REI Applied Illegal Expiration Dates to Gift Cards, Class Action Says

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A proposed class action out of Washington federal court claims that sporting goods co-op Recreational Equipment, Inc., also known as REI, issued gift cards with illegal expiration dates.

According to the case, REI customers who pay for membership in the co-op receive an annual dividend that consists of a percentage of what they spent at the defendant’s stores the prior year. The dividend, the suit says, is issued in the form of a gift card that is redeemable only at REI stores and expires after two years.

The two plaintiffs behind the case allege that they were shorted on the value of their dividends since their gift cards expired before they got to use them. The suit says that applying expiration dates to gift cards is against state law, and that federal law requires gift cards to remain valid for at least five years.