar code printed on the gift card packaging.
• When the gift card barcode is scanned by the cashier, the type of gift card displayed on the cash register should match the card itself. If it doesn’t, cancel the transaction.
• If you notice anything suspicious about a gift card, notify the store manager immediately.
• Keep your receipt. This will help you file a police report if you think you’ve purchased a fraudulent gift card.