I do not know of very many providers that accept the whole payment/deposits with only gift cards, these seem to be a common trend as of late for the scammers. I do have gents that give me gift cards as a gift/tip on top of my cash rate (thank you very much for these gents!)  but it seems like this is something guys really should be watching for. If you are a provider and *only* accept gift cards as payments/deposits feel free to chime in with your comment and reasons. If you are a client and you have been scammed, if you feel comfortable please share your story so we can learn.  
Thank you!
Scarlet

I have only used Amazon GC sent by encrypted email and haven't had any issues at all.

Not just in this industry, in all scams.  

A very common scam aimed at old people is where a scammer tells you they accidentally loaded your bank account with more money than needed. This of course is bs but they make it look like it true with remote assistance on the seniors computer.
Then they make this person go and buy gift cards to "correct the mistake", preying on gullibility and honesty of old people. Honestly just describing these makes me sick to the very stomach.

 
Therefore, any time there's a directive to buy or pay in gift cards, an alarm should be going off for everyone. For escorts, I simply am never going to see one who only accepts gift cards. Gift card frauds also runs rampant.

 
I would advise neither client nor seller to use gift cards in this hobby. Stick to dead presidents.

This is exactly what I do when I see a "out of town" companion who travels to my area periodically.  What you describe is the exact system I use and it works well!   A couple of months ago, I tried it with another companion and everything went smooth as silk.  

Some things to read (and look for):
http://www.aura.com/learn/why-do-scammers-want-gift-cards#:~:text=Gift%20card%20scams%20don't,similar%20silver%20scratch%2Doff%20sticker.
Watch Out For These Six Common Gift Card Scams
"... 2. Gift card scams don’t just occur over the phone or online. Scammers can copy down gift card numbers and information from displays in store. They may even scratch the back to reveal the PIN, and then cover it with a similar silver scratch-off sticker. When the card is activated, the scammer goes online and drains the balance."
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(They just set up their computers to log in and scan their collection of stolen numbers to see if any card has a new positive balance. If it does, it get drained immediately.)  
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http://consumer.ftc.gov/articles/avoiding-and-reporting-gift-card-scams
Avoiding and Reporting Gift Card Scams
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http://us.norton.com/blog/online-scams/types-of-gift-card-scams
7 types of gift card scams: How to spot them and avoid them

Gift cards are the only way left that I know of to convert cash into a untraceable payment form. If you have to provide a email its nailed to the email you have used. Only use I see for them is pay a deposit to the very rare provider who you MUST see. I suggest you look some more.  
 I have used them to pay a provider I had to cancel on due to a family emergency. My fault and I needed to make it right.  
The key issue is once a pin or picture of the card is provided to another party its lost money never to be seen again.