Gift credit card with no inactivity fee?

Question

I purchased a $25 Visa gift card a few years ago, and was surprised to find this morning that it had 0 balance. On questioning I learned that 1) they don't track activity older than one year and 2) the card is charged a $2 per month inactivity fee if it is not used for a period longer than 12 months.

So an unused $25 gift card will be empty in just over two years, and if you wait a year longer than that to check it, you won't be able to discover why.

Is there anything I can do that would count as activity that won't use the balance?

Are there any other options to avoid inactivity fees in the future?

Background and purpose of this gift card:

I was robbed at gunpoint many years ago, and there was a visa gift card in my wallet. They didn't even attempt to use the other cards, but I suppose they figured the gift card wasn't traceable. It was, and they were caught and prosecuted solely on the evidence of the gift card transactions. So now I carry one in my wallet as a security measure. I didn't read the fine print, however, so now it's empty. Looks like I'll have to use it yearly, which isn't a big deal, but I was hoping I could find a solution that doesn't require maintenance, or maintenance that doesn't deplete the card.

Answer 1

The card issuers have expenses, marketing, the piece of plastic, the profit to the store, etc. The cards I've seen typically have a $4.95 fee to purchase. If I buy a $500 card, that's still a 1% cost, but for example, before I trusted my daughter with a real credit card, able to tap my own limit, these cards were a good way to give her access to funds when she was away from home for weeks at a time.

The above card I was referring to had no monthly fee, but if I were to buy the minimum $25 value, $4.95 is a 20% expense, pretty crazy.

You are not likely to find a combination of no purchase cost and no monthly fee. The real question back to you is what do you need such a card for? If it's some occasional need to use a card, I'd buy the card you bought, but carefully track the time passing. In month 11, just spend it. A tank of gas, a trip to the supermarket, done.

OP has added comments and a question edit. I'll add - The card issuer is independent from the company transacting the sale. e.g. I buy a $4.95 cost Visa gift card, but use my Mastercard to make the purchase. The seller, say, CVS needs to at least break even on the sale, which probably costs 2% in transaction costs. You are right, often a question shouldn't require such detailed explanation, but, absent your intent, the correct answer might be "stay away from such cards." Here, you've generated a purpose, and reason for your dilemma.