FINAL EDIT: Just in case anyone out there finds this and has a similar problem. The CFPB complaint process is great and did in fact lead to reimbursement of the stolen funds. Very relieved to have this outcome after such a lengthy struggle prior to filing a complaint. If you're having trouble with a dispute, I recommend looking into the CFPB.

https://www.consumerfinance.gov/complaint/

EDIT: I've submitted an official complaint to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and am hopeful this will bring this mess to an end.

Hi there. I hope this is the right sub as this is technically a prepaid card.

Last fall, we purchased a Vanilla Gift Card from Vons. We didn't use it right away, kept it safe and sound in its original packaging (edit: the number was not scratched off). Unbeknownst to us, before we even opened the package, all $500 had been spent on the card. (Our first attempted purchase was declined, which is when we found out the card had somehow been hacked/compromised.)

As expected, Vanilla was not easy to work with from the get go, and insisted I contact the merchant first to get refunded. There were well over a hundred small purchases on the Google Play store by the hacker, but I submitted every single one individually to Google as fraudulent charges. Fortunately, Google agreed these were unauthorized and refunded nearly all of the money.

However, only a small amount of these refunds made it back onto the Vanilla card, with hundreds still missing. At this point I had no choice but to submit a dispute using Vanilla's claim form, and they told me it could take up to 90 days to complete the review. I wrote a detailed, clear account with all my communication from Google proving they returned the money on their end.

90 days passed, and now they have me calling every 2-3 days; they ask the same questions ("When did you submit the dispute form?") and ask me the date of my email, revealing their dispute team hasn't done anything. I called today, and there has been no change. They've told me to call again in 24 hours, even though I'm supposed to receive an email when the case review is done. They're pretty much revealing that nothing will be done by the next time I call.

They refuse to write an email with their instructions for me despite being able to email me the dispute form, and when asked how long it will take, continue to say "90 days" even though we are well past that now. They said I can email their dispute team directly, but when I do, nothing comes back. I feel like I'm just being given the runaround. What's extra aggravating is that not only do they have the first $500, but they also have the money Google sent back to their bank. I don't even know what happened with this card in the first place... When I express concern that this process has already surpassed their stated deadline, they just sit in silence on the other end. This is a call center based in the Philippines.

What's the next step? In the user agreement it talks about arbitration for disputes. Can I initiate that process somehow? I'm a medical student, this money was much needed and I don't have much funds to combat this company. I've invested a lot of time into this (and it took hours just to submit each fraudulent charge to Google, the process is not very good and had to be done twice), I don't want to give up.

If anyone out there knows what I can do or has experienced anything like this, please share your insight. (If I'm on the wrong sub, please help point me in the right direction.) Edit: I did submit a letter online to Vons, but that didn't result in anything. I wanted to make sure that somehow Vons could have a record of what happened; unfortunately, I have found Vons customers on other forums that essentially the same thing happen to them as far back as 2019.

I've been trying to use a VISA vanilla gift card I got for my birthday a couple days ago. Every site has asked me for a Zip Code, and I've tried inputting my own, and the one of the store it was bought at. Neither worked. I also tried inputting the zip code of the person who bought it for me. I activated the card on the vanilla visa gift card site, but contrary to what I've seen, there wasn't a Zip Code option for where to set a zip code, though others had one on the very same site. As I was trying, I went back to the balance checking page on the vanilla visa gift card site, and it said:

ON HOLD Your Card is unable to be used at this time. Please immediately call the customer service number on the back of your Card.

However, the number on the back of the card is always a robot with 3 options. FAQs, Check my Balance, or Report my card stolen or missing. I really have trouble with using most robotic over-the-phone interactions, and almost always do better talking to a real person, however, there doesn't seem to be a way to get help from one. Only the robot, and my problem isn't one of the three things it offers help with.

I'm scared that some website got ahold of my card number and is stealing the money. The card had 100 dollars on it and I really can't afford to waste that kind of money right now.

If anyone has any insight on what to do or who to call, that would be really helpful right now.

Thank you.