How much does it cost to use The Good Exchange?
The Good Exchange is a Not-for-Profit organisation wholly owned by a Registered Charity. It costs nothing to: register on the platform as a charitable organisation, create a fundraising project, donate or make a grant.
The Good Exchange will disburse all (100%) of the monies received from grants, donations, Gift Aid and fundraising activities made through the platform to registered Applicant Organisations.
The Good Exchange will:
- Disburse 100% of all donations, grants and Gift Aid made through the platform
- Not charge a platform service fee on our Gift Aid management service: the Applicant Organisation will receive all the Gift Aid. The Good Exchange claims on a fundraising project’s behalf; completely free of charge
- Not charge platform service fees on grants that have been raised externally (non-platform registered grant makers) to The Good Exchange which are added to fundraising projects listed on the platform
Any bank transaction charges associated with donations and grants raised via the platform will be covered by The Good Exchange as part of the agreed platform service fee and not charged as an additional cost to the donor, grant-maker or applicant organisation.
| Description | Amount |
| Initial Donation | £10.00 |
| Gift Aid Collected | £2.50 |
| Bank Processing Charges | £0.00 |
| Monthly Subscription fee | £0.00 |
| Set up Registration fee | £0.00 |
| Amount Charity Receives | £12.50 |
How does Gift Aid work?
The Good Exchange can claim Gift Aid on donations on behalf of charitable organisations listed on the platform. Gift Aid allows UK charities with eligible charitable projects to claim back the basic rate of tax already paid on donations by an individual. Therefore, under current rules 25p from every £1 given can be claimed back from the government. This is because when a UK taxpayer provides a donation to a charity, tax has already been paid on that money and this taxable amount is reclaimable from HMRC. The Good Exchange does not charge a fee to provide this Gift Aid collection service. The example below shows how Gift Aid can enhance the amount of giving on a charitable donation:
| Donation | Gift Aid (25% of Donation) | Total Donation |
| £10 | £2.50 | £12.50 |
| £20 | £5.00 | £25.00 |
| £30 | £7.50 | £37.50 |
| £40 | £10.00 | £50.00 |
| £50 | £12.50 | £62.50 |
| £100 | £25.00 | £125.00 |
| £500 | £125.00 | £625.00 |
| £1,000 | £250.00 | £1,250.00 |
| £5,000 | £1,250.00 | £6,250.00 |
| £10,000 | £2,500.00 | £12,500.00 |
How can donors or fundraisers make a complaint?
We, at The Good Exchange, endeavour to create a platform and experience that is easy to use and follow. However, we accept things sometimes can go wrong and when they do, we want to rectify the problem for you and importantly to learn from the issue to ensure others do not face the same problem. Therefore, it is important to us that you provide constructive feedback, so we can make the changes appropriate and necessary.
We understand that each person making a complaint is an individual and should be treated accordingly. Therefore, in order to ensure we deal with each complaint effectively we do ask that a support ticket is logged as this provides a record of your complaint and ensures each ticket is handled by the correct member of The Good Exchange team. Each newly logged ticket is automatically given a unique reference number to ensure that our team is notified and can manage it appropriately. Please follow the process below to ensure that your issue is handled satisfactorily:
- Raise a support ticket here.
- You will receive an automated confirmation but lease allow 3 business days for us to respond with an answer or next steps
- If the problem is complex or requires longer to provide an answer we will let you know within 3 business days but we will aim to respond to your complaint within 15 calendar days. If there is a delay, we will keep you updated on our progress
- If you are not happy with the answer provided, then we will arrange for it to be reviewed by a manager who will advise as to whether they agree or disagree with outcome provided.
If you are not satisfied with our final response then you are entitled to discuss your complaint with the Fundraising Regulator or the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA).
What is your policy on refunds?
As per our Terms & Conditions, a donation you have made on the website cannot be refunded to you unless there has been a technical error caused by The Good Exchange and you have contacted us as soon as possible to report the error. We will also consider a refund where, in limited circumstances, the fundraising organisation to which a donation has been made contacts us and has asked us to make the refund. These requests are treated as exceptions and requests will be reviewed on a case by case basis. Any costs incurred may, at our sole discretion, be passed onto you.
Unless there is a technical error as stated above, please speak with the Applicant Organisation before contacting us. Please contact us by e-mail at: support@thegoodexchange.com or raise a support ticket here.
Where we believe there is a conflict of interest between a donor and the charitable organisation which has not been legitimately declared or we consider there to be illegality in the donation being made, we reserve the right to return the funds to you. We will contact you before this happens.
How are Donations protected against fraud and how can donors be sure their contribution is being used for its intended purpose?
The Good Exchange endeavours to ensure every organisation fundraising for a project on the platform is a legitimate organisation; we do not allow individuals to fundraise for themselves and use a private bank account. We check details provided on registration/application against Companies House and the Charities Commission as well as asking for bank statements and bank details to ensure the bank account is not registered to an individual but to the organisation in question. We also ask that the project costs are itemised, ideally supported by 3rd party evidence, before we make a project ‘live’ (visible on the platform and able to take donations and grants). Only The Good Exchange can make a registered organisation and its fundraising project ‘live’. Beyond these checks, The Good Exchange may not be able to verify the authenticity of the cause and payments made through The Good Exchange for The Good Exchange to disperse on your behalf are at your own risk.
In accordance with our Terms & Conditions, it is the responsibility of you, the donor, to ensure you are supporting the correct project/fundraiser. Further, whilst we endeavour to undertake appropriate checks on all organisations listed, we cannot warrant that the information on the platform is correct, up to date, nor that fundraisers and organisations seeking fundraising have the appropriate authority, licenses, registrations or permissions required to fundraise or publicise. We do state that it is your sole responsibility to ensure you have undertaken your own due diligence on the organisation/fundraiser seeking funding before making a donation.
We encourage and advise all fundraising organisations/fundraisers to keep their projects up to date especially where they begin to utilise the funds being raised. However, we cannot warrant that this will happen nor that your donations will be used for the particular purpose stated on the platform.
How do I know my money is safe to be paid through The Good Exchange?
The Good Exchange is ‘Registered’ with the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) under the Payment Services Regulations 2017 (FRN: 797421) for the provision of payment services (PSD2). This means that the FCA has assessed those that run our business as being fit and proper to carry out a regulated financial service and that we must comply with certain regulatory obligations such as the requirement to detect and deter money laundering, protect our clients’ data and treat our customers fairly and to the same high standard that they can expect from any authorised payment service provider, such as a bank.
What will The Good Exchange do if it suspects fraudulent activity?
The Good Exchange employs preventative controls to minimise the opportunity for fraudulent occurrences. Regular checks identify anomalies which are then subject to detective controls to investigate any suspected irregularities fully. Any such irregularities are treated very seriously and investigated and reported to senior management and Board. Reactive controls are implemented to minimise the risk of future occurrences.
What happens to donations in the event that the money is retained or recovered by The Good Exchange due to fraudulent activity?
Upon suspicion of fraudulent activity, all related funds are quarantined pending full investigation. Where appropriate, third party advisors are used to determine the legal position and subsequent movement of quarantined funds.
What is your policy on donations to private bank accounts?
The Good Exchange requires that all charitable causes fundraising on the platform have a bank account designated to the organisation and it does not pay money into not any individuals’ bank accounts. .
Where do the donations and funds paid through The Good Exchange go?
All monies raised through The Good Exchange go into a Client Account which is separate to The Good Exchange’s own business bank account. This minimises the financial risk to the funds being raised for charitable purposes. The Good Exchange currently disperses funds raised on a minimum of a monthly basis to the fundraising charity or good cause. Grants are dispersed in accordance with the grant-maker’s payment instructions.
What happens to any interest that may be accumulated on the donation whilst it is held?
Due to the frequency of payments being made by The Good Exchange to the charitable projects, interest is not being accumulated.
Is there a minimum or maximum amount that can be donated?
The minimum amount that can be paid through The Good Exchange is £2.00 due to the bank processing fees imposed by the bank on The Good Exchange. We strongly suggest that for amounts over £1,000.00 a BACS payment is made to The Good Exchange. To find out how to do this, please e-mail support@thegoodexchange.com or call us on: 01635 500800 and our support team will quickly take you through the process. We recommend a BACS payment because of the differential in bank processing costs.
Can a fundraising project be over funded?
No. The Good Exchange differs to many other fundraising platforms because the charitable causes with projects seeking funding on The Good Exchange are fundraising for a specific amount. The total amount sought is backed up with supporting evidence demonstrating all the costs. Therefore, once the total required for that project has been reached, the platform will not allow ‘over-funding’ through more grants or donations. For example, if it is your intention to give £100.00 to a project but only £40.00 is required to reach 100% of the project’s target, only £40.00 will be taken from your donation.
What is the Fundraising Regulator’s advice and guidance for the public with regards to online fundraising or setting up a fundraising appeal?
We advise you visit the Fundraising Regulator’s own website to read their wording on The Code of Fundraising Practice. You can also read their advice and guidance for the members of the public on online fundraising here.
