Gift Card Scam!

[UpsetCust]

 I had a $40 gift card that I got for my bday in January. On 3/18 at 12:00pm I called the # on the back of the card to confirm the balance. 20 mins later I was at the store (brand new recently opened) making a purchase and the Sephora employee swiped the card at 12:22pm and said there is $0 balance. I was surprised, thought maybe I grabbed the wrong gc so I made the purchase with a credit card at 12:26 and left the store. 

Something just didn’t seem right and while I was still in the Sephora parking lot, I called customer service. The only thing they were able to tell me is that the card was used on 3/8 at 12:22pm for the entire amount of $40. 

I immediately went back to the store and the store manager pretty much just brushed me off in a nice way saying there’s nothing she can do. I was flabbergasted! I walked into the store with $40 and left without it! I called several times after that and spoke to 2 people and they just brushed me off like it was nothing! 

What a disappointment! This is for sure either an internal scam or their server has been compromised! There is no way that the entire amount was swiped online the second the gc was swiped at the store. Also, the customer service should be able to tell me what was ordered and where it was shipped. The back of the card wasn’t scratched so this is not a third party scam.

I just want Sephora to know that between my teen and myself we spend quite a bit at Sephora and this experience will keep me away from Sephora. In addition, Sephora was #1 when it comes to teen bday gifts, and we all know teens spend much more than the gift cards. So congratulations Sephora, you lost quite a bit of business, for what.. $40!?! Im not going to go broke, but it’s the principal. 

The way I was brushed off is unacceptable! I will file a police report about your new store, file a complaint to the BBB, let all my friends know on social media and maybe even involve my neighbor who is a news anchor on a local tv channel. 

[HappilyBre]

m so upset! I am a valued Sephora customer and spend thousands of dollars there. Something is going on internally with the gift cards!!! My friend gave me $100 gift card for my birthday a month ago. I went to use it today and to my shock it said balance was $0! I called Sephora and the gift card department said it was used on May 12 and 13 online. I had the physical gift card in my hand and had just scratched off the number and pin. I told her that was not my purchase and she sent me to customer support who told me to file a police report and I was out of luck. I asked if she could tell me anything about where the purchase went as in city/state and she said no due to privacy! My friend spent $100 and you just tell me I am out of luck! So whoever the criminal was who used my $100 to purchase online gets to just sit back and enjoy free product. To my surprise when I searched this topic this is happening frequently!!!!! Sephora this is a problem! I am going to share this on my social media to begin spreading awareness. I am going to advise my friend to try and reverse the charge with her bank. This is horrifically unfair and as a big purchaser at Sephora I am so sad I was told to go away.

[jennnrx]

I also received a gift card for my birthday about a month ago(may 2nd) and was told that the entire balance was used on may 13th. Sephora truly is so unreliable with this issue