I am absolutely livid with Rite Aid! I went to Meijer gas station around the corner, and got $15 in gas, and then went to pay for it using my "just received" Rite Aid Mastercard $15 Gas Cash...and it was declined saying invalid! I tried to call the number and it says they are only available Mon, Wed and Fri from 8am to 12 noon! What kind of bologna is this?? I went and spent $$ and time at Rite Aid in January so that we could get free gas and now this card is invalid? I am thinking of complaining, should I be complaining to Rite Aid who was offering the promo? or just say forget it because it's such a small monetary amount? It was embarrassing when she said the card was invalid--there were tons of people looking at me like I was trying to steal gasoline.

i would complain even if its a small amount. A promo is a promo and even if they promise just $1 cash back they should honor it

I think you should complain. I wonder how many other people this will happen to.

yeah, that is a bunch of crap. You did what they said you needed to do to get the gas card, and then to have it not work? COMPLAIN!

the lady at meijers was nice enough but was really loud when she made a comment about "you people and your free stuff".

She also said that there was a lady earlier using a $30 Rite Aid gas card and it didn't work for her either.

Unfortunately, from what the cashier said, the lady had NO other form of payment with her!!

The was really rude of the Meijers lady to say that!..........I get so sick of people making comments about people like us using coupons and stuff. I think half the reason is that they are P.O.'d that THEY didn't get the deal. I have PMS right now, so I better shut up before I start.....

Had problems with the GasCards from the P&G deal last summer (June maybe). Make sure you read the directions that came with the card (all that fine-print means something), as they have to be processed a particular way by the gas station.

I had trouble with one I received last summer but on the back it gave explicit instruction about how they are to ring it up. Anyway when you call you might just ask if there is a certain way they are supposed to ring it up.

I'd call corporate for Rite aid & Meijers.
That woman had no reason to make those comments to you !!

When you swipe a CC or DC or GC at a gas pump it generally automatically seeks an authorization for ~$50 b/c it doesn't know how much you'll pump. None are programmed to just look at your available funds & authorize up to your available amount.

So if the card has limited funds you need to go inside & prepay & tell the Cashier a specific amount you want charged (up to your available amount).

Usually these so called 'gas' cards can be used anywhere (not just gas stations) that accepts the underlying logo (be it Discover or V or MC etc), but don't use it anywhere that generally pre-authorizes a higher amount (like hotels, car rentals etc.) or the same problem can occur.

Also can cause a problem at restaraunts b/c they generally pre-authorize a higher amount to cover any possible gratuity.

Depending on the establishment practice, the higher pre-authorized amount can create a hold on your account for ~1-31 days.

AFAIK I've never seen a 'gas card' promo that didn't have an accompanying paper that does detail this information on how to use it.

A complaint to Meijers re the Employee is appropriate.

A complaint to RA I wouldn't do b/c the 'gas card' promos from RA have been delivered with instructions on proper use (unless it was 'somehow' missing from the mailing).

You can not scan these at the pump--period. the card states that much on the back of it--TWICE.

I kept all the "paperwork" that came with my card, and it was the envelope, a letter stating thank you for being a Rite Aid Customer and the card--period.

I called cust. svc and she said she would authorize the card and then went on to tell me that "some of the cards went out without correct paperwork due to a machine malfunction" and she was sorry for any embarassment I suffered.

Thanks to all who suggested advice. The issue has been resolved.

Glad you got it resolved.

I wasn't suggesting that anyone swipe it at the pump. Technically you could (even though it says not to) IF it was a 'gas card' that has a very large balance & IF you didn't mind an additional part being placed on a hold/freeze for a possibly long time. They tell you not to swipe at the pump to avoid problems, & IMO it wouldn't make sense to swipe it at a pump.

Even if it's swiped inside at the Cashier, the same exact problems occur unless you first specify the amount to be charged & that amount doesn't exceed your available balance. The problem occurs when people just say they're 'filling up' & then they do a standard pre-authorization that exceeds the available balance & gets denied (or add'l balance gets placed on hold).

Or there are some gas stations that don't require pre-pay. Then if you go in & try to use the 'gas card' & the amount you pumped is higher than the available balance it won't work unless their system is set up to do a split payment plus LOL the Cashier knows how to do that.