Is Cardpool Legit? How Does Cardpool Work?
Gift card exchange services buy used and unwanted gift cards from one customer and sell those gift cards to someone else at a discounted price.
The seller of the gift card gets up to 92% cash back on the balance left on the gift card. Someone else can come along and purchase that same gift card for a few dollars less than its actual value — up to 35% on some cards — and save money on gifts or regular purchases. The discounts vary by the popularity of the business.
You buy the gift cards directly from one business rather than going to an auction site and buying from a random person.
Cardpool verifies the authenticity of each card before offering them for sale, which means they do sometimes decline cards that people try to sell them. According to Cardpool reviews online, this has been a problem for some sellers.
From Cardpool’s standpoint, this method allows them to provide security for all, so that they can claim that each card is guaranteed authentic, worth the balance you paid for, and without expiration date.
Image Source: Cardpool Reviews
Reasons Cardpool’s Program Is Great Cardpool Reviews
Gift card exchanges serve several purposes:
- You can turn a gift card someone gave you that you never intend to use into cold hard cash
- Swap an unwanted gift card with one on the Cardpool website from a store you love
- Save money on monthly restaurant outings
- Get deals on stops to your favorite stores
- Make needed purchases like home repair and buying gas for your vehicle less painful by buying gift cards at a discount(according to Cardpool reviews online, people have saved big on entire home repairs)
- Buy gift cards for loved ones at a cheaper price
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Who Is Cardpool? Cardpool Reviews
Cardpool was founded in 2009 by two friends, Anson Tsai and Tim Wong who, having a bunch of gift cards laying around, decided it made sense to sell them to people who may want them. In 2011, they were acquired by the well-established gift card distributor, Blackhawk Network, (known as NASDAQ: HAWK). They now partner with major companies to buy gift cards directly from them and help other companies manage their gift card services. Cardpool has also created a nonprofit program with Compassion International to help people use money from their unwanted gift cards to donate to people in need.
What they offer:
- A 100-day money back guarantee for any reason (up to $1,000)
- Free shipping
- Physical or electronic shipment within 1 business day (even detractors among Cardpool reviews normally say their cards arrive on time)
- Physical delivery within 3 – 7 business days
- A pre-paid shipping label, emailed to you, for use on any envelope when you sell them a physical gift card
- Electronic selling options by giving Cardpool the number and pin on the back of the card
Cardpool is not the only gift card exchange service. They differ from their competitors by offering a special package of rates, money back guarantees, and requirements.
You may want to pick and choose between different gift card exchange companies to determine which one most fits your needs and which one is offering the best rate on a given card at a specific time. Also, make sure to read Cardpool reviews from consumers online and compare with reviews from other gift card exchange services before buying or selling.
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All About The Gift Cards
There is one thing we all want to know: what kinds of gift cards can you get? Who cares about Cardpool reviews or facts and dates if they don’t carry cards from stores you care about?
They buy and sell gift cards from all kinds of companies, such as:
- Walmart
- Target
- Starbucks
- Applebee’s
- Macy’s
- Victoria’s Secret
- JCPenney
- Kohl’s
- Lowe’s
- Home Depot
- Best Buy
- AMC Theaters
- The Apple Store
- iTunes
- Build-A-Bear
- Bass Pro Shops
- American Airlines
- BP
- Chevron-Texaco
- And so much more that it boggles the mind
According to Card pool reviews, most people seem to use the site to unload cards from specialty stores, save on home improvements, pay for gas, and to get deals on treats for themselves and family like visits to restaurants and clothing stores.]
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Is Cardpool Legit?
That’s actually a tough one. Cardpool is definitely a legitimate business, but Cardpool reviews vary greatly. Some people warn others to run and not walk from Cardpool, while others wonder at these naysayers and say they’ve been using the company to good result for years.
The Proof That Cardpool Is Trustworthy:
Image Source: Is Cardpool Legit?
- They are currently owned by a very well-known business, Blackhawk Network.
- Cardpool has been mentioned in such illustrious places as CNN, The New York Times, NPR, Huffington Post, The Wall Street Journal, and more.
- Their investors have included some of the same investors who work with respected companies like PayPal, Google, Facebook, StubHub, and Skype.
- They have an A+ rating on BBB because the complaints they have received on the site have all been addressed.
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Cardpool Reviews Are Scary
If you run a search for Cardpool.com reviews, you’ll run into scads of people saying their cards were rejected with no explanation, they received their cards back with no money left on them, they bought cards that didn’t work, and that customer support is terrible largely because they offer no phone number to call.
Sitejabber gives the company a 27% score, and below are some of the negative Cardpool reviews:
- “Stole $377 from me!!!” Had $380 on a BR gift card I wasn’t going to use. Selected the mail option to get more back. Mailed card to just get an email that there was now only $2 on my card. Called the BR store to see what was going on to be told that $377 had been spent at a store the day I entered my card info into Cardpool website. They won’t tell me where yet and I’ve filed a police report. The card was still in my possession when it was supposedly spent at a store… [The] only people to have access to my gift card # was Cardpool. I’m still fighting with them…please do not use this website!!! I’m still sick to my stomach over this!
- “If there was a negative 5 rating, that’s what they would get” I sent in $1,000 worth of gift cards 3 weeks ago and I still have not received a check from them. They said they have not received the cards yet. I have never heard of 3 weeks to deliver [an] envelope. I would never sell to them again and I am hoping I see my money soon. If you do choose to sell to them, make sure you do not use [their] label; spend the extra money to track your package.
- “Cardpool.com” We got a notice from Cardpool saying, “Our risk assessment team has determined that we aren’t able to process your order at this time. We’ve gone ahead and cancelled order…” We’ve purchased cards before without much hassle. Getting a hold of a live person with the company is next to impossible. Anyway, this all delayed our purchase and we decided to buy directly from the store and save the hassle [of] dealing with Cardpool. We won’t be using Cardpool.com ever again.
An important fact to remember is that this applies to all gift card exchange services. Cardpool is not alone in getting poor reviews, so it may not be specifically a Cardpool issue, but a limitation within the gift card exchange industry.]
What a Good Cardpool Review Looks Like
Many people, some even verified customers, swear by Cardpool:
- “Pleasant and painless experience” I received a bunch of gift cards from work over the past few months and needed cash not gift cards. I found Cardpool and saw that they had the highest cash back %… I sold $750 in cards and got about $650 cash. Entire process took about a week. They called me to verify my identity, just mailing address and how I got the cards. If I get any more will definitely be using this service again.
- “Great Deals” I have used Cardpool for over 5 years primarily for buying cards but also for selling. I estimate that I have bought over $20,000 in cards for remodeling 2 homes and updating my kitchenware. I sold a number of gift cards that I received when I retired. I have always been pleased and have encouraged many friends to use them.
- Trustpilot gives Cardpool an 8.2 rating and 4 out 5 stars, and features reviews like: “Very quick response and card was sent within hours! Thank you! I was going out to eat and needed a good deal so I purchased the gift card thinking it’s going to take days to receive it but I literally got it and used it within an hour. Very honest…thank you!!”
An Investigation of Cardpool’s Reputation
Cardpool boasts on their home page that they have been mentioned in major news outlets. Most of them do not appear to be Cardpool reviews or comments on the quality of their business, but they do help shed some light on the company.
These first four companies paint a well-rounded view of Cardpool:
- CNN included Cardpool in a list of gift card exchange services and then mentioned that Target and Cardpool were working together to help Target with its own gift card exchange program.
- NBC also only included Cardpool in a discussion of various gift card exchange services.
- CBS has several articles related to Cardpool. One is a list of gift card exchange companies. The second is actually a person saying they’ve been using cardpool.com (as well as other similar companies) for years. Cardpool was mentioned in an article about gift card fraud, but they were the ones who notified the authorities that people were stealing items from stores and getting the stores to “refund them” for an unwanted item with a gift card and then selling it on Cardpool. The last discusses their program with Compassion International.
- Fox News has two videos with Anson Tsai where he explains the business.
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Conclusion: Is Cardpool Legit? Cardpool Reviews
Cardpool is a legitimate business, though their customer service seems to be leaving many feeling like they’ve been scammed. Cardpool reviews contain scathing accusations as well as glowing praise, so it is difficult to say whether you can trust them without trying them out.
We recommend that, as a potential customer, you research each gift card exchange site to see which one seems best for your needs and which is currently offering the best price on the cards you want.
Also, start slow, and don’t make your first purchase a large one.
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