Consumers urged to redeem Wet Seal cards

Hawaii consumers holding gift cards or store credits for Wet Seal are encouraged to redeem what they have for merchandise quickly after the clothing retailer, which filed for bankruptcy liquidation Feb. 2., closed its Maui store Sunday.

An Oahu Wet Seal store at Pearlridge Center will be open longer, but for how long is uncertain.

The state Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs issued the spending advice Friday.

“An important guideline with gift cards is to use them as soon as you can, because a store may close or go bankrupt with very little notice,” Stephen Levins, executive director of the DCCA’s Office of Consumer Protection, said in a statement. “We see that here. This large company just filed bankruptcy, and the Kahului store is already set to close just 10 days later. That means consumers must act fast.”

Levins said consumers might have little or no recourse to recover an unspent balance.

The retailer is advertising 40 to 60 percent off merchandise because of the impending shutdown, and the Hawaii stores have stopped accepting returns.