RALEIGH — North Carolina Attorney General Jeff Jackson and Secretary of State Elaine Marshall announced they have shuttered a cancer charity they say used only $126,815, or 0.28%, of the $45 million it raised for breast cancer support.
“People gave their cars to this company because they wanted to help save the lives of women facing breast cancer,” Jackson said in a press release. “Secretary of State Marshall and I took them to court because you can’t lie to people about where their money or donations are going. I am grateful for her partnership to protect North Carolinians.”
The announcement by Jackson and Marshall comes during Cancer Awareness Month, when charities often solicit donations.
“A charitable donation is an investment in a cause you care about — it’s an investment in a better future,” said Marshall. “When North Carolina’s giving public is misled, people in need suffer and consumers can lose confidence in giving to the many great charities working so hard every day to help those in need.”
According to the press release, Kars-R-Us.com was operated by Michael Irwin and Lisa Frank. The site ran national and local TV ads, radio spots and online ads claiming that vehicles donated to the group would be on behalf of the “United Breast Cancer Foundation” to provide free or low-cost breast cancer screenings.
“More than 84,000 people donated their cars to Kars,” the press release states. “Instead of the $45 million going to cancer screenings, nearly $35 million went to Kars, its operators, and its vendors.”
Jackson and Marshall sued Kars-R-Us.com (Kars) and secured a legal settlement that bans Irwin from fundraising, bans Frank from making false fundraising claims and requires Kars to substantiate any claims made about fundraising while prohibiting the organization from making deceptive claims.
In a video message, Jackson said what Kars was doing was “blatantly against the law,” and it was “a scam.”
“They have been severely punished,” Jackson said of Kars. “And safeguards are in place to make sure they can never lie to people again.”
A monetary relief judgment of nearly $3.9 million in favor of the plaintiffs is included in the settlement, with Kars being ordered to pay $550,000 within 10 calendar days of the order, which the filing date listed as Sept. 25.
Additionally, the order requires compliance reporting from Kars and the individuals named in the lawsuit with regard to the business or any other business they have a majority control stake in for at least five years.
Jackson and Marshall were joined in the judgment by the Federal Trade Commission and the attorneys general of Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Maryland, New York, Oklahoma, Oregon, Utah, Virginia, West Virginia and Wisconsin, as well as the secretaries of state of Maryland and South Carolina, and the Utah Division of Consumer Protection.
