Consumer Alert: AG Jepsen, DCP Advise Consumers with RadioShack Gift Cards to Redeem Unused Balances Immediately

Electronic retailer filed for bankruptcy; consumers should use gift cards, return unwanted merchandise as soon as possible

Attorney General George Jepsen and state Department of Consumer Protection Commissioner Jonathan A. Harris are advising Connecticut residents who may be holding gift cards, certificates or store credits to the electronic retail establishment RadioShack to use their gift cards as soon as possible.  The company recently filed bankruptcy and has announced plans to close stores in Connecticut as early as February 17 and as late as March 31 of this year.

Connecticut consumers seeking to return to RadioShack merchandise purchased prior to the bankruptcy filing should also do so as soon as possible since the company will accept returns until March 7, 2015. RadioShack also intends to accept gift cards only during the first 30 days after its bankruptcy filing. Consumers must use them before the March 7 deadline in order to avoid losing their value. All goods sold during the store closing sales are sold as-is, although consumers have seven days to return goods with latent defects to the point of purchase.

"The rule of thumb with gift cards is to always use them as soon you can after purchase or receipt as a gift because, if a store closes or goes bankrupt, there may be little to no recourse to recover an unspent gift card balance," said Attorney General Jepsen. "If you currently have a RadioShack gift card, you should use it immediately to avoid losing what credit it may contain."

"As the Attorney General advised, use your gift cards immediately,” Commissioner Harris said.  “While Connecticut gift cards don’t expire, businesses can and do fail unexpectedly. In fact, I lost the value on a gift card after a company closed its doors. Also, if you plan to return a Radio Shack item that you recently bought, bring it back immediately to the store where you made the purchase. Finally, inspect any items you’ve bought from Radio Shack to ensure that they work; otherwise you may miss the opportunity to return them if they don’t function as they should.”

The 94-year old electronic retailer filed Chapter 11 bankruptcy petitions on February 7; the company operates roughly 59 stores in Connecticut. The company has received approval to begin immediate store closing liquidation sales.

Assistant Attorney General Brendan Flynn is assisting the Attorney General with this matter.