A David’s Bridal customer who returned a dress for gift card credit was stunned after being told, at a later date from another store representative, that she couldn’t use the credit.
The employee’s reasoning highlighted an uneasy truth about gift cards and the nature of how credit works with companies that are failing or have filed for bankruptcy.
Tabitha (@.tabbbitha) posted about her experience in a viral TikTok that’s accrued over 155,000 views as of Wednesday afternoon, leaving other users on the platform equally shocked and wary of receiving gift card credits from returned items.
“So I just drove an hour to David’s Bridal because I have this merchandise credit for $107. Because once upon a time I bought a bridesmaid’s dress and the wedding didn’t happen,” Tabitha explains. “I returned it but they were like, ‘Hey, we’re actually just gonna keep your money, but here’s a credit for the future.'”
Tabitha says she decided to return to David’s Bridal with her gift card in hand to purchase a dress for a Marine Corps ball.
“Well the future’s today. I went to go buy a dress for the marine corp ball, which should’ve been a $5 dress because I have $107 gold right here,” she says. “And they’re like, ‘Oh, we’re actually not accepting those right now because we filed for bankruptcy.'”
This didn’t sit well with Tabitha.
“You being a broke b*tch ain’t my problem,” she says in the clip. “You already have my money. Me being a broke b*tch is my problem—that’s why I’m here because it should’ve been a $5 dress. Figure it out.”
According to Business Insider, David’s Bridal filed for bankruptcy in April 2023 and was acquired by Cion Investment Corp.
According to Debt.org, businesses that file for bankruptcy can only continue to accept gift cards if the court allows it. In a piece titled “What to do with gift cards if a store is out of business?,” the website had this to say: “In some cases, your gift cards won’t be usable at all. This all depends on the store and the reason it is closing. When companies file for bankruptcy, they can only continue accepting gift cards if they ask the bankruptcy court for permission and the court authorizes it.”
Giftcards.com also offers another dismal picture for folks who have either purchased or were given gift card credit at specific retailers that have filed for bankruptcy. “Although gift card holders are most likely out of luck when a store files for bankruptcy, they should still hold onto the plastic just in case,” the site stated.
The outlet also highlighted a messy case involving Radio Shack, which had some $44 million of unused gift card credit out in the ether: “The Wall Street Journal reported approximately $44 Million worth of RadioShack gift cards were outstanding at the time. Radio Shack stopped accepting the cards, but then lawmakers got involved and for a year, consumers had the option to file a claim until eventually the cards were fully defunct.“
In the same piece, customers were urged to keep an eye out for any gift cards they might have for companies that were on the Chapter 11 bankruptcy watchlist and to quickly use up that credit to avoid having to get involved with legal battles while they sit on unused credit.
@.tabbbitha @David’s Bridal ♬ original sound – tab
Commenters who saw Tabitha’s story urged her to cause a stink with the David’s Bridal employee.
As one person penned, “Get loud and demand your money for the original return. make them pull up the original return.”
However, Tabitha said that she couldn’t bring herself to do that. “Every bone in my body wishes I was that person but I just couldn’t. They gave me a number to call so once I talk to them we’ll see what happens,” she replied.
Another viewer wrote that they wouldn’t have let the matter get to a customer service representative over the phone either: “I’d be like ‘no ma’am’ that card is like an IOU you’ve already spent the money so they owe you a product.”
Several other folks thought there was no way the company’s decision to refuse the gift card was legal.
“Is that even legal?!?!?!” one asked.
“If it’s a gift card they can’t refuse it,” another said.
However, Tabitha explained that since another business acquired David’s Bridal, they wouldn’t be accepting the cards. Any previous transactions or financial obligations held by the previous owners of David’s Bridal could be nulled and voided since a new corporation took it over. “And here we are i guess they got bought by a different company and said they can’t legally use it, which is crazy,” she noted in a reply.
Gift cards have earned a reputation as a scam and it’s not difficult to see why. It’s estimated that there is about $21 billion in unused gift card credit companies have gobbled up over the years, effectively getting money for nothing.
The Daily Dot has reached out to Tabitha via TikTok comment and to David’s Bridal via email.