Surprise man mysteriously has $1.32 on his $400 gift card

SURPRISE, AZ (3TV/CBS 5) — Open up Chuck Zerby’s garage freezer, and you’ll find a meat lover’s paradise. “I’ve got ribs. I’ve got brisket,” Zerby said as he shuffled around meat. “We got chicken. Here’s chicken.”

So, Zerby says he was thrilled when his family gave him a $400 Visa gift card for his birthday because he knew just how to spend it. “You open the $400 gift card, what’s your reaction?” On Your Side’s Gary Harper asked. “I’m like wow! And they’re like now you can buy yourself a smoker dad,” Zerby replied.

The good news is Zerby rushed out and finally bought himself a smoker. But here’s the bad news. He used his own money to buy it because that $400 Visa gift card was worthless at the cash register. “The cashier says, ‘Sir, you only have a $1.32 on here.’ And I’m like, ‘What are you talking about? We just took it out of the package when we got here.’”

Confused, Zerby later called the toll-free number on the Visa gift card and they told him to fax over copies of the card and other documents. Zerby did. In fact, he sent it three times over several months because Visa kept claiming they never got it. “Same thing over and over. Ten days later, they said, ‘We never received it. You need to send it again.’ At this time I’m get a little hot and annoyed,” said Zerby.

Eventually, Zerby received a letter confirming what he already knew. There was an error on his $400 gift card, and they were sending him a replacement card. But here we are three months later, and Zerby says he still doesn’t have his $400. So, he and his wife contacted On Your Side. “You contacted us and we were surprised,” Zerby to Gary Harper. “Hopefully we can get it resolved.”

I got a hold of Visa and asked them to look into Zerby’s issue. In this statement, Visa tells On Your Side that it “...does not issue or hold the funds deposited into prepaid payment cards,” like Zerby’s. A third party is responsible, and Visa says it is now working with that third party to get Zerby his $400 replacement card.

As for Zerby, he’s still enjoying his new toy and until he gets that replacement card, he feels like he’s the one getting smoked. “To me I’ve lost faith in the Visa gift card. I’m sure I’m not the only one who’s gone through this,” said Zerby. Well, that $400 replacement card is supposed to be on its way now. Once this viewer gets it, I’ll let you know in a follow-up report.

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