WASHINGTON — With consumer interest in gift cards continuing to heat up, retailers want consumers to know that the cards they can buy and give from retail stores are often a better deal than those issued by banks and credit unions.

"Consumers should be aware that there are big differences between store-issued and bank-issued gift cards," wrote the National Retail Federation as one of its 10 tips for buying gift cards. "While 92% of the leading retailers have no fees associated with gift cards, card issuers such as VISA and MasterCard are more likely to expire and tack on annoying activation, maintenance, inactivity, and transaction fees. In fact some bank-issued gift cards even charge a fee for simply checking the balance."

The tips also included advice to consumers to be sure to use their cards before their state's escheatment policies wind up taking the money and the observation that sales of gift cards will not show up on retail sales statistics until the cards are redeemed.