Yesterday I couldn't call the Westfield gift card hotline to ask them about where i can possibly use their XS giftcards but I did ask 2 Post Offices yesterday whether they accepted the Westfield XS card and they said no. And then I asked the lady there what if I went to one that was located within a Westfield shopping centre can I used the XS card to pay a bill on postbillpay? The lady said: No. I tried to do that once it didn't work.
Now I called the Auspost enquiries line but no one seems to be able to answer my question and when i told them the XS is like an "EFTPOS Debit card", they said "oh then you should have no problems as long as the Auspost outlet accepts this Westfield XS Card."
But in my mind, I thought my friend who said he read the fine print might not really have read the fine print properly and think technically enough. I don't want to type again but I was talking to a friend yesterday about it and later emailed her telling her why I think this way is not going to work and even if it were, it wont' be legit and you will be at the mercy of Westfield and Auspost who can change their policy at a moment's notice. I will paste some of my email here:
now Postbillpay (the bill paying facility of AusPost), accepts credits, debit card, cash and cheques. An EFTPOS debit card is a misnomer. There is no such thing as an EFTPOS card obviously I suddenly recalled! EFTPOS is a payment facility/network and system BUT not a type of card as you can use both a credit and debit on the EFTPOS system.
Now people say you can swipe your Westfield XS card on a machine at a retailer and pressing "savings" and the pin and it will process the payment but I think the EFTPOS machine always asks anyway, it's just a procedural thing you have to press (cheque or savings?), it doesn't mean it's a debit card or a bank card or whatever you call some plastic that is actually issued by a proper bank.
A lot of people on the net have confused this issue. Given that Westfield says this stupid XS card can be use at any retailer with EFTPOS facilities (subject to the retailer's discretion). Well, "The Australian Securities and Investments Commission has exempted Westfield from "product disclosure statement" and related disclosure requirements under the Corporations Act." - no wonder it's all sooo ambiguous.
The fatal parts of the Terms and Conditions before you make a purchase are: (1) Westfield is obliged to make payment in relation to the gift card only when it is used to make a purchase and there is sufficient unused value to make that purchase. Westfield retains any interest on unused value and; (2) Gift cards are not legal tender, account cards, credit or debit cards or securities
Then if you read the FAQ's at Postbillpay it says:
What accounts can I make Postbillpay payments from?
You can use Visa or MasterCard credit cards, Visa or MasterCard debit cards, Diners Club and American Express charge cards or PayPal to pay bills with Postbillpay[SUP]1[/SUP]. Some billers do not accept all payment types.
Can I make payments through this service using a Debit MasterCard or Visa Debit card?
Yes. You can use a Debit MasterCard or Visa Debit card to make Postbillpay payments.
THE WESTFIELD XS card IS NONE OF THE ABOVE
Besides, according to the clauses in the terms of conditions of the Postbillpay site :7.6 We are entitled to refuse to process a Bill payment request at any time, at our absolute discretion, or may require additional information from You, before We process the request
Just got off the phone with the Westfield gift cards hotline and when I casually brought this issue up....... the women said, NO Australia POst has decided to only accetp XS cards for goods sold in their shops not bills. And it makes sense doesn't it? The point of the the gift card is to encourage consumers to spend at participating retailers, and AUSPOST wont' get much out of being part of this if they let you pay bills through the PostBillPay system instead of buying stuff at their shops. Besides, they only accept debit cards and this XS is not. And if for some weird cough reason you walk into a shop with a $600 bills and then a gift card to pay it with, LIKE THE STAFF AT THE COUNTER WON'T FIND YOU WEIRD let alone using it to pay the ATO! i mean, who has a tax bill that is under $995? There is no name on the XS card and anyone who scratches the pin off at the back can use it, if you pay even a $3k tax bill with the post office with it, I am sure the staff would notice what the hell you are using to pay your bill with, let alone tens of thousands of tax bills a year.
My case rests
