Active discussions

Meet the Other Phone. Only the apps you allow.

Meet the Other Phone.
Only the apps you allow.

Buy now

Please or to access all these features

Talk
AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

AIBU to issue a plea on behalf of charity shop volunteers?

300 replies

LunaLoveg00d · 09/01/2017 16:58

We know it's the decluttering season and we know that lots of us are chucking out stuff the kids have grown out of or have got bored of to make way for the new stuff they got over Christmas.

But please, no charity shop wants a jigsaw with bits missing, a colouring book with half the pages scribbled on, a doll which has been given a "haircut" by its previous owner, trainers encrusted in muck, odd socks or cushion covers which someone has spilled red wine over.

Just CHUCK THE BROKEN AND MINGING STUFF IN THE BIN - if it's not good enough to be in your house any more, why would you think it would be good enough for other people's??

(Frazzled after a morning trying to sort out the lovely, quality donations from the post-Christmas crap.)

OP posts:
alsmutko · 09/01/2017 17:33

I also also worked in a charity shop. Amazed me when people would come in asking for a particular item and storm off in a huff if we didn't have it in stock. Like we could choose what was donated. 'No socks? Bastards!' (Honestly, we got that more than once).
But yeah, the minging crap some of us had to sort through.

SnowBallsAreHere · 09/01/2017 17:37

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

Trainspotting1984 · 09/01/2017 17:37

Unwanted stuff is the Bain of my life (I hate clutter and don't have muc storage) I've just given up with sorting and throw the lot away. Can't imagine taking a load of crap to a CS

TheCountessofFitzdotterel · 09/01/2017 17:38

I used to work in a charity bookshop. You can sell fiction that is oldish but no one will ever buy a cookbook that isn't as good as new. The one that was your favourite and has pages stuck together - it doesn't matter how good the recipes are, it won't sell!

madcatwoman61 · 09/01/2017 17:38

Beez that makes no sense - new jigsaws come in a plastic bag!!

YoHoHoandabottleofTequila · 09/01/2017 17:40

My DM used to be a manager. She had people buy an item, take the price tag off at home, attach the tag to another item of clothing then come back and ask for a refund. She knew exactly what they were up to as she knew exactly what stock was in the shop and the tag was always placed wrongly. Some people are shocking.

wornoutboots · 09/01/2017 17:41

and please, please, please don't donate your unwanted sex toys!

(I still clearly remember the donation of a plastic dildo inside a giant plastic chilli)

SaucyJack · 09/01/2017 17:45

"yes but how is packing stuff into bin bags and taking them to the charity shop the easy option when you've a bin sitting outside the house??"

I honestly think this one is about landfill guilt. People can kid themselves that their crap isn't going straight in the bin if they're not the ones doing it.

witsender · 09/01/2017 17:48

I work in a Foodbank, we have had food from the late 1980ies donated. It costs us to dispose of out of date food!

expatinscotland · 09/01/2017 17:49

Dear god! A refund, from a charity. Some people have no shame.

Ragwort · 09/01/2017 17:52

wornout - - agree, and no one really wants porn films, risque clothing, sex manuals & 'dressing up' clothes Wink.

People really think they are doing us a favour by donating all their crap - just this week I had six large boxes of unsaleable books - I volunteer in a tiny charity shop and for us to then have to get rid of all this is stuff is difficult - and expensive. At the end of every shift I do I have to take a car load of rubbish to the tip.

SnatchedPencil · 09/01/2017 17:56

People probably don't know a piece of a jigsaw is missing. They are donating it because they don't use it, and probably haven't used it for some time. Do you seriously expect people to do a 2000 piece jigsaw to check it's all there before donating it?

I think your attitude is a bit unfair. People are donating their goods. You are donating your time. How would you like it if a customer swanned in, slagged off your appearance and left? It's the same principle - someone is trying to do something nice, at no benefit to themselves, and gets abused because of it.

If your attitude sums up most charity shop workers, I think I'll just recycle bin my old books and DVDs from now on!

ILostItInTheEarlyNineties · 09/01/2017 18:00

I've asked for a refund from a charity shop Blush. I was dithering about buying my son a winter coat and the woman on the til assured me I could return it if it didn't fit him. I couldn't justify spending £15 on something he couldn't wear.

I would be embarrassed about returning an incomplete jigsaw or something fairly cheap though.

Natsku · 09/01/2017 18:02

We would have people switch the price tags on the clothes as they were upstairs so we wouldn't see them doing it but nothing was expensive anyway - most clothes were between 0,30e and 5 euros but they would still do it so we had to start writing a description of the clothing item on each price tag which was a pain in the arse.

Sometimes would get really lovely stuff in, usually when someone's relative died and they'd clear their house, or people moving house and wanting to get rid of extra furniture and stuff.

ILostItInTheEarlyNineties · 09/01/2017 18:03

You wouldn't have to do the jigsaw before giving it away, just count the pieces. If you couldn't be bothered counting and think there's a chance some are missing, throw it in the bin.

DodoRevival · 09/01/2017 18:11

In a bit of a huff there SnatchedPencil. The jigsaw mentioned was bought by the poster who mentioned it, and itvwas a floor puzzle - which are generally less that 1000 pieces.

But yes you are right the op should be delighted to sort through unwashed underwear seeing some nice someone took the time to donate it.

NoJimmyProtested · 09/01/2017 18:11

I do a weekly volunteer shift in a charity shop. At this time of year we are overwhelmed with stuff. We had to turn people away (very politely) last week and they got in such a huff!!! We are all volunteers (some very elderly) and there are not very many of us at all. Perhaps the donors getting huffy would like to volunteer some of their time to help us sort through mounds and mounds of stuff a good proportion of which is dirty, broken crap- Honestly, we try our best but we are not a tip at the end of the day. And if we cant accept your things, its not that hard to walk up the road and try a different charity shop.

Original poster
LunaLoveg00d · 09/01/2017 18:22

She had people buy an item, take the price tag off at home, attach the tag to another item of clothing then come back and ask for a refund

We found a pair of dirty, clearly worn jeans on a hanger this morning. The only conclusion is that someone came in, selected a pair of jeans in their size, tried them on in the changing room, removed the paper ticket and put their minging old pair back on the hanger. GRIM. We have to keep all jewellery in a locked cabinet as we get so many shoplifters - and this is in a "posh" area.

To be fair, most of the donations we get are excellent. In among the bags of crap today were lovely Jaeger jumpers, cashmere cardigans and some gents tweed jackets in lovely condition. There was also a whole bag of barely worn Mini Boden, most of it still with tags on it. We don't usually get the bags of total tat which was why it was such a shock to the system.

OP posts:
RufusTheSpartacusReindeer · 09/01/2017 18:24

snatched

I donated some jigsaws recently

I counted all the pieces

Unfortunatly for dd the jigsaw she was given only has 550 out of 1000 in it

Not quite the 1 or 2 we would have been happy with Smile

OhGodWhatTheHellNow · 09/01/2017 18:37

Same thing applies to school fairs.

littleme2016 · 09/01/2017 18:38

I don't understand why people donate dirty/broken/incomplete things to charity.

When my family and I are clearing out, we have two bags. One for bin/recycling and one for charity.

Only the very decent stuff goes to charity. If there's any ambiguity about it it goes to bin/recycling.

Its not difficult and YADNBU.

Noodledoodledoo · 09/01/2017 20:04

Snatchedpencil I don't think that's quite fair. Charity shops have to pay to have rubbish taken away, If the stuff that is being donated is not fit to sell then it is going to cost them to dispose of it.

If you have items which are not complete then its not fair to just dump them on others.

OneFlewOverTheDodosNest · 09/01/2017 22:30

Thanks Gingernaut that's nice to know that the (complete junk) old stuff may be useful. I'll check with my local charity shops if they take them.

ArcheryAnnie · 09/01/2017 22:30

Ragwort I once had to have a quiet word at our local Oxfam because they hadn't noticed that the copy of Flash Gordon on their DVD shelf wasn't quite Flash Gordon....

OverTheGardenGate · 09/01/2017 22:55

The only conclusion is that someone came in, selected a pair of jeans in their size, tried them on in the changing room, removed the paper ticket and put their minging old pair back on the hanger

In the CS I work in, it's mostly shoes that walk out of the shop thusly.

Swipe left for the next trending thread