Delaware DOJ warns about fraudulent fundraising calls for firefighters
The Consumer Fraud Unit of the Delaware Department of Justice is warning Delawareans to be cautious of unauthorized and fraudulent telephone solicitations just after the recent tragedy involving two Wilmington firefighters who lost their lives in the line of duty.
DOJ reports that it has become aware of potentially fraudulent calls to Delaware homes in the last few days.
Officials say that often scammers will try to take advantage of tragic current events or natural disasters in order to convince people to donate money.
Even though there usually are real fundraising efforts in such circumstances, there may be others that are not. So, because of this, the Delaware DOJ gives the following information to keep in mind when answering an unsolicited call on behalf of any purported charitable cause.
Delaware law requires callers to supply you with certain information, including:
- Whether they are a paid fundraiser;
- Where they are calling from, including company name and location;
- The charity for which the funds are being raised;
- The amount of the consumer’s donation that will actually go to the charity;
- If the charitable solicitation is on behalf of an individual(s) or their family, whether the party soliciting you has permission from the individual(s) or their family to make use of that person’s name, picture or likeness in their charitable solicitations; and
- If they are calling on behalf of police, fire or law enforcement, they must either be an actual law enforcement employee or have written permission from the state, county or local first responder organization to make the call.
For anyone who would like to donate toward a fund benefiting families of the fallen firefighters may want to contact the Wilmington Fire Department directly.
The DOJ Consumer Protection Unit also reminds people to never give your credit card or bank account information in response to one of these calls.
Someone calling you to make a legitimate telephone solicitation on behalf of a charitable organization should be willing to mail you a written donation form and envelope.
If you wish to donate to your local fire company, you should visit your local fire house to make your donation in person.
You can make sure a charity is legitimate by visiting the following where you can view lists of verified charities:
For online donations, ensure that the solicitation website and the purported charity match and that the website is secure.
Anyone who suspects they have been scammed or have received a suspicious solicitation can call the Attorney General’s toll-free Consumer Hotline at 1-800-220-5424 or email the Consumer Protection Unit at consumer.protection@state.de.us.
