FundraiseOnline Leads Call for Transparency on Charges
FundraiseOnline is leading the call for total transparency of the costs charged by fundraising organisations.
There has been plenty of debate recently about the costs incurred in raising funds for many of the country’s charities; with some organisations charging well over 50 percent; but this needn’t be the case according to FundraiseOnline.
FundraiseOnline is not a charity; it is an online gateway for charities and people who support charities to raise funds. Nigel Sanderson of FundraiseOnline is coming out strongly against organisations that run a business model to raise funds for charities without any transparency of costs to the charity.
Mr Sanderson says that “We’ve been hearing stories either in the media or through other channels of some third party fundraisers who charge a set fee, others who pass on a small percentage after all fundraising costs have been deducted, it’s these third parties that need to be held accountable and show some transparency in the way they raise funds giving charities and donors knowledge and choice.”
A large number of charities and other community groups have been successfully using FundraiseOnline to raise funds for their causes, with every person using their site knowing, upfront, exactly what their donation will cost.
Mr Sanderson said “FundraiseOnline’s current fee structure is a 5% transaction fee and, a credit card fee of between 1.5% & 1.8% depending on the type of card used. Although we are charged a per transaction fee through the banking system, we have made it a policy not to pass this on to people making donations nor to the organisation benefiting from the donation. This is clearly shown on our website, and we see no reason why others cannot be as transparent.”
Mr Sanderson said FundraiseOnline is keen to work with the Fundraising Institute and Charities Commission to establish guidelines for fee transparency; part of which will be to ensure people are fully aware of where and how their donations are being used.
Mr Sanderson added “We encourage anyone being asked to make a donation to ask “how much of my donation will make it to the charity?””