Charities harassing the general public

I ALWAYS refuse monthly amounts because I would lose track of them and cant afford them. Its a pity your generosity was so abused. I get the phone calls, the mail and emails for money - its too much, you feel bad you can’t oblige - many are really worthy but you would end up broke if you did all you would like to.

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Except that there are two exemptions (maybe three) to the Do Not Call list - the big two being Political calls and Charities. Unfortunately you just have to ask them to remove you from their list (usually time and time again).

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I barely get any phone calls and can usually talk myself out of it by saying I have committed elsewhere. With maill, I usually RTS, “no longer at this address” or if I can’t be bothered, chuck it in recycle bin.

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I donate a fair amount to certain charities but lots of other charities now send me solicitations. I can only assume that charities share their lists with other charities.I keep a list of return addresses and if it’s on the list I return to sender straight away, anything not on the list, I check to see if its another charity and then add them to the list. I also have on the list the one’s I do support (Oxfam, World Vision etc) so I can open those. I also get lots of phone calls, I tell them that I have a policy of never donating to charities that call me and they must be taking me off their list because I don’t get any more from them.

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I also donate quite a bit each year to selected charities, and I have experienced the same issues with lots of letters arriving, often on a monthly basis, from these and other charities. I only have a mobile, and don’t give this number out, so I haven’t had quite the same negative experience as others in this request. I have also had a lot of difficulties getting off their mailing lists. One charity I contacted by phone said they could remove me unless I returned the envelope to sender. I will see if this actually works or not!

Another approach I dislike, and which various charities engage in, is prefilled their donation forms with amounts (i.e. pre-emptive donation values, giving levels - charities have various names for this). These are typically based on past (once off) donations in my case each year. I dislike this because it makes me feel like a source of money, rather than a valued donor to these charities. Even charities I have monthly donations for (e.g. sponsorships) engage in this practice. I am already giving a lot of money, and then they send letters asking for more.

What was more interesting was some of the responses I received from charities when I complained. I was often contacted by the marketing managers. They confirmed this is a marketing tactic they use, and they never display prefilled amounts which are lower than your previous donations because they don’t want you to donate less. One said they did this to get a “return on investment” (postage investment I assume). Others said they did this “to make it easier for our donors”, but I suspect really it is for the same reason as most - to maximise their return.

I do get why they do it, but I hold charities to a higher ethical standard than other organisations who I know only see me as a means to their financial ends. I am disheartened to discover many charities appear to be no different. They may do great work for their clients, but this forum discussion has clear evidence many do not hold their donors in the same high regard.

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Yep, I’ve signed a number of petitions lately and obviously forgot to check or uncheck a box so have been getting A LOT of phone calls. It doesn’t matter how I tell them I’m in no position to help, they just keep pestering me for alternative options. So now when I see an interstate phone number, I just don’t answer my phone anymore (but who knows if something important is being ignored?).

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I received a set of raffle tickets from the heart foundation. I knew nothing about it. From memory I did get some phone call a while back and said I was too busy to talk and not interested. They sent it anyway. I put it in the return post envelope and sent it back with a note I wasn’t interested. You can’t afford to feel intimidated because thats how they get you in. When they send me stuff unsolicited I just keep it. No need to feel guilty thats what they work on. If I want to give money I will give it. It’s my right to say no. And more of us need to exercise that right.

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My experience with the heart foundation is that they are relatively benign compared to the relentless calls on the telephone, even when we ask and the “operator” says they will delete us from their call list
I get frustrated when I can’t “break” into the “operators” script to tell no thanks
I am a contributor to a couple of these charities and am limited on what I can give as a pensioner (albeit a super pensioner)
Disclaimer : I am and have been for a while a collector for the heart foundation

Wombat

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I tell anyone who cold calls me that I never respond to telephone calls and that if I give I do so anonymously because the act of giving is not to get my name anywhere but to help where I can.
I had one caller who, after I told her this, rang incessantly. I asked her to put all the info in an email and that I would decide then but that she or anybody else would not know whether I had or hadn’t donated.

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I now don’t answer any charity calls. I have set their phone numbers into my contact list in the phone as “do not answer” so when they call we never answer them… they try for a while then give up. I find these calls to be very annoying as I raise funds for different children’s charities through Kiwanis. Also there is no way I would give my credit card over the phone. I know charities need money but there has to be a better way to raise funds. I also now throw all charity letters straight into the bin. If by chance they get through to me I just hang up or say “sorry she is not home”.

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Spot on. Reporting should be on ‘net’ contributions to charities. It’s not in taxpayers interests either, as we subsidise donations. On $100, if only $15 goes to charity through these giving programs and $85 goes to private enterprise… Between $15 and $49.50 doesn’t go to the government to spend on public services (based on an individual’s marginal tax rate).

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We get regular calls for charities, but simply say we don’t make donations over the phone. In fact we have our own list which we use for donations at Christmas time. Donating direct cuts out the middleman. “Return to sender” is a good way to slow down the mail. Michael

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I am one of those disliked harrassers, but if people dont want to give those details, there is no way I would harrass them! It’s a worthy cause and my neighbours don’t seem to object.

I refuse to support any charity which makes unsolicited phone calls or turns up on my doorstep. I refuse to validate such behaviour.

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My mother donated to a few charities and has since been bombarded with mail from 100’s of charities. She has since moved to a nursing home and sold the family home. Trying to do the right thing, i have had her mail redirected to my place and each time i get a letter, i call the organisation and ask them to remove her name from their Mailing list and also refrain from on-selling or giving her details to any other parties (this 2nd bit is important).

It’s been 12 months now, and i’ve probably gone from 20-30 letters a week to about 1 per month now… Slowly getting there. Unfortunately the mail redirection will end soon, So the purchaser of the house will need to deal with the remaining few.

Frustrating…

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I’m only on a disability pension with an unlisted phone number but I still get bombarded with charities wanting money and some are really persistent, takes forever to get them off the phone. RSPCA are the worse.

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I like to call the people ‘collecting’ for charities chuggers - charity muggers. The actual charity only sees a small percentage of the money you donate when you sign up for automatic deductions, I think it’s for 1 - 2 years that the company they employ to collect the money takes their cut. The charities only use them as they are a reliable source of income.

The actual people collecting can take on some really aggressive tactics to try to get you to sign up. I politely told one guy who was trying to get people sign up for monthly payments for a charity, I can’t remember which one, ‘no thanks’. He followed me to my car, continued to annoy me when I was loading my groceries in, tried to help me load my groceries in, and kept on asking me to sign up. I told him repeatedly to leave me alone and that I wasn’t interested. He followed me to put the trolley back and when I got into my car I tried to shut the door and he held onto it so I couldn’t. It was then that I swore at him and told him I’d shut his hand in the door if he didn’t remove it and only then did he back off.

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Yes, chuggers is a common term used in the UK for the ones that are out in the street and work on commission as an intermediary. It should be used more often!

I’ve got no problems donating to charities when they don’t harrass. There is an elderly man that collects for the Salvation Army in the Canberra Centre. He just stands there in his uniform with a collection box. I’m always happy to give him whatever gold coins I have on me, or a tenner.

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After answering a telephone survey regarding works done by various organisations, I obviously got put on a " sucker" list. I now get between 10 and 30 phone calls a week plus half a dozen mail requests. I am a pensioner and while I give what I can to the charities I support, the harassment from other charities is unending. They refuse to take no for an answer,pleading and begging for just a small donation which I “surely can afford.”
The mail solicitations often include notepads, mailing labels, pens and personalised key rings. I have a wonderful collection of these items. My thought is that if the charity involved can afford to send all these they don’t need my $5!

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