How to use the Gift Card QR Generator
Keep the code unique and tracked
A gift card is only as good as the record behind it. Generate one unique code per card in your till or shop system, record the amount and expiry against that code, and treat the QR as the key to that record, not as the money itself. Never reuse a code, and never print a card whose balance you cannot check at the till. If a customer disputes a balance, the record in your system is the truth, not the printed card.
Print and expiry
Print the code large enough to scan at the counter, with the amount, code, and expiry readable in plain text beside it, so staff can serve a customer even if the scanner is busy. Put the expiry on the card in words, not just in the code, and make your expiry rules match the consumer law where you sell. Check the printed card by scanning it and confirming the payload matches the code, amount, and expiry you intended.
Testing before you hand cards out
Print one sample card, scan it at the till, and walk through a redemption exactly as a customer would, including checking the balance and marking the card used. Keep the quiet zone around the code and print dark modules on a light background with strong contrast. If the code is printed on glossy card, test under the shop lights, because reflections at the counter are the most common reason a gift card fails to scan.