Generous Britons give more to charities on their plastic than ever before
· £1.19 billion was donated on plastic cards in 2008 - a rise of 18%
· Comparing the first four months of 2009 with the same period
last year, charity spending data shows the value of donations on debit cards up 24%, and credit card donations up 11%
· Whilst debit cards are used more, donations on credit cards are currently higher in value - although the gap between the two is closing
Figures published today (27 July 2009) by The UK Cards Association show that donations to charitable organisations on plastic cards reached £1.19 billion in 2008 – up from £1.01 billion in 2007 – an increase of 18%. In terms of the amount of donations made on plastic cards there was an overall increase of 13% from 2007 to 2008. Donations on debit cards increased by 16% (up from 13 million in 2007 to 15.1 million last year); whilst credit card transactions rose 9% (9.6 million in 2007 to 10.5 million last year).
Interestingly, whilst more payments to charities are put on debit cards we tend to donate more on credit and charge cards. Last year the total amount donated on credit and charge cards was £639.2 million and £546.9 million on debit cards. One of the reasons for this is that many people donate online and this is one environment where more people prefer to use their credit card instead of a debit card. However, we would expect the gap to narrow in the future as charitable giving on plastic cards follows the overall trends in the market towards debit cards.
Another way of donating to charities is by using an affinity card*. With total spending of £6.7 billion on these cards in 2008 and, on average, 0.25% being the percentage donated to charities, approximately £16.7 million will have been raised through the use of these cards.
Sandra Quinn, director of communications said:
“These card figures, showing an 18% increase in charitable giving, tell us an interesting story. Despite the economic downturn it seems there was no let up last year in people’s commitments to charities.
“Over the last few years we have seen more charities offer donors additional ways to pay, particularly with cards, and particularly online - all of which makes donating extremely easy, and unquestionably plays a part in the increase in charity spending on plastic cards.”
ENDS
Note to editors:
1. The UK Cards Association is the leading trade association for the cards industry in the UK. With a membership that includes all major credit, debit and charge card issuers, and card acquiring banks, the role of the Association is both to unify and represent the UK card payments industry. It is responsible for formulating and implementing policy on non-competitive aspects of card payments including codes of practice, fraud prevention, major infrastructural changes, development of standards and other matters where cross-industry benefits are identified. The UK Cards Association was formed in April 2009 as the successor body to the APACS Card Payments Group.
2. More information about The UK Cards Association is available on www.theukcardsassociation.org.uk
3. *Affinity credit cards work by generating extra revenue to a charitable cause or affiliation, such as a university or football club. Typically, the card issuer will make a payment when the account is first opened or activated, thereafter making a payment each time the card is used.
4. The credit card industry has a history of supporting charitable causes, not only for offering affinity cards which can be linked to charitable causes, but also by agreeing to waive interchange fees for the high profile cross-charity and disaster or emergency appeals ensuring that the charity receives the full amount of the donation. Interchange is a fee paid by a retailer’s acquiring bank to a card issuing bank each time a card is used.
5. Religious, social and political contributions are included in the charitable category.
6. Through The UK Cards Association, the UK card payment industry has sponsored the work of the Internet Watch Foundation (www.iwf.org.uk) since 2004. The IWF was established in 1996 by the UK internet industry to provide the UK internet ‘Hotline’ for the public and IT professionals to report potentially illegal online content, which can then be removed.
