BBB Wise Giving Alliance provides eight tips for donating wisely
ARLINGTON, Va., May 9 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- As evidence of the
devastation in Myanmar continues to mount, many Americans are looking for
ways to help by donating to a relief organization or charity. The Better
Business Bureau Wise Giving Alliance warns that -- as occurred following
the tsunami disaster in 2004 -- fraudulent charities will likely emerge to
try and scam donations from well-meaning Americans.
"Whenever there is a major natural disaster, be it home or abroad,
there are two things you can count on. The first is the generosity of
Americans to donate time and money to help victims, and the second is the
appearance of poorly run and in some cases fraudulent charities," said Art
Taylor, President and CEO of the BBB Wise Giving Alliance. "Not only do
Americans need to be concerned about avoiding fraud, they also need to make
sure their money goes to competent relief organizations that are equipped
and experienced to handle the unique challenges of providing assistance in
Myanmar."
BBB Wise Giving Alliance offers the following eight tips to help
Americans decide where to direct donations and ensure that their money
provides the most benefit to the victims in Myanmar:
Rely on expert opinion when it comes to evaluating a charity.
Be cautious when relying on third-party recommendations such as
bloggers or other Web site references, as they might not have fully
researched the listed relief organizations. The public can go to
http://www.bbb.org/charity to research charities and relief organizations to
verify that they are accredited by the BBB and meet the 20 Standards for
Charity Accountability.
Find out if the charity has an on-the-ground continuing presence in
Myanmar.
Because of the stringent conditions in Myanmar, unless the charity
already has staff inside the country, it will be difficult for new aid
workers to attain visas and ultimately accomplish aid assistance in the
country. Check out organizations at http://www.InterAction.org -- the nation's
largest coalition of international relief organizations -- to verify which
aid organizations are currently active in Myanmar.
Find out who will benefit in Myanmar and what type of assistance they
will be provided.
The immediate needs in Myanmar are food, water, shelter, transportation
and clean-up efforts. Because it has not been determined how long
organizations will be permitted to operate in Myanmar, long-term goals
might not be achieved.
Be wary of claims that 100 percent of donations will assist Myanmar
victims.
Despite what an organization might claim, charities have fund raising
and administrative costs. Even a credit card donation will involve, at a
minimum, a processing fee. If a charity claims 100 percent of collected
funds will be assisting Myanmar victims, the truth is that the organization
is still probably incurring fund raising and administrative expenses. They
may use some of their other funds to pay this, but the expenses will still
be incurred.
Find out if the charity is providing direct aid or raising money for
other groups that are active in Myanmar.
Some charities may be raising money to pass along to relief
organizations that are already active in the region. If so, you may want to
consider "avoiding the middleman" and giving directly to charities that
have a presence in the Myanmar. Or, at a minimum, check out the ultimate
recipients of these donations to ensure the organizations are equipped to
effectively provide aid.
Be cautious when giving online.
Be cautious about online giving, especially in response to spam
messages and emails that claim to link to a relief organization. In
response to the tsunami disaster, there were concerns raised about many Web
sites and new organizations that were created overnight allegedly to help
victims.
Gifts of clothing, food or other in-kind donations are not recommended.
In-kind donation assistance is not practical. Most foreign relief
organizations prefer cash donations so that supplies can be purchased near
the relief site. In-kind drives for food and clothing--while well
intentioned--will not end up being delivered to those in need in Myanmar.
If tax deduction is a concern, donate domestically.
To help ensure your contribution is tax deductible, the donation should
be made to a U.S.-based charitable organization that is tax exempt under
section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code. Go to IRS Publication 78 on
http://www.irs.gov for a current list of all organizations eligible to receive
contributions deductible as charitable gifts.
For more information on BBB Wise Giving Alliance and to view more than
one thousand BBB Wise Giving Reports(TM) on charities and relief
organizations across the nation go to http://www.bbb.org/charity.
To schedule an interview with a BBB spokesperson on donating wisely to
Myanmar relief efforts, contact Alison Preszler at 703-247-9376.
About BBB Wise Giving Alliance
BBB Wise Giving Alliance helps donors make informed giving decisions
and advances high standards of conduct among organizations that solicit
contributions from the public. The Alliance produces in-depth evaluative
reports on national charities based on comprehensive Standards for Charity
Accountability and publishes the Wise Giving Guide, a quarterly magazine on
philanthropic issues.
About BBB (http://www.us.bbb.org)
BBB is an unbiased non-profit organization that sets and upholds high
standards for fair and honest business behavior. BBB provides objective
advice, free business BBB Reliability Reports(TM) and charity BBB Wise
Giving Reports(TM), and educational information on topics affecting
marketplace trust. To further promote trust, BBB also offers complaint and
dispute resolution support for consumers and businesses when there is
difference in viewpoints. The first BBB was founded in 1912. Today, 126
BBBs serve communities across the U.S. and Canada, evaluating and
monitoring nearly 4 million local and national businesses and charities.
Please visit http://www.us.bbb.org for more information about BBB.
SOURCE Better Business Bureau
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Related links:
http://www.InterAction.org
CONTACT:
Alison Preszler of Better Business Bureau,
+1-703-247-9376, apreszler@council.bbb.org
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