Almost two-thirds of people rate door-to-door fundraising negatively and half said they would be less likely to support charities again after being contacted by a door-to-door fundraiser, research from the Fundraising Regulator has found.
The report, which includes data from a survey of more than 3,000 UK adults, reveals that 62 per cent of respondents rated their experience of door-to-door fundraising negatively.
The research was commissioned by the Fundraising Regulator and conducted by the insight agency Opinium between October 2023 and February 2024, using both qualitative and quantitative research methods.
Just one in 10 of the survey respondents who had experienced door-to-door fundraising in the 12 months prior to the survey being conducted in September last year had donated or signed up after their doorstep interaction.
Three-quarters of respondents said they would not be comfortable being asked to support a charity via door-to-door fundraising, the report says.
The research also found that doorstep experiences had the potential to negatively affect future behaviour, with 60 per cent of the respondents saying they would be unlikely to engage with this type of fundraising in the future. Half said they would be less likely to engage with supporting charities in general after a doorstep interaction.
The report adds that public fundraising was also perceived poorly, with less than one-third of respondents reporting positive experiences of being approached in public to support a charity.
Of those who had experienced this type of fundraising in the past 12 months, more than three-fifths said they took no action after the interaction.
The report said: “Disapproving of the approach was a barrier to taking action, followed by being too busy and a concern over where the donation was going.”
The research also found that participants often associated this fundraising method with being pressured, inconvenience and, for some, aggression.
But despite the discomfort reported around door-to-door and public fundraising, the public’s experience of fundraising methods in general was more likely to be viewed positively than negatively overall.
Indirect fundraising methods, such as sponsorship of individuals, lotteries, raffles, prize draws and charity bags, had much higher comfort levels among respondents, the report says.
The research found that 49 per cent of respondents rated their experience of charity bags positively, compared with just 17 per cent who rated it negatively.
Similarly, 54 per cent of respondents reported a positive experience of online fundraising, with just 12 per cent giving negative feedback on this method.
The report recommends that charities and fundraising organisations should ensure that fundraising staff have appropriate training, support and monitoring to help them meet the standards of the Code of Fundraising Practice, with particular sensitivity to the needs of vulnerable and older people.
It also urges charities and fundraising organisations to use their experiences of fundraising with the public to identify what works well and test ways to make unsolicited fundraising less intrusive.
The report adds that the regulator should work with other fundraisers, regulators and membership bodies to identify where further information and guidance is needed.
It says the regulator should consider how it can increase public awareness of its own role and the standards that fundraisers must comply with.
Paul Winyard, head of policy at the regulator, said in a blog post discussing the findings: “We know that face-to-face methods are important to charities because they allow them to communicate directly to potential donors the need for and the impact of donations.
“Indeed, the research showed that for people who donated via these approaches, they often appreciated the information that was provided.
“Nevertheless, it’s important that the behaviour of fundraisers does not create a pressured experience, and is not excessively intrusive, especially at inconvenient times.”
He said charities should bear in mind the discomfort reported toward this type of fundraising, particularly among older people, and should think carefully when they were planning face-to-face fundraising.
Winyard added that the regulator was “committed to listening to the voices of both fundraisers and the public to ensure the public are protected”.
The regulator would continue to explore how to amplify its role to the public and “work with fundraisers and other regulators to ensure the code and our guidance remain responsive to changes in the fundraising landscape”, he said.