Max points/miles for charitable contributions?
Sep 13, 2011 | 8:51 am
#17
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Sep 14, 2011 | 9:47 pm
#18
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The Capital One Venture Card (and possibly other Capital One cards) has a partnership with Network for Good, an aggregator for donations to non-profits.
Normally, Network for Good is up front about the fee that they charge in order to pay the credit card transaction fees and keep themselves in business. If you enter $100 as the desired amount of your donation, for example, they make clear that you have a choice of donating $100 plus their 5% overhead (total $105), or donating $100 and having the charity receive $95.23 (same 5% overhead). I make no negative judgment about that percentage -- Network for Good is itself a non-profit organization and some money has to go to keep the lights on. But it is a significant deduction.
With the Capital One No Hassles Giving Site, Capital One pays the transaction fees so that 100% of the donation goes to the charity. You still earn your normal credit card program miles or points for the amount of your donation.
While this doesn't qualify as earning extra miles/points for charitable donations, the net result is that for a given amount received by the charity, you spent less. It's arguably less work for the charity to receive donations this way than by checks sent through US Mail, and you wouldn't have earned any miles/points on making a donation by check.
Scenario A:
You donate $100 by check.
Charity keeps $100 minus its own internal administrative processing overhead (mostly labor).
You earn no miles/points.
Scenario B:
You donate $100 to a large charity running its own Web site credit card processing.
Charity keeps $95 to $96 -- it pays out about $3 in credit card transaction fee and perhaps a dollar or two for the overhead of running its own Web site, amortized over a substantial volume of donations.
Scenario C:
You donate $100 via Networking for Good without going through the Capital One portal.
Charity receives exactly $95.23.
You earn miles/points for $100 in spend.
Scenario D:
You donate $100 via the Capital One portal.
Charity receives $100.
You earn miles/points for $100 in spend.
Scenario D looks pretty good to me.
Normally, Network for Good is up front about the fee that they charge in order to pay the credit card transaction fees and keep themselves in business. If you enter $100 as the desired amount of your donation, for example, they make clear that you have a choice of donating $100 plus their 5% overhead (total $105), or donating $100 and having the charity receive $95.23 (same 5% overhead). I make no negative judgment about that percentage -- Network for Good is itself a non-profit organization and some money has to go to keep the lights on. But it is a significant deduction.
With the Capital One No Hassles Giving Site, Capital One pays the transaction fees so that 100% of the donation goes to the charity. You still earn your normal credit card program miles or points for the amount of your donation.
While this doesn't qualify as earning extra miles/points for charitable donations, the net result is that for a given amount received by the charity, you spent less. It's arguably less work for the charity to receive donations this way than by checks sent through US Mail, and you wouldn't have earned any miles/points on making a donation by check.
Scenario A:
You donate $100 by check.
Charity keeps $100 minus its own internal administrative processing overhead (mostly labor).
You earn no miles/points.
Scenario B:
You donate $100 to a large charity running its own Web site credit card processing.
Charity keeps $95 to $96 -- it pays out about $3 in credit card transaction fee and perhaps a dollar or two for the overhead of running its own Web site, amortized over a substantial volume of donations.
Scenario C:
You donate $100 via Networking for Good without going through the Capital One portal.
Charity receives exactly $95.23.
You earn miles/points for $100 in spend.
Scenario D:
You donate $100 via the Capital One portal.
Charity receives $100.
You earn miles/points for $100 in spend.
Scenario D looks pretty good to me.