To feel a bit harassed by charity worker

[Hardknocks]

Was on my way back from a meeting in London this evening, had to stop at the ticket machine to get my ticket a charity person came over to ask for a donation - I said I couldn’t afford it (I couldn’t), but I usually do give something. However this guy was so pushy, putting leaflets in my face, telling me he lost his brother to knife crime etc etc. He put £25 into his card reader and just kept saying ‘just tap your phone, tap your phone’. I politely asked him to move so that I could get past and through the train barrier but he said not until I tap.. so feeling completely intimidated I did.

I feel stupid, I couldn’t afford £25. I don’t begrudge giving to charity at all and I do where I can. AIBU to feel a bit upset about the whole thing.

You should report the payment to your bank and the police as fraud and blackmail. It’s fraud because he gave the impression he was asking for a charitable donation and he was not, and blackmail because it was a demand for money with menaces (refusing to let you through unless you paid).

These are both serious crimes, and while many people would just say “why did you give him any money, you could have just said no.” The whole point of your post is that you didn’t feel able to just say no, so he did manage to dishonestly get money from you. And it will be more vulnerable people (women, older people, etc) who he targets and not young, male, 6ft rugby players because he knows his menaces would be less effective on those who don’t feel as intimidated by him.

Not a charity
https://find-and-update.company-information.service.gov.uk/company/15944885

That's basically threatening you until you gave him money... Don't feel it's anything less. You poor thing. I'd be reporting it to the police and getting the CCTV of the incident.

Contact the police and the charity he was from

I'd have got BT police involved it's highway robbery!

Please report it.no one should be doing this demanding money,and making you feel that way.

Op I hope you reported it to your bank and managed to get a refund.

Report it directly to the charity; with every bit of information you can remember. But I have to say it doesn’t sound how reputable charity workers collect donations & I fear this might have been as scam.
You can also report this through your bank especially if the charity says it’s nothing to do with them; your bank will try to get your money back for you & you could be the person who helps bring down a huge organised criminal organisation who are using forceful tactics to fluster people & back them into a corner so they feel they have to pay to get away from them x
Goodluck

Definitely needs reported, you’ve been intimidated into handing over money

I note the address used happens to be serviced offices/mail handling address, no surprises there, and only formed in July this year. Wonder if Lamine Yamal knows he's on their tres expensive leaflet.

You are NOT being unreasonable.
Something similar happened to me in M&S, he wanted my card details for a regular monthly payment by DD. I don’t give out my bank details in these situations, in spite of the tabard as far as I was concerned he was a stranger and there was no guarantee he was who he said he was. I tried to politely move on, but he was pushy and obstructive when I tried to get past him at the foot of the escalator. I felt intimidated, he had a way of making me feel guilty too for not donating.
It was a horrible experience and looking back I wish I’d asked to see the manager in M&S.
This harassment for charity donations needs addressing.

I’m so sorry you went through this, you sound quite shaken by it and it sounds horrendous, much worse than my experience. Please report it while you still can, and to the police too as this person broke the law.

I've had the knife crime guys in the train station ask for money, they're really pushy, puts you off donating when people are getting paid to give their sales pitch, I stick to the small charities that I know and hopefully it's a lesson learnt to you, sorry you got caught out it's scary.

Chuggers often work on comission, so when you donate it doesn't all go to the charity...

See if you can get the details of where the payment went to through the card and complain and if possible stop it.
I once told a chap from a well known children's charity that I couldn't sign up, I had 4 children of my own and I was a Foster parent and he said "well what about all the other children" !! I think sadly they do anything to make you sign up but this may have been a scam.
XX

There are two companies registered under the Uplifterz name, with the same address but different officers, incorporated a couple of months apart.
• Uplifterz CIC: 12 July 2024 - nature of business is "46180 - Agents specialised in the sale of other particular products"
• Uplifterz Union C.I.C.: 9 September 2024 - nature of business is "85590 - Other education not elsewhere classified"

Re: Inside Success / Inside Success Union CIC using similarly persuasive tactics - ITV reported in August 2023 (includes short video) on complaints to the Fundraising Regulator about the organisation. The complaints came from several members of the public and also from their own employees who ended up being underpaid or not paid.

@southpawsofthenorth that was horrible to read, what an awful experience.

Jo

This (screenshot from their website) shows they've not even bothered setting it up properly - caught my eye because I've been setting up my webshop recently and I had to go through and check this sort of thing was gone.

Always via the bank if it's not a registered charity.

They used to lurk around Leyton station, only lasted a few days though, people don't take shit round here and there are no tourists 😅

Used to see them outside Tottenham Court Road station too. Had a chat with a friendly shortly shy one - they work on commission only, so despite the alleged goal of the CIC, they don't even pay young people minimum wage.

I work in the sector and while there is some badly enforced law around fundraising, unfortunately a lot of it is just guidance, and charity and CIC regulators have minimal powers. Your best bet for an authority to complain to is the station manager if inside a station (TfL/LU for Farrington), or the local authority if in the street.

Ooh, they've replied to a MNer's 1 star Google review (in American spelling) 😂 Apparently it won't happen again. I'll believe it when I see it.

Disgraceful. Can you not dispute the charge with your bank?

Why does anyone need to provide reasons? Just say no and walk away.

No idea why you would feel bad I could be mega rich and would not have gone with that it is or should be totally unethical

If this genuinely makes you feel bad I would work on that because you should not need to be told you were not in the wrong

And before people get all dramatic I have no issues properly giving to charity

Used to get Inside Success at Clapham Junction most days of the week. It's a complete scam.

Not a charity, so not bound by the same rules regarding where their money goes.

The kids I talked to ( and earwigged on, I used to spend quite a lot of time waiting for people at the entrance to the station) said that they had to take a certain amount each day ( let's say £100, it wasn't a massive amount) and after that was reached the excess money was theirs to keep. I have no idea what happened to cash donations, as far as I could see that just went in their pocket.

The company's main schtick is helping kids gain skills that will enable them to better themselves. There was a lot of hand wringing about Mental Health and deprivation. Both things which are genuine concerns and should be addressed centrally by government policy, not by a load of mouthy teenagers chugging for their own benefit.

That's out of order. Report him x

Phone your bank x

Absolutely, like Naomi Campbell's charity.