Anyone ever use an ebay gift card?

[somany]

Got one for my birthday and went to the ebay help section to figure out how to use it.  In the FAQ section, it says

"Is a PayPal account required to redeem an eBay gift card?"

And the answer is:

"Yes. If you do not have a PayPal account, you must open one to redeem your gift card. You can create a PayPal account at any time, even after you've won an item on eBay.

To use an eBay gift card, you are also required to link a bank account or credit card to your PayPal account, or apply and get approved for an eBay MasterCard, a PayPal Plus Credit Card, or PayPal Buyer Credit."

I think ebay missed the boat by requiring a paypal account to use it.  Some people don't want to set up a paypal account, and it seems to me gift cards could have been a way to get those customers to still be able to shop on ebay.  My sister does not want to provide her banking or credit card info so won't set up a paypal account, but she shops on Amazon all the time with a gift card. 

[Deleted]

My sister doesn't want a PP account either. She always checks out on eBay as Guest with a CC. She wouldn't change her mind if she received a card like that; it would be worthless to her. I agree, it's kind of crazy for them to make it so complicated.

[Deleted]

That is ridiculous and almost seems like it shouldn't be legal, although you probably agree to all that when you purchase the gift card.

[Deleted]

I heard a story on the radio the other day about ebay gift cards, I meant to post. The topic was worst customer service. The dj had purchased the gift card from some store and was going to use it for an auction, IIRC. The card wouldn't work, so he went to the store where he purchased it from. They couldn't help him, so he called ebay.

One rep said it was the store's fault. Another rep said it was his mobile. He was on a PC. Another rep said it was his PC. Another one flat out told him he couldn't help him because the issue wasn't on their end. He finally got through to a helpful US rep, who fixed the issue. (Ebay glitch).

I was listening to this story while I was packaging up some sales. He was incredibly frustrated about the whole thing, and rightfully so. He stated he'll never purchase on ebay again. Great job, ebay! SMH

[denise15601]

I agree with the above story. My daughter got me a card about 8 years ago and I still have it. Same story here. Doesn't work. eBay said to take it to store, store said it is eBay's fault.
So it sits here, somewhere....

[Deleted]

That must be why they pulled them from retail stores last year. Retailers were probably complaining about angry customers coming back to the store with them.

They still have them online though.