The card expired not the money

I got married Dec 2014. Jan 2015 we had to temporarily up and move to Limpopo for work purposes. Most of our gifts are and were still wrapped. We're in the process of moving back to Gauteng and have started going through boxes that we've kept in storage back home. This morning I phoned gift card division (GCD) to confirm my balances. The guy gave me the balances and also informed me the cards have expired. I was told to come into a store and was let to believe I ought to be helped. When I got to the store I was referred back to GCD and they again referred me back to the store. I then asked to speak to customer care head office. They referred me back to the store. I spoke to the store manager he referred me back to GCD. I understand that the cards have expired but the money has not expired. What happens to the money now. I read that the money could be transferred onto new cards. What's so difficult about that? The back of the card shows card expiry after 3 yrs but it doesn't specify that the money is forfeited. It just says money can't be used for airtime or to settle accounts or exchanged for cash. This is *********. That's *******. Is this how you do business?