On Feb 18, 4:54 pm, simple219 <SIMON...[at]HOTMAIL.COM> wrote:

- quote -

I think only the recipient can claim a loss. You gave a gift, so you
have no deduction. But the person who received the gift card has what
looks to me like an IOU from Sharper Image, and now that that IOU is
worthless, so I'd say it's a Schedule D short term deduction for them.

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I purchased and gave away $900 worth of Sharper Image gift cards.
Subsequently, the cards became worthless (Sharper Image declared
bankruptcy). Can I, as the the purchaser of the cards, claim a non-
business bad debt or casualty loss? Does it matter whether the
worthlessness of the cards occurred only after I gave away the cards ?
Can the recipient of the cards claim a loss?

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<< ------------------------------------------------------- > << The foregoing was not intended or written to be used, > << nor can it used, for the purpose of avoiding penalties > << that may be imposed upon the taxpayer. > << > << The Charter and the Guidelines for submitting posts > << to this newsgroup as well as our anti-spamming policy > << are at www.asktax.org. > << Copyright (2007) - All rights reserved. > << ------------------------------------------------------- >