Spring break is a great time to slow down and get a little bit of cleaning done.
We’ve all been there: Clearing out a canned goods stash that makes you look like a doomsday prepper, pulling some of the dustier books off the shelf or even letting go of that sweater your mother-in-law thought you would like five Christmases ago. It’s been long enough.
And there’s nothing better to do with all that still-usable stuff than to donate it. Better to give things you don’t need to someone less fortunate than to let them rot in a landfill. And more environmentally friendly, too.
But no one wants their generosity to go to waste, so it’s important to be mindful of where you’re donating. One method to be wary of is unattended donation boxes — you know, the big dumpster-looking things with a hatch on the front.
Opinion
Oftentimes, these boxes present a convenient opportunity to offload no-longer-needed items. But in North Richland Hills, suspicious receptacles were recently spotted popping up on store lots.
The city “has seen an increase in scam donation boxes in busy shopping centers that often do not support charitable causes,” North Richland Hills City Hall wrote in a Facebook post earlier this month. “Many are run by people who sell the donated items for profit rather than benefiting a charity.”
North Richland Hills advised residents to look for warning signs that might indicate a scam, such as a generic appeal like “clothing needed,” no organization identifiers or poor construction.
Dallas has had issues with donation boxes, too. Bulky items like furniture and appliances would create clutter, operators frequently failed to service the boxes on time, and boxes were often placed without permission from property owners.
Talks about a donation box registration program go back at least to August 2022, though in typical Dallas fashion, the city took its sweet time getting to an actual ordinance. It wasn’t until December the following year that the City Council approved new rules.
Challenges with unattended drop boxes appearing without the property owner’s permission have persisted, a Dallas city staffer said.
We would urge readers to take items they want to donate directly to reputable organizations. There’s nothing wrong with using a donation box you trust, but they remove the human interaction piece of charitable giving.
Dallas officials should be sure to keep an eye on the donation box issue, too. The rules the City Council passed in 2023 are solid, but it might be worth an update to council members for city staff to explain how those rules have worked out in practice.
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