Around 20% of the bikes that are donated to us by members of the public are sold either online or in person at our Bike Shop.
Many charity shops like ours have a specific way of selling donated goods in order to benefit from Gift Aid – a government scheme which enables registered charities in the UK to claim the tax back from the HMRC on donations.
This allows us the opportunity to increase the value of each bike we sell by up to 25%. This approach is referred to as the Retail Gift Aid Scheme.
The Gift Aid rules do not allow Gift Aid to be claimed on donations of goods – only monetary donations qualify. So, in order to convert a donation of goods (in this case, a bike) into a monetary donation, donors retain ownership of their goods until sold. The proceeds from that sale then belong to the donor. The donor (in legal terms) then ‘donates’ those proceeds to the charity as part of Gift Aid.
Under the Retail Gift Aid Scheme, the charity or its trading subsidiary sell the goods as an agent of the donor (you). When the goods are sold, the donor is notified of the sales proceeds, giving them the opportunity to claim them. If the donor does not claim within a set period, then the proceeds can be assumed donated to the charity.
Once you have donated your bike, The Bike Project will take care of all these steps on your behalf.