What Do I Do If My Visa Gift Card Balance Won't Load?

If you tried to check the balance remaining on your Visa gift card and it either wouldn't load or loaded a balance that was too low, several different things might be the problem. You could have accidentally entered the numbers wrong, you could have lost your internet connection, the card issuer's server could be experiencing problems, or someone could have stolen your card.

Visa issues both physical and digital gift cards, both on its own website and through various other issuers. Each credit card issuer has a way for customers to check the balance of their Visa cards online. If you tried to use any of these tools and couldn't get your gift card balance to load properly, either because the tool loaded an incorrect balance or because it wouldn't load anything, you have a problem you need to fix. This guide will help you how to figure out how to do that.

Check the Expiration Date

Some Visa gift card issuers have expiration dates on their cards. Exactly when the card expires may vary by issuer. If it has been a long time since you got the card, check the expiration date. That may be the problem.

Re-Enter the Numbers

Before doing anything else, enter the required numbers in the balance checker again. Each issuer requires you to enter a set of numbers, such as the gift card number, the security code and, sometimes, the expiration date. Double check these numbers against the ones printed on the card or, if it is a digital card, against the numbers in the card's delivery email.

Check the Internet Connection

If whatever gift card balance checking tool you're using just hangs up instead of loading anything, check your internet connection. If it's down, your device is simply unable to get a reply from the card issuer's server.

If you don't have a bad connection, the next most likely explanation is that your card issuer's server is having problems. Just waiting for the tech team to fix it is all you can do. If it doesn't, contact the issuer's customer service department to report what happened.

Look for Signs of Theft

If the balance checking tool works but loads a balance that is lower than it should be, look for any signs of theft. The balance could be low because someone is using your card. If it's a physical card you're checking on, check that still have it. If you don't, theft seems like a pretty likely explanation.

If you're checking on a digital card, go to the website of the card's issuer and sign into your account. Look through your order history for orders you didn't place. If you find any, somebody has clearly obtained your gift card numbers and has been using your card to order things.

If you think your Visa gift card was stolen or at least used without authorization, contact the card's issuer with via the phone number listed in the card's documentation. You should also be able to find it on the company's website. Make sure you have the card numbers handy when you make the call. A customer service representative from the company should cancel your current card and send you a new card with the old card's balance on it. However, you'll only get the remaining balance that way. Visa can do nothing to get your stolen balance back.

Contacting Visa

If you have any questions, contact Visa's customer service department. You can contact a Visa representative by chat, phone or on Visa's help forum.

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