Incompetence ruined my nieces birthday

I am a UK resident. I have a niece who is resident in the Johannesburg area. For her 19th birthday, I thought it would be nice to send her a gift card so that she could go shopping for something she liked. My daughter arranged 2 x Woolworths gift cards with a total value of R1,000 to be delivered to my niece on her birthday, which cost me R50. The cards were delivered on time, which was a relief given the bad reputation SA has in Europe. My niece did as any 19 year old would and went shopping with her gift cards. Alas, when she presented the cards for payment, they were blank. No money had been loaded onto them. After spending nearly 2 hours on the phone from London, I eventually spoke to the store manager at Lifestyle Crossing. She subsequently emailed me to allege that it take a few days for the amount of the gift card to show. I know for a fact this is utter *******. The reality is that the cards were sent out blank, no money had been loaded onto them. I then complained to Customer Service at Woolworth who have done absolutely nothing about my complaint. At the very least, they could offer a formal apology to my niece who was extremely embarrassed as a result of this incompetence and refund the delivery cost of R50 in the form of a loaded gift card to my niece. The gift card reference number is ***.