Post by Dave on May 3, 2005 17:58:22 GMT -5
Because I run a youth organisation that is a Registered Charity in the UK, it annoys and alarms me that there are some bastards out there whose only interest in charitable concerns is to rip them off. So I thought it an idea to take advantage of this Forum to raise the alarm about scams; not just those that affect charitable concerns, but any and all scams that affect us all in one way or another.
The scam I want to raise awareness of here is of a particularly evil nature.
Con merchants have been rumbled administering another scam on charities in Britain. It’s not known how long this scam has been in operation but it is believed that thieving toe-rags have syphoned off thousands upon thousands of £££’s in hard fought for funds that are intended to benefit the people who need it the most.
This scam is started when the con merchants obtain a charity’s bank account details from Gift Aid forms. Gift Aid is when an individual agrees to allow the charity concerned permission to approach the Inland Revenue and apply for the individuals tax back on their donation. This basically means that if I am a taxpayer and I make a donation of £10 to a charity of my choice, then that charity can ask the taxman for the tax that I would be paying on £10 of my income that I had just donated. So instead of it going into the state’s coffers it goes directly to the charity and the £10 becomes £10 plus whatever amount of tax is payable on it.
Once these thieving low lives have this information they are able to set up a standing order on the charity’s account, and money automatically flows out of the account and into the pockets of the thieves.
This scam was uncovered by SIGN, the National Society for Mental Health and Deafness, when they spotted two standing orders that were removing hundreds of £££’s from their bank account.
If you have ANY involvement in a charitable concern, please do make sure that they are aware of this very nasty scam. The Charity Commission in the UK is urging charities to consider “Deposit Only” accounts for charitable donations. By doing this, funds raised will be safe from this scam as standing orders cannot be attached to this type of account while at the same time keeping the details of your normal account out of the public domain.
The scam I want to raise awareness of here is of a particularly evil nature.
Con merchants have been rumbled administering another scam on charities in Britain. It’s not known how long this scam has been in operation but it is believed that thieving toe-rags have syphoned off thousands upon thousands of £££’s in hard fought for funds that are intended to benefit the people who need it the most.
This scam is started when the con merchants obtain a charity’s bank account details from Gift Aid forms. Gift Aid is when an individual agrees to allow the charity concerned permission to approach the Inland Revenue and apply for the individuals tax back on their donation. This basically means that if I am a taxpayer and I make a donation of £10 to a charity of my choice, then that charity can ask the taxman for the tax that I would be paying on £10 of my income that I had just donated. So instead of it going into the state’s coffers it goes directly to the charity and the £10 becomes £10 plus whatever amount of tax is payable on it.
Once these thieving low lives have this information they are able to set up a standing order on the charity’s account, and money automatically flows out of the account and into the pockets of the thieves.
This scam was uncovered by SIGN, the National Society for Mental Health and Deafness, when they spotted two standing orders that were removing hundreds of £££’s from their bank account.
If you have ANY involvement in a charitable concern, please do make sure that they are aware of this very nasty scam. The Charity Commission in the UK is urging charities to consider “Deposit Only” accounts for charitable donations. By doing this, funds raised will be safe from this scam as standing orders cannot be attached to this type of account while at the same time keeping the details of your normal account out of the public domain.