While CompUSA tries to empty its shelves in preparation for closing or selling its stores in Hawai'i and on the Mainland after the holiday season, consumers should be aware of some uncertainties regarding service plans and gift card purchases.

CompUSA said its repair and technical service plans will be honored, though plans for carry-in service may need to be converted to at-home or mail-in service.

Kane'ohe resident Francine Teixeira is concerned about a $400 extended service plan she bought in March for a desktop computer package, and said a local CompUSA store associate couldn't tell her how her service contract might be affected by the plan to close or sell stores.

The computer and electronics retailer also is still selling gift cards, though by state law gift cards must be valid for at least two years.

Stephen Levins, executive director of the state Office of Consumer Protection, said it would be improper for a store to sell gift cards knowing that it's going out of business. "A gift card has to be good for two years ... not two weeks or two months," he said.

Dallas-based CompUSA on Friday announced that it had sold its chain of 103 stores, including two in Hawai'i, to an affiliate of Gordon Brothers Group LLC, a Boston-based advisory and restructuring firm that plans to close or sell the stores after liquidating inventory over the holiday season.

Gordon Brothers said it is trying to sell select stores in "key markets" with an option to retain the CompUSA name, but the firm would not identify which stores are candidates for sale.

CompUSA's Hawai'i stores are on Ala Moana Boulevard in Kaka'ako and at Pearl Highlands Center in Pearl City. Both stores are on leased property.

Yesterday, Gordon Brothers affiliate DJM Realty listed the leases for all CompUSA stores as available for assignment or sublease.

Gordon Brothers also said it is seeking to sell CompUSA's technical services division called TechPro and its www.CompUSA.com online sales operation.

A spokeswoman for CompUSA at Stanton Crenshaw Communications in New York said she wasn't sure whether gift cards would have to be used before the stores close.

CompUSA last week said it expects to keep all stores open until at least the first week of January, and plans to offer bargains on merchandise to empty the stores. DJM Realty yesterday said store inventory is expected to be liquidated through the beginning of February.

CompUSA also continues to sell extended service plans for products to provide a range of technical and repair services, from setup to replacement.

The company's Technology Assurance Plan is available on a wide range of items, from computers to cell phones, typically for one to three years. For instance, a consumer can pay as little as $5 for protecting a joystick for a year to $400 for a one-year service plan covering a laptop computer.

CompUSA said the plans will be honored, though drop-off and pick-up service at retail stores may need to be converted to at-home or mail-in service.

In February, when CompUSA announced it would close 126 of 229 stores, the company said its desktop computer carry-in service plan would be converted to at-home repair, while other product carry-in service plans would require shipping.

Service processing could be affected if Gordon Brothers sells CompUSA's TechPro business, though a unit of New York-based insurance firm Assurant Inc. administers the service plans for CompUSA in Hawai'i.

A toll-free phone number is available for service inquiries, at 877-520-8324.

Reach Andrew Gomes at agomes@honoluluadvertiser.com.

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