Blumenthal:

Be Wary Of

Gift Cards

HARTFORD (AP) — Connecticut Attorney General Richard Blumenthal says holiday shoppers should be careful about buying gift cards because of the shaky financial condition of many large retailers.

Blumenthal says several national retail chains have gone or are going out of business, including Bombay, Sharper Image and Linens ‘,n Things, and that has made it difficult to redeem some gift cards.

The attorney general says people who receive gift cards should use them as quickly as possible. He says people who buy the cards should use their credit cards, read the fine print and avoid buying cards from businesses reported to have financial problems.

Blumenthal also says he is proposing legislation that would require retailers to set up special accounts to hold money from gift card purchases in escrow.