Donating a Car

Advantages

• Donating your vehicle emancipates you from the hassles of selling it. No more phone calls at all hours of the day and night.

• No need to spend your time showing the car to strangers, and accompanying them on awkward test drives.

• No haggling for a fair trade-in value with quick-talking car salesmen.

• You can choose the charity of your choice, and feel like a true pillar of society.

• Most donations are tax-deductible.

• Most charities provide either free pick-up service or convenient pick-up locations.

• You don't need to replace your vehicle's pocked windshield or cracked timing belt. Most charities will accept your vehicle, regardless of condition.

Disadvantages

One word: fraud. Due to limited state and federal oversight, con artists have stained the integrity of this process under the camouflage of false charities. The repercussions don't reach you until tax time, when you discover that your expected tax deduction has been rejected.

How to Protect Yourself Against Fraud

• Let us help. Our guide to car donation is a great start.

• Do some research. The Internal Revenue Service's (IRS) Publication 78 is a superb source for determining a charity's legitimacy and tax-exempt status.

• Read this pamphlet, A Donor's Guide to Car Donations, also from the IRS. You'll find valuable information inside about ways to vet your charity, guidelines for determining your car's fair value, plus the kinds of written documentation necessary for proper recordkeeping.

• Check with either New Hampshire's Attorney General's Office or Secretary of State's Office for access to a specific charity's financial filings.

A Few Charities

• American Diabetes Association

• Car Angel

• Kars 4 Kids

• Outreach Center

• Volunteers of America