Donations

[Unregistered]

Hello and thanks very much for your helpful website and blog. I am wondering if you have a donate button or accept cash or check donations. I read that you are a volunteer website but can't tell if it is a not for profit organization or not and want to make sure my donation is going toward helping other parents and not just to some person's or company's bank account. Its so hard to tell these days! Thank you.

 

[Admin]

Welcome to Car-Seat.Org and thank you for your comments and questions-

Car-Seat.Org used to be affiliated with a 501(c)(3) non-profit agency about 10 years ago, so there may still be some obsolete information about this online. The forum is an independently owned and operated website. Though all of our moderators are volunteers, it is NOT a charitable organization and therefore does not generally accept any donations.

The only way to be sure a website is a non-profit is to verify their IRS status: http://www.irs.gov/Charities-&-Non-Profits/Search-for-Charities and search their database. Even if verified, it is often hard to tell a good one from a bad one that spends most of its funding on overhead and salaries.

If you can't verify a website or blog on the IRS website and it has obvious advertisements or retail banners and links, then it is most likely a for-profit enterprise and any money you give will not qualify for a tax deduction. Car-Seat.Org is no exception. Even so, that doesn't affect the fact that our mission is educating parents to help them protect their children from the #1 killer of kids ages 1-18. Unlike many websites, the owner and staff at Car-Seat.Org are all advocates who are very passionate about the topic.

We do offer sponsorships and subscriptions to registered members, though these are also not tax deductible. Subscriptions are the primary funding used for the forum hosting and operating costs, which amount to thousands of dollars each year. Expenses for our other websites, including CarseatBlog, are much lower and paid for by advertising and retail affiliate links.

If you would like to make a donation to a respectable non-profit organization, I highly recommend SafetyBeltSafe USA. They are a registered 501(c)(3) not-for-profit agency and have a donate button and other means of donations as well. You are welcome to mention that the donation is on behalf of Car-Seat.Org or CarseatBlog if you found our forum or blog helpful! Disclaimer: I am a volunteer board member for SafetyBeltSafe USA.

If you would like more information, please feel free to contact me.