The first business day after Christmas will be a busy one.
Not all returns are equal. If the buyer paid full price but now the item is on sale the return will not be worth as much as the buyer paid. An increasing number of stores charge a restocking fee that can range up to 15 percent. Here is some information from the
National Retail Federation.
KRON TV says:
During the holidays some stores extend the days you have to make a return.
At Best Buy, you have until Jan. 24, 2006 to return items bought between Nov. 1 and Dec. 24 of this year. But there are some exceptions. Monitors, printers, camcorders, projectors, radar detectors and digital cameras must be returned before Jan. 8, 2006.
Target allows returns for 90 days if you have a receipt. Without one, you can make an exchange in the same department as the original item. And if you paid with a credit or gift card, they'll look it up for you with the computer tracking system.
Macy's also has a lenient policy year-round: 180 days from the purchase date. But make sure you still have the tags.
Remember that many stores have restocking fees on certain electronic items. Most charge 15 percent.
Also, save the original packing. Most stores won't allow returns without it.
Gift Card Time
After Christmas, retailers are counting on a second shopping rush as millions of people cash in their gift cards. And retailers have come to know that gift card recipients often spend additional money with the card.
The average consumer will spend $88.03 on gift cards in the 2005 holiday season, 15.6 percent of their holiday gift budget, according to the National Retail Federation. Christmas gift card purchases accounted for more than $17 billion in sales in 2004. That number is expected to be $18.48 billion for the 2005 holiday season.
Bankrate.com surveys gift card information every year:
For the second straight year, Bankrate.com has surveyed the top 20 leading retailers -- several of which issue cards under more than one store name -- and top four credit-card issuers to examine the fees, expiration dates and dormancy policies associated with gift-card purchases. A total of 34 cards were examined.
Among the findings of this year's survey:
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The offerings from the retail stores were generally more consumer friendly than those of the credit card issuers. Only four retail stores (Costco, Albertson's, Macy's and Bloomingdale's) place expiration dates on their gift cards. Those expiration dates range from two to five years. All four cards backed by the major credit card issuers -- American Express, Visa, MasterCard and Discover -- have expiration dates, and that can arrive as quickly as six months.
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Five out of the 34 gift cards listed in our survey assess fees if you don't activate within 12 to 24 months. These issuers expect you to use the card or you will lose a percentage of your money every month.
Bankrate also found:
The buyer can be hit with purchase fees, activation fees and shipping fees, while the user can be whacked again with inactivity fees or redemption fees. Be careful or your $50 dollar gift card may not be worth $50 for very long.
CNN Money has some suggestions:
Some states, like California, Massachusetts, Washington and New Hampshire, have passed laws eliminating gift card expiration dates. For details on the gift-card laws in your state, contact your state's attorney general.
All four cards backed by the major credit card issuers -- American Express, Visa, MasterCard and Discover -- have expiration dates. If you still have a balance after the expiration you may be able to get a replacement card. But the fee for doing so can be as high as $10, according to Bankrate.com.
If your gift card was way off-mark, say a gift certificate from a toy store when you don't have any children, you're not going to have much luck cashing in that card.
There are Web sites where you can sell your gift card or buy someone else's gift card, but these sites don't guarantee that your purchase will be free and clear of fees and other conditions.
Instead, use your gift card to buy something you can donate to charity. This way you'll be able to get a tax deduction.
The 2006 Statistical Abstract
I just love this publication. There are so many story ideas embedded in it.
Here are some of the more interesting state-by-state rankings:
Off (But Not Really) for the Holidays
Oh sure, maybe you are going to take a little time off during the holidays, but nearly half of all working people say they are not "completely" off the job. USA Today reported:
Almost half of the workers surveyed -- 49 percent -- plan to work during their days off this holiday season, according to Raindance Communications, a provider of multimedia conferencing services. Additionally, 39 percent say they plan to work from home or work remotely during the holidays.
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Editor's Note: Al's Morning Meeting is a compendium of ideas, edited story excerpts and other materials from a variety of Web sites, as well as original concepts and analysis. When the information comes directly from another source, it will be attributed and a link will be provided whenever possible.
