A car donation involves donating a used vehicle to a charity organization. Charity is extended in many forms such as clothes, furniture and even cars. Cars are donated to the recipients directly or they are sold, and the money is given away in charity. Many people prefer to donate used cars to help society.

These non-profit making organizations aim at serving injured, homeless and helpless people by taking care of their needs. Car donations are common fund raising events all over the world. A car donation program serves as a mediator between the donor and the charity organization. It enables the vehicle to be available for more than one charitable organization to view and avail of.

The process of donating a car under a car donation program is usually pretty simple. The donation can be made online by filling out a form or by calling a toll free number. A towing company picks up the vehicle at a particular date and time suitable to both parties. It is essential that the donated car have a clear title and relevant documents. Once the car is picked up and is in the possession of the institutions, a donation receipt is issued to the donor within ten working days.

Car donations benefit the donors, as they are tax deductible. In order to claim a tax deduction, a tax-deductible donation receipt has to be presented at tax time. The tax deduction is either based on the fair market value of the car or the amount for which the donated car is sold by the organization. Donation also helps car owners to avoid the difficulties associated with selling a used car. Intricacies such as looking for a buyer, advertising and having to entertain unknown buyers in a home are eliminated.

Car donations are becoming more and more popular in the United States. The practice of donating unwanted or unused cars to charity is gaining in popularity for two reasons.

First, the charity receiving the donated car will auction the car off, with the proceeds going to the charity. It’s a great way to help out one’s chosen charity if no cash is readily available. It’s also an ideal solution for people who are considering giving their vehicle away, or wondering what to do with their unused car. Others choose to donate because it is simply too expensive to have their car repaired, or their car won’t pass the smog test anymore.

Second, the donor will receive a tax receipt from the charity, which can be considered a tax benefit. If the charity sells the car for more than $500, the donor will be able to get a tax deduction for the amount that the car was sold. If the charity sells the car for less than $500, the donor will get a tax deduction for the amount he considers the car to be worth. This is called the car’s “fair market value.” Others choose to donate because they need the tax write-off.

Donors may donate to charities directly. An alternative option is to donate to a company that facilitates car donations among multiple charities, letting the donor choose which charity to donate to. Some of these companies even accept other vehicle donations, such as boats, motorcycles, trucks, farm equipment, and recreational vehicles.

Donate Your Car to a Charity That Accepts Car Donations Directly

When you donate your car directly to an organization, 100% of the value goes directly to the organization rather than to the overhead costs of an intermediary agency. Many of your favorite charities are set up to accept car donations directly.

Drive Your Car to the Charity or to Their Designated Drop Off Spot

Unless the agency employs its own tow truck and driver, the organization to which you’re donating your car will have to pay to have your car towed to their location. If you drive the car to them, you’ll save them the cost of the tow.

If You Use an Intermediary Agency, Find Out the Percentage That Goes to the Charity

If the charity you want to donate to uses an intermediary agency or if you can’t find a charity that directly accepts car donations, do some research to find out how much they hand over to the charities they work with. Ask directly-a reputable agency will have no problem giving you the number-and then call one or more of the charities with which they work and ask them to confirm what the agency told you.

Check the Tax Status of the Charity You’re Donating Your Car To

In most cases, you can only claim a tax deduction if you donate to a 501 (c) (3) organization. Ask to see the charity’s determination letter from the IRS to be sure that its papers are in order.

Complete the Transfer Papers Correctly

For your own protection, do all the paperwork to complete the transfer to the charity properly. If a charity wants you to leave the title transfer blank so that they can sell the car without actually holding the title, you could be liable for parking tickets or if the car is used in the commission of a crime before the transfer is completed. If the organization you’re dealing with won’t complete the transfer process properly, back out and find a charity that will process your car donation in accordance with the law.

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Pick a random charity

The dartboard approach may be as good as any, especially if you believe that all charities are equally deserving of the money and will all put it to good use. Then your only choice is whether you would prefer to select a national charity or one that is solely focused on the state or city you live in.

If this strategy appeals then bring up a list of charities that accept car donations for the region you’re interested in and settle on the first name that jumps out at you.

Select one you have an affinity with

If your Aunty Betty died from cancer then you may feel that donating your car to a cancer research foundation to enable them to continue the ongoing search for a cure is a meaningful outcome for your used car donation. Or perhaps you have had a health scare yourself and would like to think that if you did happen to develop the disease that all available resources were being devoted to a cure or remedial medicine.

Or perhaps you have dabbled in drugs and know what a slippery slope that can be and so decide on a charity that runs drug rehabilitation programs.

Choose the used car charity donation program with the simplest conditions
If your vehicle is not running then that may limit the charities that you choose to donate your car to. You may want to check out their pickup service to see if it is going to be convenient to use the charity you’ve selected.

You could pick the charity that will handle your car in a way you feel comfortable with

Most charities will sell your car and use the proceeds for their organization’s programs but some will use the car to give to others that are unable to afford a motor vehicle. If you like the idea of your car being used by someone else that needs it to get to work then look for charities that handle car donations in this way.

The easiest way to find a car donation center is by searching online. All you need to do is open up any search engine and type in the words charity car donation. You will be directed to many different websites that will accept your vehicle as a donation. In fact, you may even be able to find a site that will do all the work for you.

Once you get the results for the different charity centers, you can research each one. Since there are so many places out there that accept cars as a form of donation it is hard to decide which is the best place to go with. In order to choose the best place you should do your research on each organization. You can pick out the best place that uses the donated cars for a great cause. You could compare each organization and see which is the best for you. You can look at the cause, the amount that goes to charity, and the process.

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The first charitable organization I will feature is Food Outreach, headquartered near downtown St. Louis. Founded in 1988, Food Outreach was created to serve the local cancer and HIV/AIDS community by providing them with extensive nutritional support. This support comes in the form of dietetic education from a certified dietician, free groceries of high nutritional value given to recipients when needed, and Hot Lunch Mondays, a free, gourmet chef-prepared lunch, and served restaurant-style to recipients and their families.

Over the years, Food Outreach has taken great strides to put its stamp on the community, sponsoring both youthful and adult-geared events for fundraising purposes and to bring awareness to the St. Louis community of its ongoing need to support those cancer and HIV/AIDS victims who are unemployed or underemployed. It’s presence in the community is dually noted and has resulted in many successful fundraisers that have helped in its continued success.

The second organization, Beyond Housing, was established in 1980 as a means to assist low-income families in gaining economic independence. According to its website, this is accomplished by “providing affordable housing, helping families achieve and sustain homeownership, fostering the well-being of families, and identifying and addressing neighborhood needs.”

Just a handful of the benefits of its programming include repairing, landscaping and painting homes, implementing after-school programs, distributing school supplies, and having individuals and companies purchase new items for families in its program for a yearly holiday giving project. Beyond Housing’s assistance has been beneficial to the community as it tells that in the past 10 years, it has helped over 550 families achieve home ownership.

Like Food Outreach, Beyond Housing is heavily reliant on charity dollars to help fund its programming. In addition to its regular donation requests, and company sponsorships, Beyond Housing holds public functions, such as awards dinners to raise money in support of its ongoing cause.

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1. With so many good causes, and so many charity organizations, it can be hard to know which are on ‘the up-and-up’, keeping administrative and fund raising expenditures to a minimum. A good rule of thumb: the most efficient charities spend about 75% or more of their donations on programs that give directly to the cause. If the charity you’re looking at spends in the range of 60% on programs, this is still considered satisfactory. This doesn’t necessarily mean the organization is inefficient or incompetent?it may be that this charity is new, or dedicates its efforts to less popular issues. In this case, they may be required to spend more getting their fund raising efforts off the ground.

2. Before you donate to a charity, ask for information about their organization, their mission statement, audited financial statements and a list of the board of directors.

3. Should you want to donate to a charity that solicits you by telephone, don’t give a credit card number. Never give cash, and be sure to get a receipt, for tax purposes. If you wish to deduct the donation from your taxes, keep a record of all contributions made. When you donate to a charity that is a tax-deductible contribution of $250 or more, the IRS requires a written receipt from that charity. If the contribution is less than $250, a canceled check will suffice for tax purposes.

4. You’ve probably received mail solicitations from charity organizations which include stickers, key rings, calendars and other such promotional items. Be aware that charities include such items as an ‘incentive’ to send them money, and, that this technique of fund raising increases their administrative costs, thus reducing the amount which goes to their programs. You should also know that it is illegal to require a donation in exchange for the ‘gift’, so do not feel obliged to donate to a charity that employs this technique.

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Can smaller charities get in on the act?
In a word: yes! Supporters of smaller charities can raise funds by taking part in any number of ‘open’ overseas challenge events, arranged by charity challenge tour operators such as Classic Tours, Charity Challenge and The Ultimate Travel Company’s Ultimate Challenges.

Charity challenges: the pros and cons
There’s no doubt that overseas challenges can have huge benefits for charities:

Publicity: Overseas challenges are a great way of gaining public attention, particularly if a celebrity is involved.

Long-term support: Charities testify that the intensity of the adventure holiday challenge experience, with its sense of shared achievement and real hardships overcome, often translates into long-term support.

Sustained advance exposure: Kate Favell, World Experiences Event project manager at the British Heart Foundation, points out that those participating in major overseas travel challenges are likely to be engaged in fundraising for many months before an event takes place. Charities therefore benefit greatly from sustained public exposure.

Mission and message – the double whammy: For charities such as the British Heart Foundation, overseas travel challenges are also a great way of reinforcing the lifestyle choices they aim to promote more generally: exercise, healthy eating etc.

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If you are new to benefit auctions or unfamiliar working with auctioneers, you might be uncomfortable with the selection process. Here are six tips I suggest auction committees use to not only survive the selection process, but actually enjoy the conversations.

#1: Locate a few auctioneers

If you’re starting from a blank slate, visit the National Auctioneers Association website and use their “Find an Auctioneer” search tool. Auctioneers with a “BAS” credential indicates that he or she has had specific training and testing in benefit auctions. In leiu of any other metric, that designation alone is a good way to start weeding people out.

Similarly, if you research your state auctioneers association, many state groups also have a similar search tool useful for finding area auctioneers.

Another great option is to call other organizations conducting auctions. Ask them who they use, and why.

#2: Research and compare auctioneers by studying their Websites

In today’s business environment, if a company doesn’t have a website, they aren’t doing much business. You can glean quite a bit about a company or a person simply by reading what they post online. Is the content fresh? Do they showcase videos? Are they active in their communities?

HINT: If an auction firm’s Website seems less focused on charity auctions than it is on real estate, automobiles, consignments, or another specialty, the auction firm probably is more knowledgeable about those other areas. Look for someone who has mastered what you need: fundraisers.

#3: Create a form with standard questions, and call some auctioneers

It’s best if you can talk with all of your candidates within the same time period so you can compare them in one swoop. Key questions you might want to ask include:

• Are you available on our gala date?
• How many events do you conduct per year?
• How many events have you overseen with our guest count?
• Could you describe the way you work with clients?
• Do you have a video? (If they don’t, ask when you can watch them next perform.)
• Can I speak with some of your clients who hold events similar to ours?
• Could you explain your service offerings and pricing structure
• … and whatever else is relevant for your event (emceeing, for instance)

HINT: Don’t begin by asking, “How much do you cost.” In most cases, a charity auctioneer will need to know a bit about your event before quoting a price.

#4: If the auctioneer has given you referrals, call those referrals

Find out what other organizations liked (or didn’t like) about the auctioneer’s substance and style.

#5: If you want a proposal or need a final interview, set it up.

Request a proposal only if you’re serious about the auctioneer.

If you need the auctioneer to meet key decision-makers face-to-face, set up the meeting. Meeting face-to-face isn’t always an option due to distance, but it’s not entirely uncommon.

#6: It’s OK Say No. You Won’t Burn Bridges or Hurt Feelings, Unless You Drop the Ball

If you’re not into an auctioneer’s style, or you know that you definitely don’t need their services, don’t ask for a proposal. Know that it’s completely fine to say “no thank you.”

But if you’ve moved along in the process and you’ve received a proposal, it’s only polite to let the auctioneer know that you opt for someone else. Give them a call and thank them for their proposal. Let them know you’ve opted for another candidate but will keep them in mind for next year.

It’s good to be polite! You never know… you might want to work with that auctioneer down the road. Your courtesy will be appreciated and remembered.

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