Clothing bin firm fined for lack of charity (Connecticut)

Waterbury Republican-American ^ | June 12, 2009 | David Krechevsky

[Graybeard58]

If you prefer the convenience of donating used clothing by dropping it into a charity collection bin, the state has a message for you: donor beware.

That message was touted Thursday after a New York-based for-profit clothing bin company was ordered by a Connecticut judge to pay the state $50,000 for misleading donors into believing their donations were going to charity.

American Recycling Technologies of East Northport, N.Y., prominently displayed labels of charitable and service organizations on its clothing drop-off boxes, but less than 10 percent of the proceeds from the clothing actually went to those groups.

Attorney General Richard Blumenthal said the company since 2002 has had as many as 73 bins in the state, in Greater Waterbury, the Naugatuck Valley and Fairfield County. In the region, its bins have been located in Ansonia, Derby, Middlebury, Oxford, Seymour and Waterbury.

Most of the donated clothing was sold as rags in the United States or oversees to Third World countries, he said.

According to Blumenthal, American Recycling pays charitable and service organizations a flat fee, ranging from $200 to $700 a year, to display the organizations' logos on its bins. From 2002 to 2007, the company took in $2.72 million, but only $225,115, or less than 10 percent, went to charities and service organizations, he said.

"The company kept $827,179 as profit, about 30 percent," he said.

Organizations whose logos were displayed on the bins in the past included Valley/Amity Safe Kids, Seymour Police Department Community Resource Program and St. Joseph's School.

The court ruled that American Recycling willfully deceived consumers by failing to clearly state on its bins that it keeps most of the proceeds from donated items, and ordered the company to change its boxes to no longer mislead consumers.

[Vaduz]

keeps most of the proceeds from donated items,kind of like how a congress critter.

[Joann37]

Timely info. for me - I’m cleaning out closets today.

I’ve never dropped anything in those bins before, and guess I won’t start! Seems like the Salvation Army or Purple Heart are the best places to donate to (unless anyone else can think of other orgns.).

[Frogtacos]

Nursing homes will often take clothing.

[old and tired]

Seems like the Salvation Army or Purple Heart are the best places to donate to (unless anyone else can think of other orgns.).

Don't know about Purple Heart - I've heard otherwise about them. I stick with Salvation Army and Vincent de Paul - the clothes get sold in their thrift shops and the proceeds do go to help those who are down and out.

Vincent de Paul bins are often found in Catholic Church and Knights of Columbus parking lots.

And the thrift shops themselves help out tremendously. The good Lord knows if it weren't for the Salvation Army and de Paul thrift shops, my brood would have gone naked back in the day...

[Clemenza]

V-D-P is also a great source of used books.

[from occupied ga]

American Recycling Technologies of East Northport, N.Y., prominently displayed labels of charitable and service organizations on its clothing drop-off boxes, but less than 10 percent of the proceeds from the clothing actually went to those groups

This is a common practice for fund raising. I beleve that the Red Cross spends about 80% of it's take on executive salaries and overheads. Some "charities" only put about 10% into the charitable pot as a matter of course. A lot of these organizations that will "take your old car or boat" fall into that category.

[scan59]

American Recycling pays charitable and service organizations a flat fee, ranging from $200 to $700 a year, to display the organizations' logos on its bins.

Sounds to me like the charities are complicit as well.