FAQs: Bogus collectors

An organisation that claims to either give the clothes to charity or sell them for the direct benefit of charity but is not in fact doing this. The wording on the leaflets and sacks may vary.

Your unwanted items can be resold in a legitimate charity shop and:

• Raise essential funds for that charity - many charities have shops so you may be able to choose a particular charity you support
• Provide affordable clothing for those who need it
• Any items that can't be sold in a charity shop are passed onto merchants who take them abroad for resale at affordable prices anyway

The bogus collector is not actually raising any funds for charities in this country or abroad. They are merely selling your items for their own profit.

Donating second hand goods, including clothes, to charity shops is a vital way for many charities to raise funds and support good causes. Sometimes charity shops organise collections of goods from people’s homes to stock their shops and leave leaflets and sometimes bags through your letterbox. There are a number of questions to think about to check whether a clothing collection request is genuine.

Does the sack or leaflet say the collection is for a registered charity?
Firstly, look for a Charity Registration number. This is not the same as the Company Registration number. If you can't find one or you are still not sure, call the Charity Commission on 0845 300 0218, and ask them to help you. Alternatively, visit the online Register of Charities to check that it is genuine. Many charities running shops collect house-to-house and their collection sacks will clearly state their charity registration number and many will also carry the Association's Code of Charity Retailing logo.

Do they only give a registered company number?
This is not an indication that this is a charity, it just means that the organisation is registered with Companies House.

Is the charity actually named?
Be wary of wording that just says ‘families in need’ or ‘sick children at Christmas’.

Does the leaflet or bag give a phone number?
The absence of a phone number may mean the collectors do not want to answer questions and may be an indication that the cause may not be genuine.

If you are still not sure, take your unwanted items to your local charity shop. These shops should all have their registered charity number displayed somewhere within the shop. If you have a large number of items you can't carry, try calling your local charity shops as some will collect.

Find the charity shops nearest to you.

Following a meeting between the then Charities Minister, Ed Miliband, and key stakeholders, including the Association, the Government launched an awareness raising initiative about bogus house to house collectors, in December 2007. The initiative was supported by a leaflet and poster. The initiative is supported by the Charity Commission, and members of the public should go to the Charity Commission website for further information.

Contact your Local Authority to check whether the collection has been licensed, as all house-to-house collections by or for charities should be. Report the matter to them. If the information on the leaflet/bag is erroneous – e.g. a false charity number has been given – then you should also alert your local Trading Standards officer. Lastly, if you see a suspicious collection of bags of donations – e.g. charity branded sacks going into a non-charity van – you should ring the police, giving as much information as possible.