NSW minister for better regulation Matt Kean has announced plans to extend expiry dates on all gift cards sold in NSW by two years.
Under the proposed policy, gift cards sold in the state would hold a mandatory three year expiry period as opposed to the current 12 month period.
The plan will reportedly put up to $60 million a year back in the hands of shoppers, with statistics revealing 8% of recipients do not use the full balance in 12 month period.
Kean said he was "fed up" with businesses which took consumers money but provided nothing in return.
“When consumers hand over their hard-earned money, they rightly expect to get what they pay for.
“Our plan will also stamp out further gouging of consumers through post-purchase fees and charges that reduce the balance on their gift card.
Kean explained that the Australian gift card market is worth up to $2.5 billion per annum, with about 34 million gift cards sold nationally each year.
Kean said this was costing NSW consumers tens of millions of dollars a year after factoring in the 8% that do not use their balance in time.
“We’ve had more than 1300 complaints about gift cards to NSW Fair Trading over the past five years - mostly about expiry periods and undisclosed terms and conditions.
“Receiving a gift card on a special occasion should be a fun experience, but instead it has become an unwelcome headache for shoppers, and it’s just not good enough."
After consultation with key stakeholders, including retailer groups, a bill is being prepared to be put before Parliament.
This will form part of an ongoing suite of ‘Consumers First’ reforms by the state government.