Chuggers - Charity Collectors

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   Colin323posted 9 years ago

   I was stopped in a supermarket by a chugger (a charity collector). A very nice person, but hogtied by her script. First, I had to listen to a long introduction full of questions about how caring was I? Did I know there were X million disabled children in Britain? etc. This was delivered at fast speed. In the end I interrupted the flow to say I was willing to give her a donation there and then. But she couldn’t accept a cash donation, instead wanting me to sign up for a regular payment to the charity. I don’t want to do that as I’m on a pension now, but I’m happy to make one off payments when I can afford it. I had £5 of change in my hand and could have handed that over immediately. But no. They want a regular payment and the hapless collector wouldn't get any income unless I did that. It just seems incredibly short-sighted that charities collecting in supermarkets, or elsewhere in public places, can’t take immediate donations – they must be missing out on hundreds of pounds every hour. And why can’t these collectors be allowed to deviate from their script, obviously written by some bright spark in their marketing department tuned into the latest marketing crap. I would have appreciated it if she had come right out and said ‘I’m looking for a regular donation’, instead of all the preliminaries they have to wade through. I feel sorry for the people who have to take on these jobs; i can’t believe they really want to do this type of legalised begging for a living; it must be soul-destroying. It left me feeling bad, like some old misanthropic miser.  But it seems these charity collectors are everywhere now; all their causes are good ones, but there must be better ways they could collect money. What do you think?

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      Adventuretravelsposted 9 years agoin reply to this

      Don't feel bad Colin. I agree with everything you say, and I have had exactly the same experience - there must be a better way! I get the same on the phone so I don't answer it any more! My answerphone message says something like this: ' I'm so sorry but I am experiencing a lot of nuisance calls at the moment so please leave a message and if I like the sound of your voice I'll pick up!' lol It's amazing how many don't bother talking - they all want me to sign up for something - it drives me bonkers because I can't afford it! Nice to speak!

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         Colin323posted 9 years agoin reply to this

         Yes, the phone calls drive me nuts, too AT. An international charity phoned me the other day and immediately said 'Hey, I'm not asking for any money. But can I send you something to read instead?'  Relieved, I said yes, and two days later came a letter asking me to donate at least £50 a month!  That was the lowest amount you could choose to donate; the other amounts were £75; £100; £150 & £200 A MONTH!  Are they crazy, or what! £200 would be just under half my monthly state pension, and £50 would leave a big dent in my income..

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   Kiss andTalesposted 9 years ago

   I think you are bringing up a very good point. We have to be on caution for the scammers ,and hustlers of the world.
   They now have teams of people who make it a living begging people for money. And they go home like everyone else .it is a Job.
   Sad because everybody's money need to be accounted for in paying their bills taking care of their families and self . Not to be scammed using the pitty line.
   I seen one in action one time turn bad. A man at a gas station ask a man I recognized as a coach from High School to help him with gas, the coach saw the can and felt pitty so he told him to stand at the pump while he pay for the gas.
   The coach did do as he said.
   Then left to get in his car. So the man thought the coach had driven off,
   But he did not ,so the man came in the gas station and ask for a return on the money spent on the pump
   The coach was right behind him as he ask the gas attendant ,boy did he read him his thoughts . One I will never forget .
   Watch and learn before you give.

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   Kylyssaposted 9 years ago

   Ugh. To me, that all suggests they are afraid of their workers walking away with cash donations and that they also think they're ignorant.

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   liesl5858posted 9 years ago

   To be honest with you sir, a lot of charities are becoming greedy in begging for money they even put a price on how much the public should give. I think a lot of people are also struggling to make ends meet and have limited funds to live on so if they want to give to charity it is up to them to decide how much they should give not being dictated as to how much they should give. It puts people off when they put a price as to how much we the public should give. It is disgusting I think.

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   Millionaire Tipsposted 9 years ago

   That hasn't happened here (I'm in Ohio). I would feel uncomfortable with giving out my personal information, even if it is just a name and address, to a stranger on a street corner or in front of a shop.  The anonymity is what allows me to give the cash.

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      Kiss andTalesposted 9 years agoin reply to this

      I just visited Ohio Akron ,my brother passed away there. I stayed a almost two weeks taking care of his business . Funny because that is where I saw people on corners with cardboard signs asking for help.
      I was told that there was a company that these people work for . They even had people with missing limbs working for them sad how far people will go for the love of money.

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         Millionaire Tipsposted 9 years agoin reply to this

         I meant that people don't ask for recurring donations on the street.  It might be different in Akron, but here, the people collecting money on street corners are not employees.  They are collecting money for themselves.  There was one man downtown who was missing both arms.  A newspaper article said he collected $40,000 a year or thereabouts. I don't remember the exact number, but it was more than I was getting working a full time job with lots of overtime.
         
         I think the ones collecting in front of stores that are working on behalf of a charity are volunteers, not paid employees, but I am not sure.

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            Millionaire Tipsposted 9 years agoin reply to this

            I think though that I think it is great that companies are able to find jobs for people with handicaps, and in this case, the handicaps are not really handicaps since they wind up being a benefit, earning more money.

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      Colin323posted 9 years agoin reply to this

      Yes, agree about the anonymity. However, I sent a cheque once to a charity after a global disaster without enclosing my name & address or phone number with the cheque. Yet somehow, they tracked me down and phoned me at home to ask for a monthly donation. I was furious and would dearly like to know how they were able to get this information

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         Millionaire Tipsposted 9 years agoin reply to this

         The check has your information on it.
         I once sent a check to a local charity.  They sent me a thank you with another envelope within the week.  The next week, I received two more mailings envelopes. I think it was too early to ask for more money already.  Then the next week, I received two more.  I think they spent more on postage than my small donation covered, and I decided they were not using my money wisely and I would not donate any more to them.

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   Kiss andTalesposted 9 years ago

   Wow they did not appreciate the kindness you did show! They got greedy.

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   Rachael Tateposted 9 years ago

   I hate the regular payment thing and the ones who ring up after I make a one off payment to talk about whether I'd like to contribute more! I find it's the big charities that do this most so now try just to contribute to smaller local charities who actually appreciate your donation.

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   RonHawkposted 9 years ago

   I like to give, especially this time of the year, but I like to give where it counts.  I don't like "giving" under duress, or after listening to some pitch that's supposed to appeal to your emotion right there and then.  Many of these techniques involve manipulation which to me discredits the party doing it.  So, the preference is for donations to go to organizations that push a cause one cares about, that are reputable, that are audited and are known to not be fraudulent, that aren't top heavy with fat CEOs with huge salaries.  An even more reliable approach would be to give to organization that you do or have done volunteer work for.  Those causes are obviously closer to your heart.  Based on those criteria, in this particular case the person who was pitching you their case more than likely would have made me uncomfortable too.  At best I would have asked for the details of their organization to check out before donating anything.

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