Why can't charity shops accept donations left outside?

[Paintpalette]

I'm forever seeing SM posts and increasingly bigger signs in the windows of charity shops near me who absolutely CANNOT be expected to accept donated bags which have been left on the porch.

Can anyone tell me why they are so furious about this?

When I've taken bags in to drop off directly with staff, they haven't made me wait while they check through every item to see if it meets a standard and I'm sure there have always been the odd unsuitable things that must be disposed of.

For what it's worth, I haven't left anything there or had it rejected, but if it was more convenient to drop off, I would donate more. Ironically enough, it means I fill the plastic bags put through my letter box which are collected from outside on the doorstep, which is apparently safe enough for them!

And pissed on. Seriously OP, you can’t understand why staff can’t unecessarily inconvenience themselves because you’re too lazy to turn up during opening hours?

Seriously you don’t get it?

it could get rained on and they have to deal with a soggy bag or clothes. Or worse it could get pissed on by some drunk coming home from a pub … my friend is a volunteer and yes this happens. Bag gets ripped over by people / foxes.

They are not a tip. Have some respect and drop it off with them properly.

They already have a hard time as some people donate absolute crap - literally clothes with shit stains on them

I can't believe you are asking this question

Why don't you volunteer at one and then come back and iodate us

I dont understand people who are SO BUSY that they can only drop their old shit off at the chazza on Sundays and BH Mondays (when they're closed)

They cannot possibly get there at any other time

You’re absolutely right and I cannot imagine why the OP doesn’t realise this. It’s so obvious.

Its really hard to believe people cant see the very obvious problem with donations outside a shop.

I volunteer at a charity shop. We have started to ask people not to leave bags/boxes of stuff on the door step for all the reasons mentioned by many PP’s.
Also -

1. dogs/comedians piss on them so our legs and shoes get showered as we carry them inside. It really gets the day off to a bad start.
2. We have found that if a person has to come into the shop and hand their donation over to another human they are less likely to include soiled sanitary pads /underwear (yes, found frequently) , pornographic books, “dressing up” clothes etc
3. Rags

So many “generous” souls dump on a charity shop rather than pay to take their crap to the council tip. What do they think we have to do with it? Erodes the funds we are trying to make and turns my stomach.

After skimming the thread I hope the OP realises what a dumb arse question she has asked.

I manage a charity shop. What happens is that even in quiet little market towns like the one where I am, some idiots take the bags and sometimes set fore to them. Others open the bags for fun and the items are then strewn around. People p*ss in them and worse.
We most certainly do not want to deal with the aftermath of any of these situations!

Why can't you have the courtesy to drop it off during opening hours? Double bagging will hardly stop a fox or someine intent on getting in to it, or pissing on it.

Because 75yo Margaret, who volunteers on a Monday, shouldn't have to manually lug the accumulated dead weight of soggy, scattered, pissed on junk left by multiple dump and runners over the weekend.

Can you really not think of a reason?

You are being completely unreasonable OP.

First of all, it is a fire hazard if it is left there when the shop is shut. Yobs can set fire to it in the shop doorway, as happened to one charity shop in a town near me a few years ago.

Secondly, if the bags have been left outside, the contents could be contaminated by vermin, had dogs cock their leg on it, or had some prankster hiding used needles in there, and the manager of the charity shop I know told me that they've had blokes coming home from the pub late at night and pissing all over it for a laugh. She also said that they weren't allowed to go through any of the stuff because of all that, and anything left outside has to be thrown straight in their skip out the back, which the charity then has to pay for it to be disposed of.

What's inconvenient?

Plenty of charity shops where I live don't go through donations in front of you

I drop on the way into the office ,bag probably there for an hour max
As i say I regularly see stuff I have donated displayed in the window later do doesn’t seem to be an issue

Has this particular charity shop asked people not to leave items outside?

No sign up to that effect
I would not do this if there were

There are charity shops which have signs not to dump stuff at doors (some CS let us donate at their rear entrance as car parking there) and doing this act is fly tipping and any bags or items left outside opening hours will be dumped

It is lazy & entitled to dump outside the shop. Even if you’ve double-bagged it for them, or it’s only out there for an hour before they open, or it’s a ‘really good’ donation 🙄Go when they’re open, otherwise dispose of your old tat yourself!

Spoke to the manager of the shop today and she said it was absolutely fine
So I’ll go with that 👍

Makes sense. Has time to go into the shop (when it's open) for a cosy chat with the manager. Has definitely not got the time to drop off donations when the shop is open. 🙄

@Motheranddaughter Would have been polite to ask in the first place, before assuming you can dump on their doorstep.

Whatever !

It get strewn all over the place, I guess, rained on, peed on by dogs etc.

It mightn’t be a bad idea if some places had drop boxes for donations though.

People treat charity shops like a free skip to easily dispose things they can't be bothered to deal with. So you get filthy toys, bags of stained clothes or things with holes. Stuff that isn't worth selling but creates work and cost for the shop to process and dispose of.