I think gift cards are mostly a crock, but recent law changes have made a few of them almost worthwhile.  My Nephew gave me a $75 Amazon card that a relative gave him for a service he provided for the family.  He didn't know how to use it, so I bought some books for him.  The card did not expire, and there were no extra charges.  After the first couple of books, the value remained on my account and was easily used.  that is the first card I have experienced that actually worked like I feel a gift card should work.  I believe I saw somewhere on Amazon that the buyer of the gift card also got a small card as a bonus, which was a nice touch.

Verizon gave a rebate several years ago in the form of a Visa gift card, there were several charges involved, and you could not use the remaining value of the card and add money to make a purchase.  You are supposed to jut forget the change, I guess, which I finally did after several frustrating conversations with the help desk. 
My Daughter had a card given to her, I was not aware of it, and when she finally gave it to me and asked how to use it, it had lost about half the value from monthly deductions.  I believe it was a WalMart card.


Unless things change, and with the exception of a possible Amazon card gift, I will never ever give a friend a gift card, they would be given to a sworn enemy just to frustrate that person.  I hope nobody tries to give me another one, but if they do, I will find something to buy quickly to get rid of the value without the company stealing it from me a bit at a time as a fee.