HMV UK PLC gift vouchers

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Posted: Wed Jan 16, 2013 4:22 pm

Millions of pounds of HMV gift cards and vouchers have been declared worthless by the collapsed music and movies retailer HMV.

I have a £10 gift card: If I walked into a HMV store picked up a £9.99 CD, took it to a checkout, put the gift card on the counter, said "keep the change" then walked out with the CD doyerthink I could be prosecuted for shoplifting ?

Posted: Wed Jan 16, 2013 4:32 pm

Who's going to bring charges?

My advice. Take the CD down to Blockbusters and exchange it for a £15.99 DVD.

Posted: Wed Jan 16, 2013 4:49 pm

My advice would be to get down there today and use it in part payment or whatever.

If they are still open and taking sales they have to honour it, and as CP says 'who's going to bring charges?

Somebody paid £10 cash for your gift card that went into HMV's coffers at the time.
If they can't keep afloat, tough, that isn't your concern Wink

Posted: Wed Jan 16, 2013 5:01 pm

Captain Pugwash wrote:

My advice. Take the CD down to Blockbusters and exchange it for a £15.99 DVD.

Breaking news wrote:

DVD and video game rental chain Blockbuster UK has collapsed into administration, putting more than 4,000 jobs at risk.

........................................... L I N K

Posted: Wed Jan 16, 2013 5:17 pm

We live in interesting times.

HMV and Blockbusters put a lot of independents out of business when they came along. Now the internet is doing the same for them.

I wonder if anyone will be crying for Amazon and iTunes, when it's possible to teleport goods direct from factory, to your home, or music into your brain?

Posted: Wed Jan 16, 2013 5:54 pm

spot wrote:

If I walked into a HMV store picked up a £9.99 CD, took it to a checkout, put the gift card on the counter, said "keep the change" then walked out with the CD doyerthink I could be prosecuted for shoplifting ?

According to Martin Lewis' site Money saving expert, Yes, you could be prosecuted.

Q. Is it against the law to just walk out with goods to the value of my gift vouchers?
A. We're surprised how many have asked us this, but yes, it is theft, a criminal offence and you can be arrested.

Police called to Oxford HMV gift card row

Posted: Wed Jan 16, 2013 6:02 pm

Jessops as well, they are falling fast this month. Only place I could get a decent clone battery for my camera.

Posted: Wed Jan 16, 2013 6:33 pm

We are seeing a return of the independents.
Small retailers that have grasped the internet in order to hit their limited market are doing reasonably well.

They also need a base to work from which are usually on small industrial estates.
If the councils and landlords use their loaf and entice businesses back,we could see our high streets back to normal instead of towns full of charity shops, cash for clothes shops and zombies. Evil or Very Mad

Posted: Wed Jan 16, 2013 6:58 pm

I thought this too, coz surely HMV or any other company not honoring gift cards etc are also stealing?

my 2p

Posted: Wed Jan 16, 2013 7:27 pm

^^ A gift voucher is a debt owed by the company. But once they're in administration, they don't have to honour any debts.
The whole point of administration is to put the company's creditors on hold so that a re-organisation can take place and hopefully save the business. If that doesn't work out, the next step is receivership.

Posted: Wed Jan 16, 2013 7:29 pm

^^ Ah i see, makes sense now, cheers.

Posted: Wed Jan 16, 2013 8:50 pm

And the next (Likely) step after that is insolvency and liquidation. Since the company will go insolvent mainly as a result of an inability to meet its debts as they fall due, the gift vouchers (effectively a credit note of sorts) will of course be worthless. You could in theory stand in line with the other creditors but since they will be owed millions and you will be owed ten quid, you'd be wasting your time.

Blockbuster as well, what will they do with all the empty shops? Also, beware of lad formats claiming to be from abandoned town centres and deserted shopping arcardes. It's coming, I tell you.

Posted: Wed Jan 16, 2013 9:07 pm

Your only hope would be for a competitor to buy them out and agree to honor the gift cards. This is what usually happens in the airline industry with unused tickets issued by a company that goes belly up. But this is very unlikely in this case since the entire movie/DVD rental industry is on life support.

Baiting Guru Joined: 03 Mar 2006 Posts: 7103 Location: Yes

All of the above makes one wonder why we go to such pains to fund the gift card industry. The U.S. had to pass some laws fairly recently which forbade some of the more egregious acts by companies, such as putting quick expiration dates or even charging the cardholder an "inactivity" fee. For the latter, in exchange for your interest free loan to the company, it would charge YOU, the creditor, a fee. The lawyer who thought that one up was brilliant!

Anyway, for some reason we find cash distasteful even though, at worst, it only loses relative value as measured against inflation. But find a $5 bill from 1933 and you can still get $5 worth of goods (unless and until the U.S. government goes broke -- but I see Slightly reaching for his truncheon...). I am guilty myself of this practice and I don't really see why getting a gift card indicates any greater degree of thought or consideration than cold, hard cash.

Posted: Wed Jan 16, 2013 10:06 pm

^ it stops you spending it on food or bills, which forces you to do something enjoyable with it; even if you are hungry and the electricity's off.

Put like that, not so great. I'd rather have a tipped load of firewood or a bag of coal. Or a ham. Or something.

Posted: Wed Jan 16, 2013 11:23 pm

I am guilty of buying Gift Cards as it is so much easier than thinking of something to buy. Plus we have been 'trained' to believe that a gift of cash is impersonal.

For the real darlings in my life I give them cards that are for the Grocery store. Although that may seem odd, I have experienced first hand what it is like to blow all of my money on Booze and other fun stuff and not have enough money to eat properly. Not that my Angels would do such a thing!

Looking through my recent presents, I have a card for the Liquor store, Sears, Home Depot, Starbucks and an Irish Pub. Not a bad haul in my books....

By the way I do accept cash as well.

Baiting Guru Joined: 31 Jan 2007 Posts: 12237

oscarpiles wrote:

I... ... accept cash

That is what I tell anyone that asks me what I want for my birthday, Christmas et al. I have everything I need in life, and more. I end up giving any money received to the local food shelf and shelter. I'm no saint, but it's ridiculous how people blow money on useless stuff.

With all that said, my favorite gift this Christmas was an amaryllis bulb. It's currently starting to bloom in a South facing window.

Posted: Mon Jan 21, 2013 1:12 pm

Good news, Spot!!

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-21118711

Get in there quick, before they change their minds and stop taking them again!!