Originally Posted by
billcard
I purchased a Starbucks gift card on Raise. I checked the balance when I got it and everything looked good. I transferred the balance to my registered Starbucks card to continue using the rewards program. The seller then reported it stolen.
Starbucks shut down my account, which was over 5 years old and zeroed my balance without contacting me (transferred+pre-existing balance). Hold times for customer service exceeded an hour and a half. There is no way to talk to the fraud department, customer service told me they would mail anything in excess of the fraudulent gift card balance to me in 30 days. They never sent it, but I was able to dispute my last load through Chase.
There was no hold time when I called Raise. They credited back the money I had paid for the gift card and apologized profusely. The agent specifically said they value my business and hoped that I would continue to do business with them. (I know customer service agents are all supposed to do this, but Starbucks didn't seem to care and this guy sounded genuinely distressed.)
This was in July of last year. I have continued to do business with Raise with no issues, but have no intention of returning to Starbucks.
Just had this happen - woke up this morning to a zeroed out Starbucks card active for 5+ years as well. Called in, waited 30 minutes on hold (guess I was lucky), and was told the same thing above.
I had bought a card from raise.com a couple weeks ago. I get Starbucks' POV here - except the wholesale cancellation of the entire card w/o notice, call or email (they email 2x's/day for everything else).
The first line for SBucks said nothing can be done except send me a new Gold card in the mail with a zero balance. I said please send, but get me up a notch on the CSR chain please - she said OK, but they likely wouldn't be able to do anything.
I did reason with the next person, and I think that helped resolution - I said it was fair to deduct the raise.com portion, but felt that Starbucks was always a consumer-friendly co, and this just felt "cold" - he agreed, and we figured out the correct balance that he would credit to my new card.
I called Raise right after, in 3 rings someone picked up, in 5 minutes they profusely apologized and submitted a full refund to my CC and couldn't be more pleasant and wanting to earn more business.
I'd just be careful with SBucks - I asked the Raise.com CSR about other co's she'd experienced like this - she said mainly seems SBucks aroudn holidays and in the summer cracks down like this... sometimes Dunkin.