There are a number of leaflets, bags and stickers that drop through people's letterboxes soliciting donations of clothes, shoes, household linen, books etc. by commercial rag merchants.

Concern has been raised by the general public and the media around the legitimacy of these door to door collections. Most donors are keen to see that their donation goes in support of a legitimate charity. The public are being given the impression that the sale of stock by the commercial rag merchants goes to charity when in many cases it does not.

If you want to support a good charitable cause there are a number of details to look for:

1. Does the bag or leaflet have an address and landline (not mobile) number printed on it?
2. Is the Irish Charity Shops Association logo (a coat hanger with ICSA inside it - see above) on the bag/leaflet?
3. Do you recognize the Charity name? Sometimes leaflets are printed so that they appear to be connected to a well known charity.
4. Is there a CHY number? Legitimate numbers issued by the Revenue Commissioners run up to about 19800. The Revenue publish an up-to-date list on their website. Click here for the link to the list (you will find it at the bottom of the page under List of Bodies with Charitable Tax Exemption under the Tax Acts).

If you are still not sure that the bag or label is from a recognized charity you can either:

• Bring your donation to a charity shop near you
• Wait until a charity that you recognize delivers a collection bag to your door
• Contact the charity you wish to support and ask them how you can make a donation

Legitimate charities that operate charity shops in Ireland rely heavily on the public for donations of clothes, books, shoes, bric-a-brac and household linen.

These goods are then converted into revenue and used to fund the much needed services provided by the charities.