Gift Card already redeemed Issue

I don’t understand is how Apple is able to tell you the Apple ID that did redeem it or at least they tell you that , but even if you show proof of purchase with the gift card and the receipt and tell them that it’s suppose to be for this Apple ID instead. Why they can’t refund the amount from the Apple ID that it was redeemed and transfer it to the correct Apple ID.

Because it’s plain BS if people can’t even buy gift cards now and give them as “gifts” if they have the chance of being used with out you knowing.

Their has to be some way that Apple isn’t telling us to be able to get our purchase to the right owner. It’s clear as simple fraud and stealing by the other Apple ID honestly I’m sure one day this will turn into a huge lawsuit against Apple or someone because it’s just against the law to steal period

I have bought 5x$100 iTunes gift card from target and when I tried to redeem them the message “already redeemed” appeared on all 5 cards. when I took it back to target they said it’s not their responsibility and I should take it up with Apple. I did speak with three different technicians at apple and they said there is nothing they can do for me. I just can’t believe big companies like apple and target would sell something like this to their customers. I would warn all consumers (or anybody who is reading this) not to purchase apple gift cards. It is truly a gamble to buy them.

Same thing happened to me yesterday when I bought an Apple Card worth $50 dollars.Called apple support system and they said they are not held liable for it.Went back to the store where I bought the card( I did not get a refund) to complain, and they said I am a seven person to complain about it within a week, I told them they need to pull out all those apple gift card from the store to prevent it from happening again.I am tired of these big corporations not standing behind their product and getting away with it.

[Edited by Moderator]

This just happened to me as well. I bought 2x $100 Apple gift cards from Target and they were already redeemed. I contacted Apple Support and they said they could do nothing and that I should contact Target. Seeing as this is an ongoing issue, I feel like Apple isn’t bothering to even do anything against the people that are stealing from people who are using Apple’s products.

Original post is from November 2020, it’s not April 2021. Nothing has been done to fix this problem as I now have 5 of the $50 gcs and they all say they have already been redeemed. Apple says maybe I already redeemed them. If I take the strip off the back of the packaging an hour after I purchase it to redeem it, how could I have possible already redeemed it. I have been an apple user for many years. My husband has always stuck to Samsung. I will no longer be supporting apple, I won’t be upgrading my iPad, iPod, iPhones or ianything. Life is hard enough especially now to be robbed by a supposedly reputable company. That they won’t do anything, just makes me so angry. But then again, they got there money from all of us, why should they care.

1. I have had a similar issue in Canada. I bought a $50 card at a co-op store and my receipt showed it was approved / activated. The card was properly sealed in the enveloped with no signs of tampering. I opened the package and removed the card with the redemption code. I scanned it and it said the code was not valid. I called Apple and spoke to support. I sent them pictures of the package including the bar code, the receipt which reflected the bar code and the redemption card. They told me the card was activated, based on the bar code, but that the redemption code did not come from the sealed package and was an invalid $25 card. I returned to the store and was told that they could not help as they did correctly activate the card. They provided me with a contact number for the company who provided the card. I contacted them and, based on the bar code number, they confirmed it was activated and even gave me the date and time. However, they could not speak to redemption as they do not get that information from Apple. I believe Apple should be able to associate the bar code to a redemption code and offer some insight into my problem. The card I purchased does not show as “redeemed” but simply that it is not valid. That’s my rant. I’m confident that I am out $50 and confident that my gift card days are done. At least I did not gift this card to someone….

I so agree on this and I thought of it too. They kept telling me it’s target responsible because they sold it to me which is BS. Apple the one that should be responsible and I can see that it happens to regularly to everyone.

Just finished a chat with support about this very same issue.

Bought a gift card on Saturday morning from Albertsons. Husband tried to redeem the code today but was given the message that the code was already used. We're going to try to go back to the store to see if anything can be done, but we both have the feeling that we're just going to waste our time with this, and that i'm out $50 on a gift that was supposed to be for my Husband.

I thought I was the only one. I also went to target Today and bought a $50 dollar apple gift card and I scanned it when I got back home , telling me it’s already been redeemed and I can’t figure out what to do. All I want is a refund or the $50 I rightfully deserve to my apple store account

That's exactly what I went through earlier today. It was a back-and-forth freak show with Apple and Target. Saying that the other is reliable for the refund that neither of them can give me my $50 that I spent on the card. I looked up online that lawsuits were filed against Apple for not being able to help people in situations like this.

Such a disappointment to see so many people with the same complaint/frustration. It is clearly a problem that apple is fully aware of, yet intentionally chooses not to address. Meanwhile...Apple and Target intentionally continue to sell gift cards and bury their heads in the sand. Is this a legal way to steal from the very people who have made these two corporations successful? Such a disgraceful way to to business.

I just bought a gift card for $25 and I scan it and it says already been use or redeem and my balance is still the same and five dollars and something what do I do when this happens I refreshed my screen or account and it still says the same

This just happened to me today. I bought a $100 gift card and two $50 gift cards from Walmart. The two $50 gift cards were already activated. And the $100 gift card worked OK. Total ******** that I’m out $100. I agree with the other posters that I give these as gifts around Christmas time. Pretty sucky to give a gift that’s already been spent.

This just happened to me too. I had my high school graduation party a few weeks ago, and today I was going through all my presents and went to redeem my $50 Apple gift card, and it said redeemed. I tried multiple times and just got off the phone with Apple. They were very helpful, don’t get me wrong, but they didn’t fix my problem at all. They basically told me to go tell the person who gifted it to me to go to the store where they got it and talk with them. That’s such an awkward situation to put my neighbors in. Also, not to mention that it is unfair to me. They put me on the line with a supervisor, and I feel like they can 100% see it wasn’t me who redeemed it, and probably wasn’t redeemed anywhere near me either. Apple is literally one of the biggest companies in the world and the fact that they can’t refund cards that have literally been stolen is beyond me. And after reading all of these replies with their experiences at the stores where they purchased the cards, it seems I am out $50 on a completely new and sealed gift card.

Hello Nicolas Rizo1,

Thank you for using Apple Support Communities!

Based on what you mentioned, you have a gift card that is not usable. Take a moment to review: If you can't redeem your Apple Gift Card or App Store & iTunes Gift Card.

If you still have trouble, you may be able to get help where you are for this concern when you Contact Apple for support and service.

Best wishes!