Give to charity — but don't be a sucker

Herb Weisbaum • Profile • E-mail

Americans are incredibly generous. We are expected to donate about $300 billion to charity this year, half of which will be contributed between Thanksgiving and the end of the year.

Right now, more than a million charitable organizations are trying to get a share of this money. That explains all the calls, letters, and e-mail solicitations you have no doubt been getting the past few weeks.

The vast majority of charitable organizations are honest and will put your money to good use – most, but not all. And even the legitimate ones sometimes use questionable solicitation tactics to get contributions.

“People need to be careful of fraudulent charitable solicitations any time of year, but especially around the holidays when both legitimate and fraudulent charities will try to tug at your heartstrings,” says Susan Grant, director of the National Consumers League’s Fraud Information Center.

Have you ever gotten a phone call like this?

Hi, my name is Bob and I’m being paid to convince you to donate to an organization I don’t know much about. But the script they gave me says they’re a wonderful group and they really need your help. If you donate right now, without taking the time to check them out, I’ll get a really nice commission.

You probably have. It just sounded different. Telemarketers making these calls don’t say they’re getting paid to snag donations. And they’re not about to tell you most of your money is going to them, not the charity.

Let the donor beware!
Don’t assume the majority of the money you donate will go to the group’s programs and services. There is no limit to how much a charity can spend on fundraising. Years ago, the Supreme Court ruled government agencies do not have the right to regulate this.

Choosing a charity — When in doubt, check it out: When an unfamiliar organization asks you for a donation, don’t give without gathering details about the charity. — Watch out for cases of mistaken identity: Many charity names sound alike. Be careful that the one soliciting you is the one you have in mind. Every group with “cancer” in its name is not the American Cancer Society. — Watch out for charity fraud: Legitimate charities willingly provide written information about their programs, finances or how donations are used. They never insist you provide your credit card number, bank account number or any other personal information. — Know how much your purchase helps the charity: If something is being sold to benefit a charity, be wary of vague statements such as “all proceeds go to charity” or “your purchase will benefit a charity.” Look for a disclosure that indicates the actual or estimated amount of the purchase price that the charity will receive to fund its programs. Source: BBB Wise Giving Alliance

“You can spend 95 cents of every dollar collected on fundraising and it’s legal, as long as you’re not misrepresenting how you are spending the money," says Bennett Weiner, CEO of the Better Business Bureau’s Wise Giving Alliance.

Police, firefighter solicitations
In my experience, police and firefighter organizations use some of the most aggressive and deceptive fundraisers. Some of these groups are legitimate and do good work, but most have absolutely no connection to your local police or fire department. Cleverly worded phone calls and mailings can trick you into making that assumption.

“Some are not even charities,” cautions Weiner.

They are unions or fraternal organizations. If you give to them, your contribution may not be tax deductible.

In September, the Federal Trade Commission charged a major nationwide telephone fundraiser with misleading people about where their money went. Civic Development Group, a New Jersey-based telemarketer, raises tens of millions of dollars each year, mainly for police and firefighter groups.

The FTC alleges phone solicitors tell consumers the charity receives 100 percent of their donation and that no professional fund-raising company is involved in the campaign. According to the government’s complaint, on average no more than 15 percent of the consumer’s donation goes to the charity. The rest goes to the professional fundraiser.

“We cannot require anybody to make a disclosure regarding the amount of the donation going to charitable purposes,” says FTC lawyer Joel Brenner. “But if they are making misrepresentations, we can stop that.”

I contacted Civic Development Group, but have not been able to get a response.

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