BOGUS charity collectors are duping hundreds of people out of cash, prompting calls to speed up legislation on fund-raising.
The Hong Kong Council of Social Service said it had received 374 calls since March last year from people worried about fund-raisers. Investigations showed 40 per cent of the collectors were bogus.
But the true figure could be much higher. The council's hotline co-ordinator, Margaret Chan Sze-ching, said she believed the problem was under-estimated because many people paid without bothering to ask even the name of the fund-raising agency.
'People should be careful in giving out money. More people will take advantage of others and pretend they are from charity agencies as society is getting rich,' Ms Chan said.
The fake agencies usually sent people to seek donations door-to-door in residential blocks, or mailed or faxed their donation requests to businesses.
The chairman of the Association for the Rights of the Elderly, Kwok Lit-tung, said old people were a prime target.
Many had poor memories and were easily cheated, he said.
