Holiday Donations Scams

Arizona's Attorney General is warning Arizona consumers that during the holidays the incidences of fraudulent appeals goes up, as criminals take advantage of the good hearts of Arizona citizens that make charitable donations during this time of year.

The Attorney General's Office provides the following tips to make sure that you are donating to legitimate charities:

• Be skeptical of calls soliciting funds that coincide with highly publicized tragedies, such as the wildfires, tornadoes, or other dramatic events. Fraudulent fund raisers will try to exploit your sympathy for those who have been devastated by such events.
• Be wary of appeals that insist that, due to an emergency, you must send money now.
• Do not make cash donations. If you write a check, make your check payable to the charity, never to the individual soliciting the donation.
• Remember to ask for a receipt and a statement that the contribution is tax deductible.
• Be extremely skeptical of anyone asking for a donation by requesting your credit card number or bank account information over the phone.

If you aren't familiar with the organization, find out how the charity will use your donation. Ask for information about its programs and for a copy of its financial report. Ask what percentage of the funds will be used for programming and how much will be spent on administrative costs. Reputable charities will be happy to provide this information.

• Be careful of charities with names that sound impressive or resemble those of other organizations. Some scam artists use names similar to reputable organizations to confuse donors.
• Find out if the charity is registered with the Arizona Secretary of State’s Office.

Although the Attorney General didn't mention it, here's a tip of my own. If the solicitation comes in the form of a phone call, a reputable charitable organization will send you the request for a donation in the mail if you ask for it. They called you, so they should already have your information on file. They may ask you to confirm your address that they already have, but don't provide your address if they don't already have it. Again, don't ever give out your credit card number over the phone to any incoming caller.

Finally, don't respond to any email requests for donations, and if the email provides a phone number for you to call to verify authenticity, don't use that phone number. It could be a scam artist waiting for your call.