To mark 'Giving Tuesday', a global day of generosity, the Fundraising Regulator, Charity Commission for England and Wales and Action Fraud join forces to remind people how to give with confidence.
The campaign comes at the start of the festive season, during which people across the UK are more likely to donate to charity than in the rest of the year. A recent study by the Charities Aid Foundation found that 67 per cent of people in the UK had donated money to charitable causes in the past month. Last year, charities' overall income amounted to more than £90.5bn, enabling them to deliver crucial services and assistance to individuals and communities, invest in medical research and campaign against inequalities, to name just a few causes.
Most fundraising is genuine, with charity-related fraud falling over the past year. But data from Action Fraud underlines the need for continued vigilance when donating to charity, especially at times of increased giving. Last year, there were 484 reports and a total loss of £1,177,773. While this is a small figure compared to the overall funds raised, and a reduction compared to the year previous, regulators want to help donors ensure that all donations reach the intended cause. Fraudsters do take advantage of public generosity, using methods such as fake appeal websites, email appeals that falsely use the name of genuine charities, or appeals from fake charities.
Upon launching the campaign, which spans the festive period, the regulators are encouraging the public to continue give with confidence this Christmas by following their simple steps for safer giving:
- Check the charity's name and registration number on the Charity Register at www.gov.uk/checkcharity - most charities with an annual income of £5,000 or more must be registered.
- Make sure the charity is genuine before giving any financial information.
- Be careful when responding to emails or clicking on links within them.
- Contact or find out more online about the charity that you're seeking to donate to or work with to understand how they are spending their funds
- Look out for the Fundraising Badge - the logo that says 'registered with Fundraising Regulator' - and check the Fundraising Regulator's Directory of organisations which have committed to fundraise in line with the Code of Fundraising Practice.
- A face-to-face fundraiser should have a licence from the relevant Local Authority Licensing team or the Metropolitan Police (in Greater London). Never feel under pressure into donating immediately. Ask the collector f
