The news today reports that a Help For Heroes fraudster has been jailed for four-and-a-half years after stealing £300.000 ($485,377)
The fraudster used his own fleet of old Army vehicles to set up fund-raising stations in supermarket car parks across the country.
His recruits are not to blame. They genuinely believed they were collecting for the charity, set up to help wounded squaddies. But the con man behind the collections pocketed the cash for more than 18 months.
The judge said offenses like these dent public confidence in charities.
The fraudster used his own fleet of old Army vehicles to set up fund-raising stations in supermarket car parks across the country.
His recruits are not to blame. They genuinely believed they were collecting for the charity, set up to help wounded squaddies. But the con man behind the collections pocketed the cash for more than 18 months.
The judge said offenses like these dent public confidence in charities.
www.institute-of-fundraising.org.uk
This is the case for foundations around the world, set up to help the needy in our societies or assist people who have suffered calamities overseas.
Here are some of the frauds that have come to attention over the last few years.
*A group of bogus street fundraisers are currently misusing Friends of the Elderly’s online material to sign members of the public up to supposedly give donations to the charity. The charity does not use any street-based fund-raising techniques. Members of the public should not share their personal and financial details with anyone approaching them on the street pretending to be raising funds.
Bogus Activity for the Royal British Legion: The ‘fundraisers’ work in a team of four or five and look like a ‘professional’ outfit. They claim to be Afghan veterans, raising funds by selling households goods. They have a form of fake ID. As suggested they have compelling scripts and asks.
*Always check for identification. Legitimate door-to-door British Red Cross fundraisers will be:
wearing a red tabard, red polo shirt, jacket or gilet with the British Red Cross emblem, displaying an Appco Group Support or British Red Cross identification badge with their name, photo and ID number and carrying a letter of authority from the British Red Cross.
*Reported by CNN last year: The worst charity in America operates from a metal warehouse behind a gas station in Holiday, Florida.
Every year, Kids Wish Network raises millions of dollars in donations in the name of dying children and their families.
However, it spends less than 3 cents on the dollar helping kids.
In the past decade alone, Kids Wish has channeled nearly $110 million donated for sick children to its corporate solicitors. An additional $4.8 million has gone to pay the charity's founder and his own consulting firms.
Here are some of the frauds that have come to attention over the last few years.
*A group of bogus street fundraisers are currently misusing Friends of the Elderly’s online material to sign members of the public up to supposedly give donations to the charity. The charity does not use any street-based fund-raising techniques. Members of the public should not share their personal and financial details with anyone approaching them on the street pretending to be raising funds.
Bogus Activity for the Royal British Legion: The ‘fundraisers’ work in a team of four or five and look like a ‘professional’ outfit. They claim to be Afghan veterans, raising funds by selling households goods. They have a form of fake ID. As suggested they have compelling scripts and asks.
*Always check for identification. Legitimate door-to-door British Red Cross fundraisers will be:
wearing a red tabard, red polo shirt, jacket or gilet with the British Red Cross emblem, displaying an Appco Group Support or British Red Cross identification badge with their name, photo and ID number and carrying a letter of authority from the British Red Cross.
*Reported by CNN last year: The worst charity in America operates from a metal warehouse behind a gas station in Holiday, Florida.
Every year, Kids Wish Network raises millions of dollars in donations in the name of dying children and their families.
However, it spends less than 3 cents on the dollar helping kids.
In the past decade alone, Kids Wish has channeled nearly $110 million donated for sick children to its corporate solicitors. An additional $4.8 million has gone to pay the charity's founder and his own consulting firms.
This raises the question of where funds go after they are collected. My husband refuses to donate at all, saying most of the funds are used up in administration, so you're just keeping office workers employed. Not that we could afford to help anyone else when we're struggling to pay the bills on an old-age pension.
Wouldn't it be better if we simply helped people we see around us? With something we are able to offer, like a cup of tea and a chat? After all, we can't help everyone in the world. That's too big a task.
Wouldn't it be better if we simply helped people we see around us? With something we are able to offer, like a cup of tea and a chat? After all, we can't help everyone in the world. That's too big a task.
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