For over sixty years, CHOICE members and supporters have funded the work we do, either through regular membership contributions or more recently, donations.
Thanks to public support, CHOICE remains independent, nonprofit and ad-free. This means we can fight tirelessly for the issues you care about without fear of interference from industry, retailers or advertisers.
CHOICE exists to protect consumers, so we hold ourselves to the highest of standards in protecting the members and donors who make our work possible. To keep ourselves accountable, we abide by four key guardrails in the way we receive and use your donation.
Guardrail one: independence
CHOICE maintains its independence by not accepting any donations from corporations, government or political parties.
This means: All funding comes from individuals using your personal financial power to keep this important work going.
Guardrail two: pro-consumer approach
CHOICE doesn't use fundraising methods that hurt consumers. This means:
- No unsolicited calls.
- We don't buy consumer data
- Respecting the communications preferences of all members and donors
- No door knocking, street-based promotion or other unsolicited face-to-face fundraising
- Clear and prominent opt-out options in all donor communications.
- Compliance with high security standards when accepting donations to keep donor private information secure. (For more information, please refer to the CHOICE privacy policy).
- Always being clear that CHOICE does not have Deductible Gift Recipient (DGR) status
- Always being clear about how we intend to use funds to support CHOICE's mission
- Providing a clear way to make complaints about any donations activity.
If you do have any feedback or complaints, please send an email to [email protected]
Guardrail three: respect for our donors
Donors like you make CHOICE's work possible. CHOICE respects that commitment by being transparent and honest at every opportunity.
This means:
- Letting you know about the work you've made possible through donations (including when something doesn't work).
- Transparency about donations received and what's been done with them, including:
- Fundraising information being included in our annual report.
- Publicly disclosing the names of all very large donors (over $10,000/annum), subject to each donor's consent.
- When crowdfunding for a specific project (e.g. $21,000 for our recent hand sanitiser testing), if the goal amount is exceeded CHOICE will either outline what will happen if the goal is exceeded OR give people who donate in excess of the goal the option of a refunding or donating to support CHOICE's general work.
Guardrail four: strong governance to ensure we grow our impact
The fundraising program and practices will be regularly reviewed on how funds raised are used to deliver on mission.
This means:
- The Board will consider the overall approach to fundraising, including its impact and the guardrails at least annually.
- Individual donations over $10,000 will be reported to the board, in order to provide additional oversight and safeguards.
Making a donation to CHOICE
If you'd like to make a donation to CHOICE or have a question about our donations policy, we'd love to hear from you. You can reach us at [email protected], or you can make a donation here to fund our work.
Stock images: Getty, unless otherwise stated.
