Gift card graveyard: Aussies sitting on $1.25 billion in unused vouchers

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Billions of dollars in gift cards remain untapped across the country, according to new research by Finder.

A Finder survey of 1,010 respondents revealed the average Aussie has $181 on gift vouchers languishing in drawers and some will expire before they can be used.

The research found 1 in 3 Australians (33%) have at least one unused gift card, including 21% who have 2 or more.

Taylor Blackburn, personal finance specialist at Finder, said not taking action on unused gift cards doesn't make financial sense.

"Gift cards are great for convenience or when you are out of your depth – like me buying my wife make-up – but they can also be easy to forget about.

"Not using gift cards is like flushing money down the dunny.

"Currently a third of us have put the cash in the bowl and are reaching for the handle," he said.

A staggering 21% of Australians have wasted money on gift cards they did not use.

That's the equivalent of 4.4 million people who have let the dollars on their plastic go to waste.

Almost 1 in 5 (18%) admitted the gift card expired before they got around to using it, while 5% lost the gift card.

Finder's research shows men have $175 each in unredeemed gift cards, while women have $186 on average.

Women (24%) are more likely than men (19%) to let funds expire.

Baby Boomers are the most diligent in spending gift cards – with only 14% having 'lost' money on a gift card, compared to 27% of gen Z.

Blackburn said it's best to take action straight away when you get a gift card.

"If you received a gift card recently, set a reminder in your phone, keep the card someplace where you won't forget about it and make plans to spend it.

"If you don't like the store, shop at the store for someone who does and save the gift.

"If no one you know likes the store, try selling the gift card online for less than its worth – at least you'll come away with some cash," Blackburn said.

Just 1% said they didn't get to spend their gift card because the company it was issued at went out of business.

Have you ever lost money on a gift card?

Yes, the gift card expired18%
Yes, I lost the gift card5%
Yes, the company went out of business1%
No79%
Source: Finder survey of 1,010 respondents, December 2024

Methodology

  • Finder's Consumer Sentiment Tracker is a monthly recurring nationally representative survey of more than 60,000 respondents.
  • Figures in this release are based on 1,010 respondents from December 2024.
  • The Consumer Sentiment Tracker is owned by Finder and operated by Qualtrics.
  • The survey has been running monthly since May 2019.

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