SCAM charities selling mass cards 'signed' by dead priests and clothes companies with fake charity registration numbers are set to become a thing of the past.Strict new legislation designed to clamp down on money spinning organisations posing as philanthropic bodies giving money to worthy causes is due to come into force within weeks.
The Charities Bill 2007 is expected to be passed into law before the Dáil summer recess and is currently being reviewed by the attorney general.
Submissions from the consultation process ahead of the Bill being enacted have uncovered a number of underhand tactics employed by companies to give the false impression that people handing over money are doing so for charitable purposes.
These include:
» Mass card suppliers and vendors pertaining to give money to third-world charities but who in fact keep virtually 100% of the profits.
» Cards 'signed' by dead priests, priests who do not exist or forged signatures that cannot be traced.
» 'Charity' clothes collection companies whose promotional leaflets display fake charity registration numbers and contact numbers to give the impression of authenticity.
Such tactics would appear to be on the way out however, with the legislation making it a criminal offence to give the impression that profitable organisations are charities.
Fine Gael TD Michael Ring, who has been heavily involved in the bill, said it was important to include a section that stamps out such activity.
This element of the legislation is currently being reviewed by the attorney general while the possibility of making it compulsory for mass cards to display charity registration numbers and contact numbers is also being investigated.
Ring has also tabled amendments to the bill that would put strict regulations on charity clothes' collection businesses and 'chuggers' who approach people on the street to request donations.
Once implemented, the legislation will lead to the appointment of a regulator who will be accountable to the Dáil and who will oversee the industry.
All charitable companies will have to be registered and will be issued with permits to carry out collections. They will also have to file returns to the regulator.
"If you or I have concerns about any particular charity we can write to the regulator and then he will have the power to come in and investigate," explained Ring.
"Most charities welcome the regulator; what they don't want is to be over-regulated – that the regulator will do his job and leave them to do theirs.
"He will be there to make sure that Irish people, who are very generous with their money, will not be ripped off."
Submissions made by various parties during the consultation process on the legislation revealed a number of concerns.
It was suggested that 70% of the money made from the sale of mass cards goes to the vendor with the remaining 30% going to the distributor who makes "unspecified contributions to the priest."
According to a summary of the submissions: "The names usually appearing on the mass cards feature priests from Kenya, Malawi, India and in some cases South America.
"There are suggestions that in some cases the priests used on the cards are no longer living and in other cases they receive as little as 12 cent for cards sold. In order to mislead the authorities many mass cards reportedly have illegible signatures so the priests may not be traced."
Ring has been contacted by a number of organisations over the new laws but he is determined to alleviate concerns.
"The genuine charities out there which do good work have nothing to worry about," he said.
"The legislation will lead to the appointment of a regulator to ensure charities improve their administration and comply with their legal obligations.
"It also means that if a charity is not registered and therefore does not have a registered number it will not get a permit to do collections."
Submissions on mass cards during the consultation process gave some insight into how profitable the scheme could be.
One detailed how cards are sold to shops for around €1.30 each with a recommended retail price of anywhere between €3 and €4.
These cards are then restocked in the shops on a regular basis. While they pertain to assist overseas causes, submissions claimed that they in fact receive a tiny fraction of the money generated.
Bogus charities collecting unwanted clothes from households and selling them on at a profit were also criticised in the consultation process.
"In many cases the promotional leaflets encouraging the public to donate clothes to these organisations feature a fake number on their literature deliberately designed to create the impression to the consumer that the organisation is registered as a charity with the Revenue Commissioners.
"Contact details featured on these leaflets are also often bogus mobile numbers and so organisations or individuals involved are untraceable."
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