[Misc] Charity requests when paying by card

[Leekbrookgull]

On any machines that want to donate to charity always NO. Give Blood Instead.

 

[GT49er]

Not a lot different to the charity tin or jar that used to be on the counter of most shops, take aways, garages etc.

Donate if you want to or ignore, the choice is yours.

Whole lot of difference!

 

[portlock seagull]

Not really "asked to make a donation" though are you? It is an option on the machine (a non verbal one) that is offered to you, one that you just tap No to. Of all the things in the world currently, this is the one that annoys you enough to start a thread?

Why not? It’s not as if NSC is where world leaders come to debate global issues!

 

[portlock seagull]

Had a chugger at a petrol station the other day, that was a new one on me. I politely said no, he persisted, I said no thank you again, he persisted saying it wouldn’t take long…so I said you really need to understand when people don’t want to engage…now get out of my way please and stop hassling me…or words to that effect. 3 strikes and you’re out in my book, he overstepped the mark.

 

[Brian Fantana]

Our local Co-Op now often has charity collectors standing immediately inside the door as you enter the store. They hang around the checkouts waiting to pounce. The charity usually varies from week to week, but the people are always so pushy.

I had an encounter this week in there with a collector who was there on behalf of a national kids cancer charity. My tactic was to simply not engage but the way they're positioned makes it very difficult to exit the store without getting involved. After a very polite 'sorry, I donate to a particular charity and they receive all of my donation budget', I was then pressed on which charity it was (it is Dogs Trust, FWIW), to which he then essentially told me that I should be giving to children's charities instead, as it is 'more meaningful' and 'if I was a parent, I would understand' (I am, including a son with severe epilepsy, so I know what it is like to spend a lot of time in hospital with him).

The whole 'industry' that has sprung up around collecting donations has really put me off giving any more to charities and has probably seen my levels drop over the past few years.

 

[Weststander]

Our local Co-Op now often has charity collectors standing immediately inside the door as you enter the store. They hang around the checkouts waiting to pounce. The charity usually varies from week to week, but the people are always so pushy.

I had an encounter this week in there with a collector who was there on behalf of a national kids cancer charity. My tactic was to simply not engage but the way they're positioned makes it very difficult to exit the store without getting involved. After a very polite 'sorry, I donate to a particular charity and they receive all of my donation budget', I was then pressed on which charity it was (it is Dogs Trust, FWIW), to which he then essentially told me that I should be giving to children's charities instead, as it is 'more meaningful' and 'if I was a parent, I would understand' (I am, including a son with severe epilepsy, so I know what it is like to spend a lot of time in hospital with him).

The whole 'industry' that has sprung up around collecting donations has really put me off giving any more to charities and has probably seen my levels drop over the past few years.

Or just donate more directly? Whilst completely ignoring chuggers.

 

[HeaviestTed]

It is quite different.

The money that goes in the collection jars does not go into the bank account of the shop whose counter it is sitting on.

I’ve heard suggestions that supermarkets claim tax back against these donations too.

I’ve heard this as well - if you want to give to charity do without making megacorps even richer

 

[beorhthelm]

poundshop started this, the cashier tell you to press red or just press for you

so what is the fudging point?

 

[Bry Nylon]

I was recently asked by a retailer if I would like to ‘round up’ the amount owing to make a charitable donation.

I declined and asked him if he would like to do it instead. He declined also.

 

[ChickenBaltiPie]

Give direct to the charity of your choice only, without any intermediaries. There are umpteen benefits for corporations collecting on behalf of charities. No thanks. I won’t do it on principal. If they made it clear they were not benefitting from the donation, at all, and better still, as a MINIMUM matched the donation, VERY DIFFERENT STORY, but they don’t. These corporations can afford to donate considerably more than any of us, no matter what you earn.

 

[HastingsSeagull]

If everyone ignored chuggers they wouldn't exist. I really don't understand how it got beyond the first year as a concept.

 

[Thunder Bolt]

Our local Co-Op now often has charity collectors standing immediately inside the door as you enter the store. They hang around the checkouts waiting to pounce. The charity usually varies from week to week, but the people are always so pushy.

I had an encounter this week in there with a collector who was there on behalf of a national kids cancer charity. My tactic was to simply not engage but the way they're positioned makes it very difficult to exit the store without getting involved. After a very polite 'sorry, I donate to a particular charity and they receive all of my donation budget', I was then pressed on which charity it was (it is Dogs Trust, FWIW), to which he then essentially told me that I should be giving to children's charities instead, as it is 'more meaningful' and 'if I was a parent, I would understand' (I am, including a son with severe epilepsy, so I know what it is like to spend a lot of time in hospital with him).

The whole 'industry' that has sprung up around collecting donations has really put me off giving any more to charities and has probably seen my levels drop over the past few years.

That is practically begging. When I collected for the ATC, when my kids belonged, we were told, not to say anything, nor even rattle the tins.

 

[Skuller]

poundshop started this, the cashier tell you to press red or just press for you

so what is the fudging point?

Rounding-up at a poundshop isn’t exactly going to collect much.

 

[pasty]

That is practically begging. When I collected for the ATC, when my kids belonged, we were told, not to say anything, nor even rattle the tins.

Same. My father used to do an awful lot of work for The RAFA years ago, amongst other things, organising Wings Week. Often used to help out collecting and was told the same thing. In no uncertain terms either.

 

[Cheeky Monkey]

Our local Co-Op now often has charity collectors standing immediately inside the door as you enter the store. They hang around the checkouts waiting to pounce. The charity usually varies from week to week, but the people are always so pushy.

I had an encounter this week in there with a collector who was there on behalf of a national kids cancer charity. My tactic was to simply not engage but the way they're positioned makes it very difficult to exit the store without getting involved. After a very polite 'sorry, I donate to a particular charity and they receive all of my donation budget', I was then pressed on which charity it was (it is Dogs Trust, FWIW), to which he then essentially told me that I should be giving to children's charities instead, as it is 'more meaningful' and 'if I was a parent, I would understand' (I am, including a son with severe epilepsy, so I know what it is like to spend a lot of time in hospital with him).

The whole 'industry' that has sprung up around collecting donations has really put me off giving any more to charities and has probably seen my levels drop over the past few years.

Flat smile and keep walking, you've no obligation to engage whatsoever, let alone get dragged into a conversation like that, having to justify your stance. It's a very British thing not wanting to cause upset, which is in a small part the strategy these collections hope to manipulate, along with a sense of guilt. It's endemic, Morrisons, Halfords, Tesco, Wickes, to name a few, all put collectors on their doors. Tesco jump on you both going in and coming out when they do their food bank drives, asking you to buy something in-store for a food bank. Appreciate that it's hard to avoid getting drawn in though.

 

[Thunder Bolt]

 

[junior]

It's the endless questions that wind me up

Do you want to round up for charity?
Sign up for an account?
If you orders as a guest you won't gets POINTS.
Can I interest you in a trumpet?

Just put it all in the bin.

Stop going McDonald's then.

 

[portlock seagull]

Our local Co-Op now often has charity collectors standing immediately inside the door as you enter the store. They hang around the checkouts waiting to pounce. The charity usually varies from week to week, but the people are always so pushy.

I had an encounter this week in there with a collector who was there on behalf of a national kids cancer charity. My tactic was to simply not engage but the way they're positioned makes it very difficult to exit the store without getting involved. After a very polite 'sorry, I donate to a particular charity and they receive all of my donation budget', I was then pressed on which charity it was (it is Dogs Trust, FWIW), to which he then essentially told me that I should be giving to children's charities instead, as it is 'more meaningful' and 'if I was a parent, I would understand' (I am, including a son with severe epilepsy, so I know what it is like to spend a lot of time in hospital with him).

The whole 'industry' that has sprung up around collecting donations has really put me off giving any more to charities and has probably seen my levels drop over the past few years.

It’s so counter productive in my view, and in this scenario I would have complained to the store manager on duty. I’ve been on the other side and have never and would never do such a thing. I smile and rattle my tin, that’s all. But my top tip for any such voluntary work is take a cute dog to stand outside with. People engage with you because of and give more money! Even when it’s not even an animal charity I’m collecting on behalf of.

We seem to have gone from a few pounds in a bucket society to “can I sign you up with a direct debit each month” and frankly who on earth is going to do that (not under pressure) in the high street rushing about? Certainly not me! And that’s where it goes wrong IMO

 

[Superphil]

l, a bit like the (gradually becoming compulsory) service charge on a bar or restaurant bill.

Not seen it becoming compulsory anywhere myself. As far as I'm aware, they add a discretionary service charge, not compulsory.

Edit, I just read that a restaurant can make a service charge compulsory, but you still don't have to pay it if the service is bad.

I generally ask the server if the service charge goes to the staff or not, if not then I ask them to take it off the bill. If it is shared amongst the staff, and I'm happy with the service then I'll probably leave it on. If it's an excessive amount, more than the usually accepted 10-12% then I ask them to take it off the bill and make it 10%.

Daft thing is, if they don't put the charge on the bill, and I'm happy with the service, I normally ask them to round the bill up, which can end up being more than 10 or 12% anyway.

 

[Giraffe]

I don't have an issue with it. I tend to say yes or no depending on whether I trust the business that is doing it to give the money to the charity.

Local garden centre Haskins asks me for 25p every time and I happily oblige with a yes. Some dodgy petrol station will probably get a no.

Given how charities are strapped for cash and they don't the loose change from your pocket put into the tins that used to sit on the counter I can understand why this is now a thing. On that basis I don't have an issue. It's a simple yes or no.