21 Oct 2006 Clothing collection charity scam

People donating giving away clothes and other items are urged to check the small print on 'charity' leaflets.

The leaflets, from a company called Orellana Ltd, hit Barton Stacey on Saturday 21 October, promising collection on the following Tuesday.

In fact, the company, Orellana Ltd, was struck off the register of companies on 27 June 2006.

Orellana and other similar companies have put leaflets through letterboxes appealing for donations of unwanted clothes, footwear and household items to be distributed to families in eastern Europe and the third World. The leaflets give the impression that the items are for charity but Trading Standards Officers in many councils believe the collections are organised by businesses that may sell the clothes and other items for profit.

The Orellana leaflet had been carefully worded to give people the impression they would be donating to a charity but a check of the leaflet’s fine print revealed that the company is a commercial organisation and not a charity.

One council member said:

We are not saying that people shouldn’t give clothes to these businesses. But residents should be aware that the organisations concerned are not registered charities and consequently the clothes may be sold for profit. The people behind these companies are depriving legitimate charities and misleading the public into lining the pockets of businesses who sell donated goods for profit. So our advice will always be to check the small print before donating.

Website news from Andy Glenister of Barton Stacey

Posted on 21 Oct 2006 at 14:45 pm