We have all been stalked by a charity worker, aka chugger, clutching a clipboard at some point whilst out shopping on the high street. You know the ones, they first try friendly banter, which soon results in a tone change when you start walking away, and then they often follow you, invading your personal space. Well good news for us as new rules are being imposed which will prevent chuggers from hassling the public for money.
Don’t get me wrong, chuggers will still be present on the high street, but what they can do to try and get you to sign up to a donation or a subscription will be heavily monitored.
The new rules are designed to protect the public when they are out shopping. So if you walk away from them they are only allowed to follow you by three steps, then they have to simply let you go. They also cannot stand within three metres of a commercial property doorway, cash point, railway station entrance or pedestrian crossing. Finally they aren’t allowed to approach people who are working or can sign people up to a direct debit if they are drunk or on drugs, or suffer from an illness or disability that prevent them from giving informed consent.
The Public Fundraising Regulatory Association (PFRA) is responsible for enforcing the new rules, which came into effect on 20 August 2012. PFRA will perform spot checks and also a mystery shopper type of check.
If a chugger breaches a rule, they will be awarded a penalty of 20, 50 or 100 points. Each point equals £1, and once a charity reaches 1,000 points they will be made to pay the fine. They money collected in fines will be used to ensure the rules are working and improve how chuggers are monitored by PFRA.
Speaking of the rules, Sally de la Bedoyere, CEO of PFRA said: “For a form of fundraising that is so regularly in the limelight, it is vitally important that fundraisers work to the highest possible standards in order to maintain the confidence of the public, media, and central and local government.
“The commitment made by all of our charity and agency members to conform to these new special standards is testament to the seriousness with which charities take their best practice obligations.”
Obviously the whole point of a charity employing a street fundraiser is to try and get people to sign up to donating. But if their staff break the rules, they could end up paying more out in fines then they receive in donations. So could this be the end to charity clipboards on the high street?
Do you think the new rules will shop street fundraisers from hassling members of the public whilst they are shopping in commercial properties? Or do you think they will try anything to get you to sign up for their commission.
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About time! There is nothing more annoying than walking around town, dodging these folk.
If I want to give to charity, I will, but on my terms.
We agree Lisa, if people want to give to charity then they can in their own time. Not when they are socialising and enjoying a shopping trip with friends and family on the high street.