Industry experts say gift cards are now a $100 billion a year business. Yet here's the shocker.

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They say roughly 20 percent of all gift cards go unredeemed. That's $20 billion a year. About 75 percent of gift cards charge "dormancy" or "maintenance" fees of up to three bucks a month after the first year. Some card issuers even charge added fees if consumers use them at atms simply to check their balances.

Indiana Consumer Affairs Director Abby Kuzma says it's a great idea to explore details of gift cards before buying them and then informing recipients about them as well. Kuzma says card issuers argue they charge fees for administrative purposes. Some experts say the best gift cards are store-branded gift cards which they say charge fewer fees.