AIBU for shouting piss off to a street fundraisers.

[misspedantic]

I am fed up with these people trying to mug me for my bank account every time I walk out of a shop. Today there was 12 of them along my high street, working for 3 different charities and after being asked how I was or am I having a nice day or have I got a spare minute 7 times, I shouted "PISS OFF". I seriously can't cope with it everyday.

AIBU for wanting to land a drop kick to their heads tell them to leave me alone.

The ones near me ask how old I am and when I tell them (22) they say oh you need to be 23/25.

I asked one why the once and they said it was more likely that you are mature and settled (ie finished uni/college and in full time employment)

I suspect a significant proportion of chuggers of being drama students.

YANBU to be annoyed with them. They are just trying to earn money, but they must know how annoying they are!

I'm 39 + 5 weeks pregnant & was waddling through town with my 2.2 year old dd the other day. Quite a lot of shopping & although she was actually being very good (for a fucking nice change) was loudly demonstrating with me regarding how hungry/thirsty/hot she was & I was saying we were going to cafe. My response when asked if I had a minute was simp a harassed 'do I look like I do!!??'

Normally I just keep speed walking and smile at them pityingly whilst saying no, no, no, no.

Yes, your are being unreasonable to tell them to piss off just for doing their job, but of course you know that. I do get where you're coming from though - it can feel like an episode of Tomb Raider with you being Lara Croft dodging the collectors.

I've taken to lying to them if I get collared. I always say I make a regular monthly donation already.

You can join the TPA to stop telesale phonecalls. You can stop callers that withhold their number from getting through. You can put a sicker on your front door saying you don't buy from doorstep sellers. But there is nothing you can do to stop people approaching you 7 times on the street in a space of 20 minutes. I'm a student, on a very small budget and I don't want their services but I'm asked constantly everyday and yesterday I lost it big time.

I don't want to be told to cheer up or have someone trying to shake my hand or have to walk along my high street constantly looking down and saying no thank you. I told the last guy to piss off because he had clearly seen me telling the guy in front of him that I wasn't interested and came up to me saying oh come on and said that if everyone was interested then it would be a selfish world... (how is that going to make money for his charity?) I had just finished working a shift at my local homeless centre. WTF does he know about me to call me selfish. I was so angry. I don't need to explain myself to him, I don't have the money to give but I give what I can... my time. After I had told him to PO he laughed to his mate. I felt like I was being targeted and picked on as they could see that I had had enough and pushed it that bit further.

They are not nice people, they are not just doing their job, they're rude, pushy and annoying.

Sorry for the rant.

YABU. Just smile, say 'no thank you' and walk on.

A chugger had a bit of a melt down at me once.. he asked if I had time to stop, I said, no sorry.. and kept walking. He shouted after me.. NO YOU'RE NOT SORRY! DON'T SAY YOU'RE SORRY UNLESS YOU MEAN IT! I swear there were tears in his eyes..

I think YABU to shout/swear at people in the street, there's not really any need for that. I know it's annoying though. I just say 'no' (or say nothing) and keep walking - don't slow down or make eye contact.

I don't say 'sorry' though, I have nothing to apologise for!

YANBU from me. If someone invades your personal space, with the intention of extorting money from you, then they deserve to be told to piss off.

I think that you need to start complaining to the council though, and to the charities themselves. If people feel harassed every time they try to go shopping in your town centre, then the end result is that eventually they will avoid shopping there. That will have a terrible effect on the local businesses and tbh, high streets need to be helped right now, not hindered.

Maybe contact your local chamber of commerce?

Unreasonable to swear, understandable ime.

Used to work in a city centre so every journey to/from work and lunchbreak involved being accosted by these people.

My usual response was "I don't donate to charities that harass people in the street"

And I do in fact give to charities, and have volunteered my time in the past (and will do again when I can). But I can honestly say I have never chosen a charity to donate to or volunteer for based on one of their representatives accosting me in the street. If anything it puts me off! I'd never hand over my bank details to a random stranger in the street either, that doesn't seem sensible at all.

I guess it must be working to some extent though otherwise they wouldn't use the technique

Totally unreasonable to swear. They are doing a horrible job, there really is no need to be rude.

YANBU. Tis why I rarely venture into town in my lunch hour now. The thought of having to rugby tackle (slight exaggeration but you get my gist) my way through hoards of tin shakers just to experience an M&s sandwich is just not worth it.

They've chosen to do that job, though. And it is possible to do it without some of the atrocious tactics described on this thread. I put chuggers in the same moral category as wheel clampers.

When my DD was around 4m old I was walking through town with her feeling quite low-had moved to a new area and was struggling with DD's at the time quite high medical needs, she was diagnosed with a life threatening condition at birth, we were in and out of hospital at the time. Anyway a man approached me, (well, jumped in front of me )and said dramatically "Imagine your child is sick and there is NOTHING you can do"!! He was collecting for a third world charity so I get what he was trying to get at but seriously!!

I just stood there saying my child is sick, and almost felt powerless to move, I seem to remember him looking a bit concerned at least! I then wondered around feeling even worse, think I cried on the walk home (not unusual at the time).

Okay karma some are over the top. But many people don't really have a choice about a job, they need to take what they can get. One friend who was made redundant 2 years ago took ANY job he could get to stop the house being repossessed, while he found another proper job.

There are some jobs that if you take you have to expect that you will be unpopular and a target for verbal unpleasantness.

Invading people's personal space, harassing them and generally being obnoxious in the street is one of those jobs. I find it difficult to have any sympathy with a chugger who gets told to piss off.

southwest the "don't you care about children" approach was tried by a twat who refused to accept my polite decline to stop and talk. I was returning to my car following my first counseling session after the loss of my son. He was given fairly short shrift.

Sara - I don't think anyone should have to accept being abused at work.

I'm loving some of the comebacks on here. Especially the "I'm terribly sorry, I don't speak English" and saying you're 17 (I'm 32. I might say I'm 15... Especially funny, I'm sure, as I'll be pushing a baby buggy!).

Sara
This week I popped into the local town centre and was asked for cash nine times (four chuggers for two different charities, three beggars and two charity collectors). I think it is a real argument that this amount of harassment actually puts people off shopping in these areas and I am surprised shop owners don't complain. One chugger I can cope with but it is the sheer volume of it.

Once a Shelter chugger cornered me. i was not in a good mood that day. I told him that I would gladly give money to Shelter as soon as Shelter obliged me by giving places to homeless people with drug problems, who also happened to be my clients. Did he fancy giving me £20 to get a homeless drug user off the street as Shelter made it clear they were not on their list. That got his goat and no mistake. Whilst he chundered I simply walked off.

One came to my door last week when I was dealing with 2 pre-schoolers with chickenpox. He asked if I was alright when I answered the door (presumably I looked haggard - also 34 weeks pregnant with awful SPD) and I said, "Not really, we've got chickenpox and I wont invite you in". His response was "It could be a lot worse. You could have cancer. I'm here from cancer research" and stuck his freaking foot in my door! I closed it on his foot, and he started saying "with all the cuts, the NHS are now refusing to treat cancer. It is only through donation to cancer research UK that you can ensure people get chemo". I opened the door again and told him not to talk crap. He was adamant it was true. I told him it wasn't and that even if it was true, hospices and nursing services would be the point of care, not research charities. He said "no, we provide chemo because the NHS can't afford it". I think he really believed it.

I have quite a few friends who have done this job between others and it is well paid. A totally crap way for a charity to spend it's resources imo.

if you say no and they continue to pester you, i think you have every right to lose your rag at them.
A lot of them have obviously been taught the hard sell. and will not stop at a firm no ( i have had "well are not against child abuse then" loudly said to me when i declined to stop [schock] ).
Another time i was stopped i said " i already have a direct debit". only for him to look at my shopping bags and say "well would you not consider increasing it?". grrr.
They also come to your door now, i opened to be faced with a chap, i said "i'm not interested", he said "but if you only knew ......" and started on his spiel. I said " no, i said no, now is the time for you to toddle off my driveway." he was quite shocked. With bthose sort of tactics i worry about my 83 year old gran who lives on her own and probably would be to polite to tell/demand he leaves. and probably sign up out of awkardness/politeness/to not cause a fuss.
I have collected for charity myself (selling keyrings, packing bags in supermarket, buckets outside the shopping center etc), i would smile at people and ask whether they wanted to buy a keyring. i would leave alone people who were avoiding eye contact and just say thanks, smile and walk away of people who say no. I would never guilt trip, or insist that someaone hand over their money.
end rant

YANBU to find chuggers very annoying.

Put your iPod on with big headphones and ignore.

lesley, I'm sympathetic to people who just need to take any job, to survive. But it is possible to do that job without saying some of the obnoxious things that chuggers regularly come out with (I've had the 'don't you care about children', line too).

And, whilst people shouldn't be abused at work, likewise people shouldn't be abused when they are walking down the street, minding their own business.