Have your eye on an Ionic Breeze air cleaner, a top-of-the-line massage chair, or an interactive droid? You may be out of luck whether you were counting on using your Sharper Image gift card. The retailer of whimsical electronics and housewares recently filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, rendering these cards essentially useless.

Brian Riley — senior analyst with research firm TowerGroup — told MarketWatch that unused Sharper Image gift cards could amount to as much as $25 million. Sales clerks are telling customers the plastic cards are no longer valid for use in stores or online. A company hotline says that shoppers can inquire again in mid-March, as company officials are still trying to determine whether the cards will ever be honored.

Additionally, Sharper Image rival Brookstone is offering a 25% reduction for any shopper who turns in a (worthless) Sharper Image gift card when making an in-store purchase.

The truly disgruntled gift-card holders can investigate filing a petition in court, but the day and costs due would likely outweigh the gift card’s value. Federal law indicates that the holder of the card may have a claim against the bankruptcy estate, but it’s likely a worthless endeavor and Riley notes “There’s a good chance the dollars will be lost.”

Beth Gaston Moon is an analyst at Schaeffer’s Investment Research.

Original post by Beth Gaston Moon

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