British red cross wasting money!

lincroft1710

ailey wrote: »

I received a large envelope this week with:

• 2 coasters
• 3 small Christmas cards
• 2 small gift tags
• one bookmark
• a metal badge
• A4 sheet of address labels with my name and address
• 2 red felt emblems (not sure if they are to hang on Christmas tree)

I have a no idea how many of these envelopes the Red Cross are sending out, but today with my post received a normal size unaddressed envelope containing 2 Christmas cards, 2 coasters, a bookmark and a ballpoint pen, plus a request for a £5 donation.

Clearly the Red Cross do not think me worthy enough of a large personally addressed envelopes with a better choice of "gifts".

Sidney88

Lincroft - I received that one too! Am slightly disappointed it wasn't the top of the range bundle of junk, but pens are always handy.

I get donation request letters from another charity every few months that has a penny attached. That IMO is literally wasting money.

A few years ago someone knocked looking for donations for a local animal shelter. They were so pushy and rude I will not be giving them any of my money. My neighbour was signed up to a direct debit with them and keeps getting pestered for more.

lincroft1710

In today's post, among several letters, I received a normal size white envelope with a begging letter and request for £9 donation from Salvation Army. The next letter was for the OH (who has different surname) also from SA. but a normal size black envelope with a different and much longer begging letter and request for £9 donation.

At least there were no unwanted "gifts", but why different colour envelopes and different begging letters?

Frogletina

lincroft1710 wrote: »

In today's post, among several letters, I received a normal size white envelope with a begging letter and request for £9 donation from Salvation Army. The next letter was for the OH (who has different surname) also from SA. but a normal size black envelope with a different and much longer begging letter and request for £9 donation.

At least there were no unwanted "gifts", but why different colour envelopes and different begging letters?

I had a begging letter from the Salvation Army today but my envelope contained a cd of Christmas songs, along with a note to pass it onto a friend or neighbour if I didn't want it.

My envelope was red.

Principia_2

I think there's some psychology at play here. Most people don't like to feel indebted so if they receive 'something' they want to pay back the favour.

I keep the freebies, or chuck them if they aren't very useful.

I donate to wateraid by direct debit, they phone once a year or so trying to get you to up the direct debit. I wonder if I told them that I would reduce it by £1 every time they phone, if they would stop ringing?

lincroft1710

Frogletina wrote: »

I had a begging letter from the Salvation Army today but my envelope contained a cd of Christmas songs, along with a note to pass it onto a friend or neighbour if I didn't want it.

My envelope was red.

So as well as the Red Cross, the SA are definitely discriminating against me. Am I not worthy of a coloured envelope, long letter and CD.

lincroft1710

Principia wrote: »

I wonder if I told them that I would reduce it by £1 every time they phone, if they would stop ringing?

Some posters have had the "Please increase your donation" phone calls stop, when they told the charity they would cancel their DD.

butterflymum

globetraveller wrote: »

I will never ever give to the REd Cross again. I gave a good donation a few years back and since then I have been bombarded with "freebies". I contacted them several times trying to get them to stop sending me them. Eventually I did get someone who agreed to take me off the mailing list but recently they have started up again. Such a horrible waste of funding.

Similar here. A few years ago, hubby donated to them by DD over a 12 month period. It was a willing choice to do so, but when he thereafter chose not to continue, he likewise continued to receive mailings/requests/and telephone contact from them, despite requesting he be removed from their lists.

He was even blunt to the point of saying during one such phonecall from them, that their continued 'harassment', and this is what it did feel like, was having the opposite effect in achieving support as, whilst we would probably have considered donating to them again after a few years break in which we gave support to other charities, their actions meant we would no longer do so.

Such a shame, really.

(and I say this as someone who used to be a First Aider with the Red Cross and did other voluntary work with them too)

Twisted_Cherry

Both me and my dad got the British Cross bumf in the post yesterday! How annoying... it's gone in the bin!

bod1467

lincroft1710 wrote: »

Some posters have had the "Please increase your donation" phone calls stop, when they told the charity they would cancel their DD.

:wave:

That'll be me then - not had any more calls from Christian Aid since I told them "Call again and I stop the DD".