Settlement Over Misleading Charity Solicits

The news comes amid decreases in federal funding for cancer research and other health programs, which may encourage donations to various groups and organizations. The FTC and other experts on charitable giving stress the importance of doing due diligence before donating.

“Whichever way you’re being reached out to… whether it’s by phone or on your social media, just confirm that you’re actually talking to the charity and not a fundraiser that may be working through [the charity] or is just trying to misrepresent the charity,” said Kyle Gardner, senior vice president of development with Charity Navigator.

The FTC had no comment in response to specific questions from Oncology News Central (ONC), beyond what was stated in the complaint. The legal filing alleged that Kars-R-Us.com raised more than $45.5 million on behalf of UBCF between 2017 and 2022 by soliciting more than 84,700 vehicle donations. Ads claimed that those donations would go to support free and low-cost breast cancer screenings. However, the complaint states that $34.9 million went to pay Kars-R-Us, its operators, and its vendors, with the funds that UBCF did receive going to other purposes, including compensation for UBCF’s executive director, Stephanie Mastroianni. The FTC said that only $126,815 of the entire amount raised was used to provide breast cancer screenings.