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I recently Donated a 92 Chevy Custom Van to KARS4KIDS.ORG. and was given a letter Of donation in the amount of $500 for a vehicle that was worth in excess of $3000. It was evident when I wrote the organization they couldn't care less about fair market pricing and unfortunately after the fact I discovered the number of complaints lodged against them in the past. I would think not twice but 10 times before having any dealings with them.. unless you don't mind being Taken for a Ride in your own Car.
I donated a 1992 Oldsmobile Achieva in July, 2008. After two phone calls and an email I have never received either a receipt or a hotel voucher. Only a reference #
As of 2005, the IRS changed the laws regarding tax deductible receipts for donated vehicles. Before 2005, Kars 4 Kids was able to issue a tax deductible receipt equal to the Kelly Blue Book value of the vehicle. However, with the changed law in effect, Kars 4 Kids can only issue a receipt for the amount the vehicle sold for. While your van may have had a higher market value, the actual resale value is generally significantly lower.
Kars 4 Kids is a genuine charity that runs real programs to benefit children. We work hard to attain the maximum benefit from our donations to help as many children as possible. However, our efforts would be in vain without our generous donors. We do our best to gain the utmost from our donated vehicles to ensure the maximum tax deduction for our donors.
Kars4Kids is itself a scam. They lie about where their money goes. Kars4Kids benefits Joy For Our Youth, which in turn gives all its money to Oorah an organization which helps to send Jewish children to Yeshivas. See this report:
/URL removed/
Also watch out for reports on the cucumber.com, also owned by the same people. No surprise they are involved in the worldwidetravelcenter.com scam.
This is from the whois entry for Kars4Kids.com:
Domain Name: KARS4KIDS.COM
Created on: 30-Jun-03
Expires on: 17-Oct-09
Last Updated on: 27-Aug-07
Administrative Contact:
Mintz, Eli fayge@cucumber.com
Oorah, Inc.
421 West County Line Road
Lakewood, New Jersey 08701
United States
[protected] Fax -- [protected]
Also, check out this $65, 000 settlement Kars4Kids was required to pay for their false claims.
http://attorneygeneral.gov/press.aspx?id=4275
This is from the above link:
"According to the settlement agreement, these groups solicited for contributions in Pennsylvania through a vehicle donation program in order to benefit disadvantaged children, but failed to properly inform donors that their contributions would only benefit services for children of certain religious affiliations. Additionally, JOY allegedly solicited for charitable contributions without being properly registered with the Pennsylvania Department of State and failed to include state-required disclosures in radio, print and Internet solicitations."
And much more here including alleged child abuse by Oorah administrators:
http://failedmessiah.typepad.com/failed_messiahcom/oorah_kars4kids/
Under the new IRS rules, the donor can claim either $500 or the amount the car is actually sold for, whichever is more. That is why Cars4Charities puts minimum bids on all their auction cars. That way the cars aren't sold for peanuts. Contact them at http://www.cars4charities.org/
I worked in the auction its not the organization fault, but the auction they know they can get away with the selling price, it what they charge that the public does not know about, just for towing no matter the distance it is $250.00. To park and wait for the title the organization is charged $475.00. This is per month, the charge for the dealer to but the vehicle is $250.00. The auction is for profit, the organization is non profit, who wins it the auction. It should be illegal to donate a vehicle to a non profit organization. But who is going to listen, people just want to get rid of their vehicle. and the easy and convenient way is to donate.