Donating to Haiti? Checktheweather’s Tips on How Not to Get Played
Last Tuesday, January 12, 2010 a category 7 earthquake hit Haiti near the capitol city of Port-au-Prince. The number of casualties is still rolling in but the estimated toll is in between the hundreds of thousands. Celebrities and politicians have joined every day people in doing what they can to support recovery efforts in Haiti. Unfortunately only a week after the earthquake hit, reporters are throwing allegations of fraud and mismanagement of funds by charitable organizations. Fortunately, Checktheweather.net did a fair share of research to offer the best tips for making a charitable donation and truly supporting the people of Haiti and the city of Port au-Prince. Read this before you send another text message or attend another Haiti Benefit Concert!
Tip # 1:
Make a clear statement, “Send my money to Haiti”.
When writing a check or making an online donation to a large multi-national charity, like the Red Cross, make sure to clarify the intended program or cause the donation is intended to support. Sometimes large organizations with multiple projects will combine all of their donations and spread funds throughout several programs. That means the $10 text message donation to Red Cross may not make it to Haiti at all and instead go to support building sewer systems in Kazikstan.
Tip #2:
Speaking of text message donations…. They may not be as great as some people think.
This past Friday, the New York Times reported that Sprint and Verizon are the only wireless service providers offering to speed up the process of getting funds from text message donations to Haiti. Otherwise, companies must wait for customers to pay their phone bill before proceeds reach the charity of choice. In some cases this delay could take 30 to 90 to process.
To avoid life changing delays with charitable donations avoid texting your donation and give it directly to an organization through their official website or mailing address.
Tip # 3:
Party for the cause, but with caution.
Everyday another artists comes out and says they are doing a benefit show for recovery in Haiti. Sounds good but what percentage of that concert ticket actually goes to those in need? Depending on the venue and the promotions company, an artist may need to pay a fee to hold the event and to promote through advertisement and flier distribution. If it was not the idea of the artist but of a charity or non-profit the organization may have to come out of pocket to pay for lodging, travel and fees for the artist and the band/DJ. After the artist don’t forget the charge for security at the event, the cost of gas/train/cab fare to get to the venue and the cost of the brand new outfit for the show.
Once the extra expenses are tallied there may end up being less than 50 percent of the proceeds that go directly to the charitable organization.
It is also best to attend benefit concerts that are endorsed by the actual non-profit. That usually means there is a much higher chance of the funds getting to the non-profit quickly and efficiently.
If there is not a relationship between the entertainer and the organization. Look on programs, fliers and event websites to find documentation of the organization that the benefit intends to support and the percentage of proceeds the event plans to donate.
Tip #4:
Research charities with a fine tooth comb.
Visit the official website of any charity before making a donation. Sounds like common sense however, after Hurricane Katrina in 2005, phony websites popped up saying they were donating proceeds to the Red Cross when they were actually sending money to the personal bank accounts of con-artists. NPR reports that an estimated 300,000 to 400,000 dollars in donations to the American Red Cross were lost due to charity scams.
Tip #5:
Find out how they plan on spending donations:
When visiting a charity’s official website find out what other programs they work on and how they intend to spend the money you donate.
Charitynavigator.org states that it is best to give to organizations that have previous experience working in Port au Prince and during natural disasters.
Check the Better Business Bureau and the Federal Bureau of Investigations to make sure the organization follows the Standards of Charitable Accountability. These standards were compiled by a host of small and large charities, government agencies and consumers to promote full disclosure of how organizations spend money and support diversity and healthy business practices. Researching an organization’s Standards of Charitable Accountability may take longer than five minutes but it is definitely a good idea if you plan on donating more than $25.
Tip #6:
Make sure a donation is tax deductible.
While it may sound a bit heartless now to think about tax benefits of your donations, it won’t sound so crazy come next year’s tax season. Donations to 501c3 non-profits like Yele Haiti Foundation, Red Cross and AmeriCares are considered tax-deductible. However, donations to foreign governments (this includes the clothing drive at the Haitian Embassy) are not.
Follow these tips and save the heartache and financial blow of being scammed while trying to do good. For more tips and to review various non-profits and charities visit one of the sites below:
Charitynavigator.org
Better Business Bureau
Federal Bureau of Investigations
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