The refund for my coffee machine went towards an empty Love2Shop voucher that I had thrown away: CRANE IN THE CASE

Earlier this year I bought an Argos coffee machine online. It was £60 and I paid £10 with my credit card and £50 with two Love2Shop vouchers I got for Christmas.

Unfortunately the machine was faulty and in July Argos gave me a refund. However, the £50 was returned to the two Love2Shop cards, which I did not keep.

I hadn’t even considered it as I assumed it wasn’t possible to refund the money via voucher.

I spoke to Love2Shop who told me they could reissue the coupons if I had the serial numbers, but I don’t.

I have the last four digits of the serial numbers on my receipt, but nothing else. I asked the person who gave me the Love2Shop cards if they had proof of purchase that might include the codes, but they didn’t.

Argos said it’s up to me to track down the old cards and there’s nothing else they can do. S.M., Devon

Helen Crane, This is Money’s consumer advocate, responds: Since coupon season is right around the corner again, I thought it was a good time to share this warning.

When we receive a voucher from a generous friend or family member, our instinct is to spend it as soon as possible.

If we don’t, we risk letting it languish in a wallet or drawer for months, before digging it out and realizing it’s past its expiration date.

This is just one of the reasons why I personally am not a fan of giving away vouchers.

They may be more personal than cash, but they are also much more restrictive. Sometimes users are hit by technology issues, like in this Virgin Experience Days story I recently covered, and stores would love nothing more for you to forget about them.

Vouchers are a smart way to make money for the stores and brands that sell them, as some of the cash loaded is inevitably never used, leaving them with a 100 per cent profit on that portion.

I would always suggest that if you give a coupon as a gift, make a note on the card when it expires and encourage the recipient to note it in their calendar, or even set a phone reminder.

But he escaped that fate by going out and treating himself to a new Phillips capsule coffee machine, using the full £50 of his two vouchers and paying the extra £10 on his credit card.

You threw away the sold out Love2Shop vouchers, like most of us would do, and thought no more about it.

That was until the machine stopped working a few months later.

Argos agreed to refund the cost of the coffee maker, but you were shocked when only £10 was returned to your account.

Only when you checked your receipt did you remember that you had paid the rest with your Love2Shop cards and that the money had been returned directly to them.

Why would Argos do this? It may seem absurd, but the reason is that Love2Shop cards are not technically vouchers.

Instead, they are prepaid cards, which have been loaded with a set amount of money, although most people who receive them don’t realize or know the difference.

Most people throw them away after spending the balance, but the account remains open until the card expires (usually after a year) even though the balance cannot be reloaded.

It’s a small distinction, but it explains why the money can be returned to the card as a refund. Argos simply followed the retailer’s usual policy of refunding the money to the card it came from.

You told me you called Argos five times for help and spent hours on hold. I hope you replaced your coffee machine, as it would be hard to top that without a cup of this strong stuff in hand.

“I have two young children and I’ve run out of options and time to continue with this,” she said. “I can’t believe we’re expected to keep empty gift cards.”

Argos said that if it had the full serial numbers of the vouchers it might have been able to help, but it did not and would not, or could not, provide them.

And Love2Shop also said it would only reissue the cards with the £50 cashback if it could provide the serial numbers.

I felt like I had made an honest mistake, so I contacted both retailers to ask if they could help me get the cash back for my coffee machine.

I am pleased to say that both companies offered their help.

Choose a card – Many retailers sell them, but it’s important to understand the fine print

First, Love2Shop said that while it had not been able to locate his serial numbers, it had sent him a replacement £50 Love2Shop voucher.

A spokesperson said: “It is standard practice to issue refunds to the original mode of purchase and Argos followed the correct protocol by electronically refunding the £50 to the gift cards.”

‘We understand that sometimes original cards are lost or stolen. When this happens, we require evidence of the purchase of the original gift cards.

“We strongly recommend that physical, ‘credit card style’ gift cards be registered so they can be tracked quickly should any issues arise.”

Buyers can register them on the Love2Shop website.

But when I contacted you to tell you the good news, you had just received a call from Argos, who also issued a £50 gift card as a gesture of goodwill.

An Argos spokesperson said: “We have contacted (SM) to explain that your refund has been returned to your original Love2Shop vouchers in accordance with our terms and for anything else it is best to contact them directly.”

“However, on this occasion we have issued a gift card as a gesture of goodwill.”

In the end, we not only got your money back, but also a £50 bonus, which should help offset some of the pain you’ve experienced over gift cards.

I hope it encourages others to keep track of their gift cards, even after they’ve spent them. Taking a photo of your phone’s serial number is a good idea.

Love2Shop is not the only prepaid gift card. One4All is another popular brand and many mall gift cards also follow this prepaid card model.

It’s also worth being careful about any money left on the card when it expires, as some of these providers charge annual fees for money left on an expired card or for withdrawing cash.

Love2Shop, for example, charges a maintenance fee of £11 per year for any card past its expiry date that continues to have a balance.

You can redeem unused money while the card is still valid, as well as up to six years after the card’s expiration date. However, there is a fee of £8.90.