Consumer Advisory Bulletin- June 2009

Donor Beware!

How to avoid charity fraud and make the most of your donations.

Iowans give generously to charities and good causes -- but some donations never reach the people who need help. Some so-called “charities” are outright scams that pocket all the funds people contribute. Other charities use paid professional fundraisers that eat up 80% to 90% of the donations in fundraising expenses, so little is left for the charitable mission. Questionable charities or their fundraisers may mislead donors, divert funds from more effective charitable operations, and shortchange the people in need.

Follow these tips to protect yourself from fundraising and charity abuses:

• Don’t be fooled by a sympathetic name or “pitch.” Some operations use names that promise more than they deliver. For example, veterans, law enforcement, fire fighters, and children’s causes clearly deserve generous public support – but some marginal operations claim connections with such groups yet provide them with very little support. Contact your local sheriff or police or fire department or veterans organization to check out claims that a donation “will be used locally.”
  
  
• Ask questions. Reputable charities welcome questions. Ask how much of your donation will go for the charitable purpose, and exactly how and where your contribution will be used. Ask if the caller is a professional fundraiser.
  
  
• Ask phone solicitors to send written information. Check out the charity before you make a decision. Be suspicious if they refuse to send solid information. Check them out at the national Better Business Bureau “wise giving” site – www.give.org.
  
  
• Don't be fooled by "look-alike" names. Some scams use names that sound impressive and are designed to resemble well-respected organizations.
  
  
• Don't give your credit card or checking account numbers over the phone to someone you don't know.
  
  
• Give directly to a known charity of your choice. That's always the best option. Check your telephone directory for a charity's local office and contact the office.
  
  
• Bottom line: Keep giving generously, but give wisely!

There are many fine charities soliciting contributions in Iowa, and the Attorney General's Office is eager to stop fundraising abuses and uphold the integrity of our system of giving.

If you think you may have been cheated by a fundraising scheme, write to the Attorney General's Consumer Protection Division, Hoover Building, Des Moines, Iowa 50319. Call 515-281-5926, or 888-777-4590 toll free. The A.G. web site is:www.IowaAttorneyGeneral.gov.

Go to www.ftc.gov/charityfraud/ for many good resources from the U.S. Federal Trade Commission about how to avoid charity fraud. [Go to news release on Professional Fundraiser fraud.]

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