How To Avoid Scam Artist When Donating To Katrina Relief Efforts
The pictures and videos of the devastation caused by Hurricane
Katrina are sadly stunning. As is true for our great nation,
millions are lining up to donate to help those that have been
impacted. While your actions are a shining example of the best
traits of people, a few unsavory groups are trying to make a
profit off of the tragedy.
Scam Artists
You can avoid these scam artists by taking a few simple steps.
Charitable organizations rely on tax-deductible contributions as
their primary funding source. Before an organization can offer
the benefit of a tax deduction for donations, it must be
classified as such by the Internal Revenue Service. The process
is arduous and effectively acts as an informal investigation of
the legitimacy of the charitable organization in question.
Fortunately, the IRS makes this information available to the
public.
You can check the legitimacy of a charitable organization by
either contacting the IRS or accessing the agency list of
charitable organizations on the Internet as follows:
IRS Customer Service: 1-800-829-1040
http://apps.irs.gov/app/pub78
The above link goes to a page where you can conduct a
publication 78 search. Publication 78 is a list of all
charitable organizations that have qualified for tax-exempt
status with the IRS. Scam artist and unsavory characters are not
going to be listed with the IRS. If the organization you are
considering does not appear in Publication 78, you may wish to
consider another organization.
E-mail Scams
You should be cautious if you receive an e-mail requesting money
for the relief effort. The e-mail may not be from a legitimate
organization. Fraudulent e-mail campaigns are at an unbelievable
level. If you are determined to make a contribution because of
an e-mail you received, make sure that you check out the
organization with the IRS as indicated above.
Unfortunately, there is a second problem with responding to an
e-mail solicitation for monetary donations. Assume that you
regularly make donations to a large charity organization and you
receive a request for a donation from that organization to help
with the tragedy in New Orleans and beyond. You can safely click
the link in the email and make a donation, correct? Maybe not.
There is still a risk that the email is a scam. Many online
businesses have ongoing problems with scam artists copying their
sites, logos, headings, etc., and sending e-mail solicitations
to scam individuals. There is no reason to believe that
charitable organizations would be any less of a target, so be
careful.
If you still are compelled to respond to an email solicitation
with a donation, you should use a search engine to search for
the organization listed in the email. Once you click on to the
site, you can make a donation in confidence.
The devastation cause by Katrina is there for all to see. By
following the above recommendations, you can make sure your
donation gets to the people in need.