Food was at the top of many gift lists during this holiday season of giving.
People’s Credit Union donated $10,000 to Farm Fresh Rhode Island in December in support of the organization’s work to empower local farmers and food producers. This gift-giving effort went back to September, when Farm Fresh R.I. was PCU’s largest nonprofit partner in the credit union’s inaugural Day of Purpose, which helped shine a spotlight on the ever-growing need for hunger assistance programs in local communities and the importance of making nutritious fresh produce accessible for all in need.
“During our Day of Purpose, more than 100 PCU team members banded together with local nonprofits to help raise awareness of food insecurity in Rhode Island,” said Sean Daly, head of People’s Credit Union. “We would not have been able to make that kind of impact on our community without the help of Farm Fresh R.I. and their Hope’s Harvest, Harvest Kitchen and Bonus Bucks programs.”
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HUNGER ASSISTANCE: People’s Credit Union presents a $10,000 check to Farm Fresh Rhode Island in support of the organization’s work to empower local farms and food producers. Pictured from left are Sean Daly, head of People’s Credit Union; Nikki Ayres, director of giving for Farm Fresh R.I.; and Courtney Hunter, head of community development for PCU.
COURTESY PEOPLE’S CREDIT UNION[/caption]
In September, PCU employees volunteered at three different Hope’s Harvest farms, as well as at two Harvest Kitchens.
Gift cards to restaurants were popular to give and receive this past holiday season. With the headlines in 2024 about some businesses closing without warning, some of which were restaurants, it is useful to revisit consumer-protection measures in the unlikely event the place you have a gift card shut its doors.
Rhode Island is one of a handful of states that does not allow expiration dates on gift certificates and cards. Rhode Island General Law states that a gift certificate means a promise made for monetary consideration by the seller or issuer that goods or services will be provided to the purchaser or owner of a gift card or certificate.
According to the National Conference of State Legislatures, this is a cloudy area. There is a federal law – the Credit Card Accountability Responsibility and Disclosure Act – but it states only that gift cards cannot expire for five years.
However, some states have enforced specific circumstances to this rule that the recipient must follow. Rhode Island and Vermont laws state that only gift card balances less than $1 may be redeemed for cash, while Massachusetts will redeem a gift card for cash once 10% of the original value remains. Massachusetts allows expiration dates on gift certificates of no less than seven years from the date of issue.
However, the law states that this does not apply to a promotional or loyalty gift certificate or discount coupon that was not paid for, such as one from an advertisement or so-called frequent shopper program. Restrictions can be placed upon such a card so long as those restrictions are disclosed at the time the certificate is purchased.
The matter of honoring a gift card after a restaurant has changed hands is not so clearly defined in the law.
“We are in a difficult position,” said a veteran restauranteur. “We sympathize with the person who may have purchased the certificate [from the previous owner] and [most proprietors] will do all we can to make them happy.”
As a practical matter, when restaurants change hands, the buyer and seller will agree on a policy to honor gift cards/certificates within a time frame or to be exchanged for gift cards of the new restaurant.
With numerous restaurants in the state being acquired by existing multiunit restaurant companies, the entrepreneurial nature of most restaurants in Rhode Island comes through to diffuse what could be a sticky consumer-rights issue without any government involvement. That is a gift to us consumers indeed.
“Dining Out With Bruce Newbury,” syndicated weekly on radio, is heard in Rhode Island, Connecticut, Vermont and Indiana. Contact Bruce at bruce@brucenewbury.com.
