Chipotle with its exceptional restaurant services was borne out of the conviction that, it is a hard way to do things but it is the right way to go.
Based on this backdrop that, it becomes one of the first national restaurant brands to stick to local and organic produces using only responsibly raised meals and drinks in line with welfare standard.
It was established in 1993 by Steve Ells but today operates over 1,400 restaurants, Chipotle believe in her ideology that, a well-prepared meal might not change the world but the way they make it can. Chipotle desire to thrive made them designed gift cards that come with benefits and perks.
Chipotle Gift Card offer convenience services to customers. Basically, almost all retailers offer consumers gift cards as a means either to shop or give out money to friends, families or associates hence gifts are presents to express love and care.
These gift cards can be physical or digital (e-gift cards)-and each comes with different characteristics and benefits. Customers who are interested and willing to purchase gift cards either for others or themselves during the holiday season are advised to read thoroughly the pros and cons associated with these different gift cards in order to make a wise decision in the end.
Table of Contents
What to learn
- Gift cards are presents offered to loved ones, and this serves as a useful substitute for cash with which you can make purchases.
- Physical gift cards are solely used in stores or online, whereas digital gift cards are designed for online use or over the phone.
- It is secured and easier to add Digital gift cards to the mobile wallet to make purchases.
- You can check the physical and e-gift cards expiration dates and/or fees if you plan to reload money to the card easily.
You may also like: Things To Know About The Costco Anywhere Visa Card
How Chipotle Gift Cards Work
This gift card serves as medium of payment with which purchases are possible at retail stores, gas station, restaurants, and other location of service providers.
To guarantee purchase using this gift card, you must ensure the gift card is loaded with money and once it is done, you either used it for purchases or send it to any friend or loved ones to make purchases with at any designated location acceptable.
Chipotle gift cards are designed to be open-loop or closed-loop. The open-loop gift card allows you access to make purchases anywhere the card is accepted.
Assuming the open-loop gift card is Visa, this therefore means, it could be used for purchases anywhere Visa card is accepted. While a closed-loop card is only used at specific merchants or purchases are conducted with this card only at the retailer issuing the card.
It is important to acknowledge the fact that, most prepaid gift cards come with a fee, which users pay a separate fee so as to reload money to a gift card if really they wish to reuse it.
The Chipotle Physical vs. Digital Gift Cards
Gift cards are either physical which comes in a plastic card form while the digital gift card has no physical form, and both have a unique gift code number assigned to which help cardholders to use and redeem it at online retailers when making purchases.
At Chipotle, physical gift cards undoubtedly remained the most popular type of gift cards, with changes expected of it any time soon, though.
While companies like Amazon, Walmart, and Target are allowing purchases of physical cards and online or digital gift cards, the major restaurant chains like Starbucks, Chipotle, and Chili’s, are offering customers physical gift cards with less attention to digital gift cards.
You should also check: How the Lane Bryant Credit Card Words: Benefits and Rewards
These cards make it convenient for customers to pay for their drinks and meals using an app or in-establishment card reader to speed up the checkout process.
When you are dealing purely with digital gift cards, always ensure to store codes for digital gift cards inside a mobile wallet app, such as Google Pay, Apple Pay, or PayPal’s Venmo. Anytime you are ready to check out, you can select your digital gift card as your preferred method of payment.
Wow, customers who are a fan of the gift card are protected by Federal law, which prevents gift cards from expiring for up to five years after their activation date, but when a customer fails to use a gift card, it attracts an inactivity fee.
Pros of Gift Cards
Gift cards comes with a number of advantages which include:
- They can serve as a good substitute form of payment if payment is not made in cash or by using a credit card.
- Gift cards serve as presents and can often come during festive periods, holidays, birthdays or on any other special occasion.
- Gift cards can be used to control spending (helpful for avoiding bank overdrafts).
- They are easy and convenient to use.
When it comes to giving out gift, gift cards prove to be the best option if you have no idea what to buy for someone on your gift list, this affords the recipient a better chance to buy whatever and whenever they want.
Also, be guided most importantly whenever you are choosing closed-loop gift cards over open-loop cards, it limits the gifts options for where the card can be used.
As a family man/woman who is interested in using gift cards to help kids learn the basics of spending, prepaid debit cards for teens is advisable and preferred. They work similarly but are typically open-loop.
Cons of Gift Cards
Whatever has pros definitely has cons which is why gift cards also have some downsides which includes:
- After purchases are made with a gift card, most times there is a small amount of money left that is not used, this may be due to forgetfulness or inactivity, and this could be seen as wasted money.
- Using a gift card, is either you may pay purchase or reload fees to add money while
- Closed-loop cards limit purchasing power hence their restricted nature.
- When you lose a gift card or having it stolen can be devastating, especially if you have failed to register it or keep the gift card number.
- You could be charged an inactivity fee if you fail to use your card.
Records available with the 2009 Credit Card Accountability Responsibility and Disclosure (CARD) Act offers protections to gift cards issued by retailers and banks. Therefore, customers whose prepared gift cards are stolen or lost need not be bothered hence been protected by this Act.
Prepaid Credit Cards vs. Gift Cards
In trying to look at the discrepancies that existed between prepared credit cards and gift cards, certain factors like pros and cons are to be well looked into.
Though both can be used to make purchases either in stores or online, but while you might purchase gift cards to give away, a prepared credit card is something you might use yourself for everyday spending if you don’t have a bank account or would rather not pay with cash or a regular credit card.
A secured credit card is preferable for people who have no credit or poor credit records. Hence only a little cash deposit is required with the hope of building your credit history gradually.
The significant offers of a prepaid credit card, debit card, and reloadable gift card can’t be overemphasized in comparison to retailer-specific gift cards. Though, some credit cards come with some benefits and rewards on purchases as well as travel incentives or rewards bonuses.
In comparison, a note must be taken of which card to be used being it prepaid credit cards or gift cards for any purchases bearing in mind how they affect your credit score.
It is worthy to note that, both prepaid credit card or gift cards account cannot serve you the purpose of seeking for loan. However, if you are mindful of building your credit score, a regular credit card is preferred hence you can pay on time each month-end while you keep your balance low and also help build your credit score history gradually.
