Consumer lawyer's stark warning over Topshop Arcadia gift cards
3 December 2020, 18:28 | Updated: 3 December 2020, 20:57
Consumer lawyer's warning over Arcadia girftcards
After the news emerged that shoppers with gift cards for Sir Philip Green's collapsed Topshop retail empire have been told they can only use them for half of the value of their order, LBC's Eddie Mair spoke to a consumer law expert.
Dean Dunham, LBC's own consumer lawyer warned that customers should use their gift cards as soon as possible, lest they become worthless.
He told LBC while you "may be able to use it now, trust me, by next week I think you won't be able to."
But all is not lost as Dean and Eddie discussed ways customers could work to get their money back.
It comes after customers have been left unable to use gift cards online due to a technical issue since Arcadia Group plunged into administration on Monday.
Now the firm's administrators Deloitte have confirmed that gift cards can only be used to cover 50% of the price of their purchase.
This would mean that someone with a £20 gift card would have to spend £40 to use it in full.
The group is working to resolve the system issue to allow gift cards to be spent online from next week, but shoppers are able to use them in stores in the meantime.
A spokesman for Deloitte said: "Gift cards remain valid in full across all the Arcadia brands.
"The full value of a gift card can be put towards up to 50% of a purchase."
He added: "Gift cards are currently being accepted in all stores and customers will be able to use them online from early next week."
Arcadia's brands - which include Topshop, Miss Selfridge, Dorothy Perkins and Burton - appointed Deloitte to handle the next steps after the pandemic "severely impacted" sales across its brands.
