Another charity scam

It’s been a bad week for scammers trying to defraud the public of money intended for disaster relief efforts in Haiti. How low will these people stoop? (if you still want to donate to this cause, you can do so safely via the Disasters Emergency Committee or Oxfam in the UK)

On a more local note, we’ve had another wave of flyers asking for ‘urgently needed donations’. This lot aren’t even pretending that it’s for a charitable cause, so technically they aren’t breaking the law, but they are using a picture of a distressed child to tug at our heartstrings and small print that most elderly or rushed people won’t easily read.

They urgently need them to make a profit for themselves, presumably. After complaining about this on Twitter I was contacted by @Pontecarloblue who told me that even if these people aren’t directly breaking the law, my local Trading Standards office would be glad to hear about what they’re up to. Great idea, and anything that means fewer scammy things posted through the letterboxes is fine by me.