ONLY a third of items donated using letterbox charity bags end up in charity shops, it was claimed yesterday.
The British Heart Foundation said most of the goods donated were sold abroad for private profit by companies that use bags covered in charity logos. Many charities, often those without shops, do deals with commercial firms collecting door-to-door on their behalf. The company keeps the donated goods and then re-sells them for profit, mostly overseas. They then make a royalty payment to the charity, but as little as 5 per cent of the cash made goes back to good causes, according to the BHF, which has 670 shops nationwide. In some cases charities are getting £50 to £100 per tonne of goods collected when, in fact, the goods can sell abroad for anything up to £1,800. This is now a lucrative industry, with householders inundated with charity bags as firms chase millions of pounds of profits from the trade. Some householders have received up to six charity collecting bags a month through their letterboxes, some containing obvious spelling mistakes naming unknown charities. Mike Lucas, retail director for the BHF, said: "It is vital commercial companies act responsibly and be transparent on their charity bags - particularly around how much profit the named charity will actually make from a collection. "Although this is a legal way to raise money, companies working for commercial gain are a huge problem for charities with high street shops.
"BHF shops do not work with these companies and because of this 100 per cent of the profits made from charity bag donations stay with the charity."
The BHF poll showed 70 per cent of charity bags an average householder receives are from commercial companies.
BHF said as well as itself, charities such as Oxfam, Cancer Research UK and Shelter, which have high street charity shops, ensure goods put into collection bags go to their charity shops.
The BHF survey, by One Poll, of 2,000 adults, also found 65 per cent were not aware commercial companies were involved.
http://thescotsman.scotsman.com/health/Charity-firms-accused-of-lining.6828172.jp
The British Heart Foundation said most of the goods donated were sold abroad for private profit by companies that use bags covered in charity logos. Many charities, often those without shops, do deals with commercial firms collecting door-to-door on their behalf. The company keeps the donated goods and then re-sells them for profit, mostly overseas. They then make a royalty payment to the charity, but as little as 5 per cent of the cash made goes back to good causes, according to the BHF, which has 670 shops nationwide. In some cases charities are getting £50 to £100 per tonne of goods collected when, in fact, the goods can sell abroad for anything up to £1,800. This is now a lucrative industry, with householders inundated with charity bags as firms chase millions of pounds of profits from the trade. Some householders have received up to six charity collecting bags a month through their letterboxes, some containing obvious spelling mistakes naming unknown charities. Mike Lucas, retail director for the BHF, said: "It is vital commercial companies act responsibly and be transparent on their charity bags - particularly around how much profit the named charity will actually make from a collection. "Although this is a legal way to raise money, companies working for commercial gain are a huge problem for charities with high street shops.
"BHF shops do not work with these companies and because of this 100 per cent of the profits made from charity bag donations stay with the charity."
The BHF poll showed 70 per cent of charity bags an average householder receives are from commercial companies.
BHF said as well as itself, charities such as Oxfam, Cancer Research UK and Shelter, which have high street charity shops, ensure goods put into collection bags go to their charity shops.
The BHF survey, by One Poll, of 2,000 adults, also found 65 per cent were not aware commercial companies were involved.
http://thescotsman.scotsman.com/health/Charity-firms-accused-of-lining.6828172.jp
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