How GoFundMe can affect your FEMA eligibility

0:01NPR.

0:11This is The Indicator from Planet Money. I'm Waylon Wong here with Darian Woods. Hey, Darian. Hey, Waylon. So often on the show, we do listener questions, but today is kind of a twist on that idea because we actually had our own questions. We have questions. And our questions are about the LA wildfires because as we were reading around, there were some curious things that popped up that we wanted to look into. Yeah, so for example, victims of the wildfires are understandably going to GoFundMe to raise money, but warnings are going around that getting donations that way could make you ineligible for federal assistance.

0:45We get to the bottom of that one. And we explore what it means when brands say they're donating proceeds of sales to wildfire relief. We will have answers for you and for us after the break.

1:00This message comes from NPR sponsor Zendesk, introducing the next generation of AI agents built to deliver resolutions for everyone. With an easy setup that can be completed in minutes, not months, Zendesk AI agents resolve 30 % of interactions instantly, quickly giving your customers what they need. Loved by over 10 ,000 companies, Zendesk AI makes service teams more efficient, businesses run better, and your customers happier. That's the Zendesk AI effect. Find out more at zendesk.com. Wildfires are still burning across Southern California. The Palisades, Eton, and other fires have destroyed thousands of homes and displaced at least 100 ,000 people.

1:42And this means a lot of people are in need of support. And in these modern times, you see folks turning to GoFundMe. Yeah, GoFundMe, the super popular platform being used for medical care, for people trying to avoid getting evicted, and for disaster relief, like the LA wildfires now. Yeah, I saw a fundraiser for a 75-year-old woman who couldn't afford fire insurance and then lost her whole house. I saw another one for a photographer who lost 10 years worth of work. And you see a big range in the success of these campaigns. Some might raise a few hundred dollars, others tens of thousands. But having a GoFundMe fundraiser could make people who post them ineligible for federal assistance.

2:28Like from FEMA? Yes, I found that federal law puts in these restrictions for FEMA. That's the Federal Emergency Management Agency. FEMA isn't allowed to duplicate benefits if you get them from somewhere else. FEMA has this video online that explains what this means. For example, FEMA may be able to help you to replace a vehicle that was damaged during the disaster. However, if your GoFundMe page clearly states that the funds you're raising will be used to replace your car, FEMA won't be able to provide assistance for that specific need. Okay, so you can't fundraise for, like, home repairs or funeral expenses specifically and then go ask FEMA to cover the same thing.

3:06Yeah, and so while GoFundMe can be great, you might be surprised at the kinds of resources that FEMA offers. It sends short-term assistance like food and a place to stay. It also gives longer-term help like grants for home repairs. So it can be a big deal if victims of, say, a California wildfire suddenly don't have access to FEMA funds. I've actually seen a lot of social media posts and news articles that warn people about this. And to be clear, it's not just GoFundMe that could make somebody ineligible for federal assistance. It's also non-profit help or insurance payouts, bank sales, really any fundraising.

3:45I mean, does GoFundMe make it clear that this is a potential issue? Yeah, so I made a draft fundraiser in LA to try to find this out. And there is no obvious warning, although there is some language in an FAQ on the GoFundMe website. We reached out to GoFundMe and they referred us to FEMA. Okay, so if you're a victim of the California wildfires or any other natural disaster, please be aware of the restrictions that can come with GoFundMe support. Exactly. Now, Waylon, onto your question. You were wondering about how brands are providing relief to people affected by the wildfires. That's right.

4:23If you know one thing about me, Darian, it's that I'm always online shopping. And so, of course, I noticed that all these stores have been marketing products related to the wildfires, like earrings with L.A. Lakers colors or a fleece jacket that features Venice Beach. And these brands are promising to give some percentage of sales to relief efforts or they're advertising certain products and saying if you buy these, we'll donate the proceeds to wildfire victims. Right. I guess it's a hybrid capitalism, social good kind of event. Yeah. And I was curious, what does proceeds or profits even mean?

4:55like how much of each sale actually gets donated. So we reached out to Claire V. It's an L.A.-based company that makes handbags and clothes, and it employs over 100 locals. Claire V. says it's donating 100 % of the proceeds it makes from select products to wildfire relief. Claire Vivier is the founder and CEO of Claire V. When we started to see the extent of the devastation in Los Angeles and the extent of the displaced people, we knew that we had to give back. So we came back to work and we just put into work on that day a Los Angeles Je T 'aime t-shirt and hat. And they've been for sale ever since.

5:38And we're giving proceeds back to the Red Cross with the earmarked for the California wildfires. All right. A t-shirt and a hat. Let me just pull this up. I want to see it for myself. Okay, I see a dark blue hat for$60 reading Los Angeles to Tim. And a white shirt with the same phrase and blue lettering for$100. Right. And Claire V is donating 100 % of the proceeds from the sales of these specific products to the Red Cross for wildfire relief. We asked her why she went this route. We are a fashion company. It is what we do. So we create things that people wear to express themselves and to make them feel good.

6:22So it's part of our collection that we make T-shirts and baseball hats already with different French sayings on them. And so it made a lot of sense that we would make a product with a French saying, something affectionate for Los Angeles, and we would give back to our city. Okay, so in this campaign, 100 % of proceeds going to the Red Cross for wildfire relief. As of January 21st, the campaign has raised$145 ,000 in proceeds. Okay,$145 ,000. That's not bad. But, Waylon, we keep saying the word proceeds, but what does it mean? Is it revenues? Is it profits? I know. This is like the heart of my question, right?

7:02So for Claire V, it's the retail price minus what it's spent on materials and manufacturing. A Claire V. spokesperson says the company isn't factoring in design, development, marketing, or e-commerce processing fees. OK, so for$100 shirt, how much gets donated to the Red Cross? Between$70 and$75, according to a spokesperson. Claire says the company also raised money through a staff closet sale over the weekend. That's where staffers put their own clothes up for sale. And that effort raised another$20 ,000. We're just doing our part. It feels like not enough when you're faced with the devastation that the city has faced.

7:44Okay, and so is this like a typical sort of arrangement? Have you looked at the breakdown of other companies' donations? You know, it's really kind of all over the place. I found a haircare brand called Foxy Bay that's donating 10 % of, quote, e-commerce profits. And then there's this jewelry company, Pura Vida. it's giving 100 % of what it calls net profits on a specific bracelet. So for this company, it does subtract expenses like marketing and credit card fees. It sounds like you really need to keep up with the fine print to know how much is going to the relief efforts. Right. And not all companies provide that kind of fine print on their website.

8:19So it's really hard to tell. So I guess the most direct way of making sure money actually goes to wildfire relief victims is to donate directly. Yes, except you want to make sure you're not overlapping with what the person's getting from FEMA, as we learned earlier from your segment. It's more complicated than we thought to do good. Well, we did it, I think. Our questions have been answered, hopefully to our listeners' satisfaction, too. Thanks for playing, Darian. And if you have any further questions, please email us, indicator at npr.org. This episode was produced by Cooper Katz-McKinn with engineering by Neil Thievault.

8:54It was fact-checked by Sierra Juarez and edited by Patty Hirsch. Kicking Cannon is our show's editor, and The Indicator is a production of NPR.

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