Auto-Deactivation
Auto-Deactivation is a Premium feature that automatically deactivates unredeemed gift cards after a specified number of days. This helps you manage gift card liability by ensuring that unused cards are disabled on a schedule.
How It Works
When enabled, the app checks your gift cards and deactivates any that meet all of the following criteria:
- The card was created more than the configured number of days ago
- The card has not been redeemed at all (full balance remaining)
- The card is still active
Cards that have been partially or fully redeemed are never auto-deactivated, regardless of their age.
Setting Up Auto-Deactivation
- Navigate to Settings in the app
- Find the Auto-Deactivation section
- Toggle the feature on
- Set the number of days after creation when unredeemed cards should be deactivated
- Save your settings
Once enabled, the app will periodically check for eligible cards and deactivate them automatically.
Manual vs. Automatic Deactivation
| Manual Deactivation | Auto-Deactivation | |
|---|---|---|
| Where | Job detail page | Settings |
| Scope | Individual cards or selected cards | All eligible unredeemed cards |
| Trigger | User-initiated | Automatic on schedule |
| Plan Required | Premium+ | Premium+ |
Both methods permanently deactivate the gift card. The only difference is how the deactivation is triggered.
Important Warnings
Deactivation is permanent. Once a gift card is deactivated, it cannot be reactivated. Make sure your deactivation period is appropriate before enabling this feature.
Deactivation does not free up your monthly quota. Gift cards that are deactivated still count toward your monthly plan limit. This prevents the quota from being gamed by creating and immediately deactivating cards.
Before Enabling
- Review your existing unredeemed gift cards to understand how many would be affected
- Choose a deactivation period that gives customers sufficient time to redeem their cards
- Check local regulations regarding gift card expiration and deactivation requirements
- Communicate any deactivation policies clearly to your customers
Use Cases
Promotional Gift Cards
If you distribute gift cards as part of a limited-time promotion, auto-deactivation ensures that unclaimed cards are cleaned up after the promotion ends.
Example: Create 500 gift cards for a holiday campaign. Set auto-deactivation to 90 days so any unclaimed cards are deactivated 3 months after creation.
Reducing Gift Card Liability
Unredeemed gift cards represent a financial liability on your books. Auto-deactivation helps reduce this liability by disabling cards that customers have shown no interest in redeeming.
Fraud Prevention
Auto-deactivation can help limit exposure from leaked or stolen gift card codes by ensuring they become invalid after a set period.
Best Practices
- Start with a longer period: Begin with a generous deactivation window (e.g., 90 or 180 days) and adjust based on your redemption patterns
- Monitor usage tracking: Review the Usage Tracking tab on your jobs to understand typical redemption timelines before setting a deactivation period
- Communicate clearly: Let customers know if gift cards have an expiration or deactivation policy
- Check regulations: Some jurisdictions have laws governing gift card expiration; ensure compliance with local requirements
Next Steps
- Managing Jobs - View usage tracking and manually deactivate cards
- Creating Gift Cards - Create a new gift card job
- Downloading - Export gift card codes before deactivation