Do you find it annoying when a cashier tries to upsell you into making a donation to some group? Well, what if the money was going to a good cause–like another employee at the store? [More]
donations
Apparently, The Salvation Army Doesn't Want My Stuff
By 7.1.10
Jing tells Consumerist that he she thought that donating some items to the Salvation Army would be satisfying and relatively simple. Unfortunately, he she hadn’t counted on the people handling pickups for his her local branch to have the sort of vague sense of time that one normally associates with cable installers or appliance repair technicians. [More]
Elderly Woman Accidentally Donates $5,365 To Goodwill Inside Sock
By 5.19.10
If you like to hide large amounts of cash around your house, make sure to remember where you put it. And if you do tend to forget, make sure to check the crevices and pockets of everything before you donate it to charity or throw it away. This goes triple when cleaning out the home of an elderly relative. A 96-year-old woman in Asheville, N.C. recently donated a blanket that contained more than $5,000 in cash–and the Goodwill store managed to locate her and return the money. [More]
Nashville Is Flooded! Here's How You Can Help
By 5.4.10
The waters of the Cumberland River burst all over Tennessee this Sunday, submerging Nashville and leaving much of the state underwater. At least 29 are dead and thousands have been evacuated. If you want to pitch in, Nashvillist has rustled up a slew of shelters and donation-takers who would be glad to have your aid or volunteer hours. Pitch in! It feels good. [More]
Eddie Bauer Outlet Destroys Unsold Clothing, Throws It Away
By 3.7.10
Reader W.J. is a dumpster diver. During the controversy over H&M and Walmart destroying unsold clothing in Manhattan a few months ago, experienced dumpster divers pointed out that this is nothing new. W.J. e-mailed Consumerist about her recent find in the trash of an unnamed Eddie Bauer outlet store, and also made a video of her finds and how they were rendered unusable before throwing away. [More]
Miami Herald Stops Asking For Handouts
By 2.23.10
After asking readers for donations late last year, the Miami Herald has given up on the program, Reflections of a Newsosaur reports: [More]
Chase Doesn't Want Your Paltry $16 Haiti Relief Donation
By 2.15.10
Chris writes that while closing a Chase credit card, he had to decide what to do with his leftover rewards credit. He tried to donate his rewards to charity, but learned that $16 isn’t enough to be considered a valid donation. Bwuh? [More]
Waldenbooks Employees Protest Orders To Destroy Unsold Books
By 1.25.10
If you’ve ever worked in a bookstore, you’re probably intimate with the practice of pulping mass market paperbacks. Publishers reimburse booksellers for inventory they don’t sell, but paperbacks are so cheap to produce that it would cost more to return them than to throw them away. Instead, stores tear off the covers, mail those back as proof of unsold inventory, and throw the books in the trash. [More]
Hilton's Points-For-Haiti Offer Isn't A Good Value
By 1.20.10
If you’ve got Hilton Honors points, the hotel chain will let you redeem them as cash donations for Haiti relief efforts. That’s a pretty nice offer, but Oyster Hotel Reviews points out that the hotel chain is only offering $25 in donations for every 10,000 points–an exchange rate that puts the points at a fourth of what they’re usually worth. [More]
Text Message Donations For Haiti May Be Delayed Up To 3 Months
By 1.17.10
It’s quick, easy, and convenient to donate to relief efforts for Haiti earthquake victims by sending a text message, but not such a great idea if you want to be sure that your donations reach people and organizations in need before sometime in April.
Mobile carriers don’t actually submit your donation to the charity until after you’ve paid your bill. Experts agree that the donations will take at least one billing cycle for pledges to reach their destination.
Update: All Four Major Carriers Now Waiving Fees For Haiti SMS Donations
By 1.14.10
Update 2: Sprint has also announced that it is waiving fees, retroactive to Wednesday. (Thanks to changebumpin!)
Update: MSNBC has updated their article, and they say that AT&T has announced it will waive fees for donations, and apply the exemption retroactively to those who have already donated. (Thanks to Mathew for the heads up.) [More]
NYC Police Dept Stops Giving Counterfeit Clothing To Charity
By 1.13.10
It turns out H&M and Walmart aren’t the only two organizations caught destroying clothes they couldn’t sell. Yesterday the New York Times reported that the NYC Police Department has also been destroying clothing that would otherwise be wearable. The big difference this time is that the clothing is counterfeit. [More]
Want To Participate In Haiti Relief Efforts? Here Are Some Options
By 1.13.10
Haiti’s president says the death toll from yesterday’s earthquake may rise above 100,000. You probably already know some organization you see eye to eye with that’s trying to help out, but if you want to donate but don’t know who to donate to, try these options. [More]
Consumerist Is A Non-Profit. You Can Give Us Money And Deduct It.
By 12.30.09
Hello there. The deadline for donating money to a wonderful non-profit such as Consumerist.com (for your 2009 taxes) is basically here. (Consumer Media LLC, a not-for-profit Delaware limited liability corporation, publishes The Consumerist.) That is why you should give us some money. Also: there are other reasons. [More]
Miami Herald Asks For Donations
By 12.17.09
Hurting for cash like all newspapers, the Miami Herald has found a way to scrounge up some extra cash — ask online readers to donate, NBC Miami reports. [More]
'Ethical Gifts' Might Offend Recipients
By 12.15.09
Finally science has quantified that feeling of disappointment when you open up an envelope and Christmas card to find that a donation to a charity has been made in your name instead of cash or a gift card. [More]
eBay Overflowing With Holiday Beggars
By 12.14.09
As if there weren’t enough ways to spend money on nothing on eBay, the holiday season has brought a wave of dubious make-my-Christmas donation solicitations, MSNBC reports. [More]
Radio Shack Responds To Livestrong Scandal
By 12.2.09
Good news for anyone who has accidentally donated a dollar to Livestrong while making a purchase at Radio Shack — the company is willing to give you your money back. The company sent us this statement to address the problem and solution: [More]
