AIBU? Asked to donate money to a friend of a friend

[Buttheywereonlysatellites51]

I’ve had a message from someone I’d call an acquaintance really, not really a friend, that has me feeling uncomfortable.

They have friends in Columbia who lost their house during the recent earthquake. They are asking for people to donate money to their bank account and they will pass on this money to their friends in Columbia to help them start over.

Now I’m not against donating to good causes and once a year, I choose a charity or two that I want to donate to. I am just feeling uncomfortable as the request has come directly from someone I know and I feel like I’d look like an uncaring person if I say no. If these were friends of mine, I would obviously want to help them. But I can’t imagine I asking my friends to help out people they don’t know. AIBU?

This.

‘I’ve already donated to the earthquake appeal, sorry.’

I have donated in similar circumstances for a work colleagues family/friends in Jamaica. Aid wasn't getting through and they sent barrels of supplies which went straight to a remote region. It was all very open as to what was going to happen with the money/items and why and I trusted them implicitly. We saw photos and it felt much nicer than donation to a charity. This request sounds rather vague ... so I would want to ask some more questions.

There are always official accounts set up for any disaster and you should only ever donate through them.

I’d ignore it. If challenged , just say you have an allotted amount for charity each year and it’s already been assigned.