Helping Victims of the Earthquake in Haiti

This past Saturday morning a 7.2 earthquake devastated Haiti resulting in over 1,000 deaths and a multitude of injuries. As relief efforts rush to the scene to help, generous donors also want to help by supporting various charities that are raising funds for assistance. Concerns are heightened as Tropical Storm Grace is anticipated to hit Haiti early this week. BBB Wise Giving Alliance offers the following tips for donors to consider along with a list of BBB Accredited Charities that have announced Haiti related activities on their websites.

We certainly encourage generosity to help the victims in Haiti but caution donors to avoid questionable appeals by keeping the following tips in mind:

• Does the disaster relief charity meet BBB Charity Standards?  You can verify a charity’s trustworthiness by viewing an evaluative report completed by BBB Wise Giving Alliance.  See the list provided below of charities that that are soliciting for relief assistance for Haiti and that also meet the BBB Standards for Charity Accountability.
• Is the charity experienced in providing disaster relief? Experienced disaster relief charities are the best bet to help deliver aid quickly and effectively. New entrants may have difficulty in following through even if they have good intentions.
• Does the appeal make exaggerated financial claims such as “100% will be spent on relief.” Charities have fundraising and administrative expenses. Any charity claiming otherwise is potentially misleading the donating public. Even a credit card donation will have a processing fee.
• Can the charity get to the impacted area? Not all disaster relief organizations will be positioned to provide relief quickly. See if the charity already has a presence in Haiti.
• Should you send clothing and food? Local drives to collect clothing and food to send overseas are not practical. Disaster relief organizations are better equipped to obtain what is needed, distribute it and avoid duplication of effort.

The following is a list of BBB Accredited Charities (i.e., organizations that meet the 20 BBB Standards for Charity Accountability) raising funds for disaster relief in Haiti. This list will be updated as additional efforts come to the BBB’s attention. The first link shows the BBB Wise Giving Alliance Report on the charity. The second is a link to the page on the charity’s website that describes its Haiti Earthquake activities or fundraising.

Americares - BBB Wise Giving Alliance Report – Haiti Activities

CARE USA - BBB Wise Giving Alliance Report – Haiti Activities

Catholic Relief Services - BBB Wise Giving Alliance Report – Haiti Activities

Church World Service - BBB Wise Giving Alliance Report – Haiti Activities

Cross International - BBB Wise Giving Alliance Report – Haiti Activities

Direct Relief - BBB Wise Giving Alliance Report  - Haiti Activities

Food for the Poor- BBB Wise Giving Alliance Report – Haiti Activities

Global Impact - BBB Wise Giving Alliance Report  - Haiti Activities

Heart to Heart International - BBB Wise Giving Alliance Report – Haiti Activities

International Medical Corps – BBB Wise Giving Alliance Report – Haiti Activities

Medical Teams International - BBB Wise Giving Alliance Report – Haiti Activities

Operation USA - BBB Wise Giving Alliance Report – Haiti Activities

Project HOPE - BBB Wise Giving Alliance Report – Haiti Activities

Save the Children - BBB Wise Giving Alliance Report – Haiti Activities

World Vision - BBB Wise Giving Alliance Report- Haiti Activities

ABOUT BBB WISE GIVING ALLIANCE: BBB Wise Giving Alliance (BBB’s Give.org) is a standards-based charity evaluator that seeks to verify the trustworthiness of nationally soliciting charities by completing rigorous evaluations based on 20 holistic standards that address charity governance, results reporting, finances, fundraising, appeal accuracy and other issues. National charity reports are produced by BBB’s Give.org and local charity reports are produced by local Better Business Bureaus – all reports are available at Give.org.

ABOUT BBB: For more than 100 years, the Better Business Bureau has been helping people find businesses, brands, and charities they can trust. In 2020, people turned to BBB more than 220 million times for BBB Business Profiles on 6.2 million businesses and Charity Reports on 11,000 charities, all available for free at BBB.org. The International Association of Better Business Bureaus is the umbrella organization for the local, independent BBBs in the United States, Canada, and Mexico.

MEDIA CONTACTS: For more information, journalists should contact Bennett Weiner at bweiner@give.org