A Down, Illinois, family who accidentally bought $10,000 worth of Disney+ streaming gift cards instead of gift cards to Disney parks learned last week that they weren’t alone.
Andy Coston of Normal, Illinois, said his parents were planning to take their 16-member family on a trip to Disney and purchased a series of gift cards to help cover the cost.
However, when I tried to book my trip, I ran into an issue where my card wasn’t working.
“When my dad came out of his office, he was half laughing, half disappointed, like he just couldn’t believe this was happening,” Coston said.
The family discovered that the gift card was not for a Disney park, but for the Disney+ streaming service. Seven decades of streaming history is enough, Coston says.
“We just sat there dumbfounded for a minute, two, ten minutes,” Coston said.
This mistake was an “honest mistake” made by her 78-year-old parents, who do not use streaming platforms.
The Illinois mother said her family didn’t know what to do. When Koston came up with the idea to create TikTok, they called customer service at Sam’s Club and Disney to figure out a replacement.
The video went viral, and through personal and online connections, the family’s dilemma was resolved.
“Everyone we contacted was really kind, patient and helpful,” the mother said.
Coston said she received hundreds of comments and messages through TikTok from people who admitted they had made the same mistake.
“This was a completely honest mistake, and a lot of other people are very legitimately thinking, ‘Oh no, we did it too,'” Coston said.
The family said they will never forget it.
“Our great-grandchildren will hear this story,” she added.