corporateabuse.net

The Federal Trade Commission, together with dozens of state law enforcement officials, will announce “Operation False Charity,” a crackdown on fraudulent telemarketers who falsely claim to be soliciting money on behalf of police, firefighters, and veterans charities, at a press conference at FTC Headquarters Wednesday, May 20, 2009 at 11 a.m. The sweep includes cases brought by the FTC and state enforcers, as well as tips for consumers on how to avoid charity scams. A spokesperson fluent in Spanish will be available for interviews.

What is the correlation to donation fraud, and the corporateabuse site? Sure we focus on companies that have errant motives, but we also want you the reader, to have the the tools neccesary to give to proper donations when you feel that you can afford it. Charities such as, Military Homefront are legit, and deserving of any support that U.S. citizens can afford.

So when you are eating dinner and the phone rings, the caller wants you to give up your life savings, we want you fully armed. here is what you need to know before giving up any money.

• Ask for the charity’s name, address, and phone number, and written information about its programs.
• Ask whether the person contacting you is a professional fundraiser and how much of your contribution will go to fundraising costs.
• Check the history of the organization with the office that regulates charities in your state.  For a list of state offices, visit the National Association of State Charity Officials.

ou should also know the warning signs of a scam:

• High pressure pitches. Reject them: It’s okay to hang up.
• A thank you for a pledge you don’t remember making.  Be skeptical; scam artists will lie to get your money.
• Requests for cash.  Avoid giving cash donations.
• Charities that offer to send a courier or overnight delivery service to collect your money.
• Charities that guarantee sweepstakes winnings in exchange for a contribution.
• Charities that spring up overnight, especially those that involve current events like natural disasters, or those that claim to be for police officers, veterans, or firefighters.  They probably don’t have the infrastructure to get your donations to the affected area or people.

For more detailed information about charity donations, read Charitable Donations: Give or Take.

To give an idea just how serious the FTC takes these matters, here is an example of one such sting from this month “the FTC alleged that defendant David Scott Marleau ran several for-profit fundraisers that solicited money on behalf of sham police, fire, and veterans non-profit charitable organizations. The FTC charged that Marleau and his companies, Jedi Investments, LLC, Impact Fundraising, LLC, Millenium Fundraising, LLC, and PC Marl, Inc., misrepresented the programs for which funds were solicited, misrepresented that donations would benefit the donor’s local community, mailed notices to consumers stating they had made a pledge when they had not even been called, and misrepresented their affiliation with sheriffs and police. Six additional counts in the complaint charged the defendants with multiple violations of the FTC’s Telemarketing Sales Rule, including ignoring company-specific do-not-call requests. The Commission also alleged that their operations often targeted seniors, sometimes debiting their accounts for donations without permission.

The proposed order settling the charges requires the defendants to stop misrepresenting facts, make certain disclosures when soliciting money from consumers, and stop violating the Telemarketing Sales Rule. The order also requires that the defendants substantiate any claims they make about a nonprofit or its programs prior to soliciting consumers, and requires that they train and monitor their telemarketers. Finally, the order imposes a monetary judgment of nearly $1.7 million against the corporate entities Jedi Investments, LLC, Impact Fundraising, LLC, Millenium Fundraising, LLC, and PC Marl, Inc. That judgment is suspended based on these defendants’ documented inability to pay.”

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