Blog
The Truth About Crowdfunding
23 Jan 2024
"You're on your own, paying a fee for a platform which isn't tax efficient" says Head of Marketing & Family Support, Georgina Lowry
The transparent reality is that for every £100 raised through crowdfunding you could have received an additional £25 on eligible contributions by fundraising with Tree of Hope instead.
With fundraising campaigns taking up valuable family time and effort, every little helps - so if you’re needing to access an Innowalk and additional therapies and want to raise £35,000 you could be having to raise an additional £8,750, which could be covered by gift aid and that’s a lot more effort and campaigning for you and your family.
Registered charity status adds a layer of security to your hard raised funds. At Tree of Hope, we ensure that donors are completely assured that their donations will be put to use for the purposes they were originally donated for and gives you piece of mind, to fundraise in confidence. Our work is audited and regulated by the Charity Commission and Fundraising Regulator.
Looking at the realities of traditional crowdfunding, the onus is on the donor to check with the page owner - and how can you tell if that child is really sick or even exists? At Tree of Hope, we have contact with families and medical professionals verify the identity of the child and their illness so your donors can be sure that the cause is legitimate.
Of course, family and friends will be more than aware of family causes and know them personally and know that it’s legitimate but when a campaign goes viral and you don’t know the cause at all or not so well, how can you be sure organised fraud isn't at play?
Tree of Hope helps you to add more funds to your campaign and provides donor reassurance too. All money is held by Tree of Hope and distributed upon receipt of invoices for services and treatments received - another thing you have to do yourself if you crowdfund. Our negotiated discounts with many of our suppliers and VAT reductions and exemptions due to your funds being with a registered charity, also make sure that your funds work harder for you and go further.
And remember one last thing, whilst the Financial Conduct Authority regulates some crowdfunding it does not regulate crowdfunding for donations to a cause. It is completely unregulated so not reassuring for donors.
It is important to be aware of crowdfunding scandals which unfortunatley are a very real problem and presents the very real problems crowdfunding presents for those many families who feel crowdfunding is an inevitability.
https://www.kentonline.co.uk/thanet/news/fantasist-cancer-faker-jailed-242255/
In 2021, Ms Elkabbas pretended she had cancer and used a picture of herself, actually taken when she had a routine operation in hospital in the UK to try to add validity to her story. The scam was spotted by medical staff and Ms Elkabbas has received a custodial sentence having spent the money raised on gambling, holidays and dining out.
Fundraising with a registered charity removes all risk and uncertainty and gives confidence to families and donors that the funds are safely held.
Get in touch with our Family Support team 01892 535525 to discuss these issues and if you know a family in need of help.
