Seniors Serving; Serving Seniors

June is Seniors Month! A significant percentage of Canada’s car donors are 65+ and their charities of choice span our entire list. Just as they help out with the causes they care about, we (and many Canadian charities) aim to serve them in return.

Seniors giving back…again and again

Seniors in Canada are quick to donate their vehicle. Choosing charities that are meaningful to them is important. They often donate with their children, grandchildren, and pets top-of-mind. Health issues can be a motivating factor, too. Some are community focused, choosing to donate to museums, historical societies or local concerns. Faith-based and hospice charities make the list as well!

Whatever the cause, they find freedom of choice in the process. Their generosity is also met with respect and understanding for what the donation of their vehicle may mean. Some are donating a vehicle because they know that they will no longer be driving. Others are in a position to move on to a replacement vehicle.

Circumstance and caring make a good match! However you come to the decision donate a car, truck, SUV, van, or motorcycle you can be sure the re-sale or recycle outcome will go to the charity you wish it to.

Returning the serve for seniors

Donate a Car Canada prides itself on offering outstanding donor support. One of the ways we do that is through timely, cheerful communication. And the best way to offer that? Well, when the phone rings, we answer it!

This simple service affords us the freedom to engage in one-on-one, personalized partnership with you, the donor. Seniors can find this particularly important. Could they easily do the online donation form? Absolutely! But do they have to? No. Fifteen minutes on the phone will see a donated vehicle set up for a call from a towing agent.

Which brings us to the next level of exceptional donor care: our tow agents. Our supporting crews (in very Canadian province) are quick with their own phone calls. They provide good-humoured, efficient, and courteous care when providing your free tow.

Focusing on seniors when you donate

If you are not-quite-a-senior, yet, and wish to pay it back to the seniors in your own life, select a charity that reflects that! Your own vehicle donation can benefit any one of hundreds of organizations whose work it is to support the senior in your life! Visit our charities page and search, “seniors” for more!

Legacy giving — estate planning, and estate settling

If you are a senior planning your own estate, consider how your vehicle may aid the charity you care about. At the time of this writing I am working on my own will. One of my most valuable assets (because the vehicle industry has gone just crazy this past few years!) is actually my Toyota Corolla!

In planning the distribution of my estate I am giving careful thought to where I would like my vehicle to go. By donating it, I could ensure that my beneficiaries are not left making that decision for me. I would also ease their workload by just a little if I take care of this piece of the puzzle for them.

For many of our donors, a dear one has already passed away. We have a quick guide to this process here: “Estate Vehicle Donation | Legacy Giving“

Chevy Equinox for the Canadian Red Cross | A donor’s story

A.K. came to us in a pickle: he was responsible for a recycle-ready Equinox that was stuck in an underground parkade. He needed it moved, and he was having trouble sorting through the paperwork:

Thank you for helping me out on this and I’m looking forward to the receipt
on the amount donated to the selected Charity. As for feedback, happy to
provide some feedback below;

I would like to thank everyone involved for helping me out with the
donation of my late stepfather’s car. The process was easy, I’ve got
multiple calls from various people who were coordinating everything with me
to make this as easy as possible, since I wasn’t in Canada at the time and
my mother was not fluent in English.

Everything went very well, better than I expected and really also didn’t know what to expect. Fingers were crossed that in the end, it all went smoothly which it did by 1000%.

“The tow driver was very kind to my mother…”

I do have to point out that the person who came to pick up the vehicle, the tow driver, (was) an amazing person. He was very kind to my mother, helped her walk down a steep ramp into the underground garage and just took his time with everything, explaining everything to my mom, and not giving up when the vehicle didn’t want to start at first. He even called me to make sure we understood everything, and since we forgot to pull the plates off after he dropped the vehicle, he called the second time to confirm we didn’t need the plates from the car. The tow driver said he could drop them off without a problem.

Just the class and friendliness the driver had, just awesome! You guys should let his towing company know he needs a raise or a bonus check for his work he does daily.

Everything went super well and I appreciate the ability and opportunity to donate the car without issues. I really didn’t know what I was going to do with it since I don’t need a car, my mom doesn’t drive, and it sat in the same spot for the past 2 years. Thank you Donate a Car Canada! Thank you!

The 1-2-3 of seniors vehicle donation

Every vehicle donation is unique to the Giver, but there are a few things that are steady-on.

1. Our donation form will take you less than 10 minutes to complete. We can do it over the phone for you if you prefer to connect with a caring person. Just call in to 1-877-250-4904 and we’ll take quick and thorough care! The form will allow you to name a POA/Executor/Trix, or next of kin. There are times when the gift must be made in the name of the estate. Sometimes it will be simple to have the donation issued in the name of the next of kin. We can assist with this if you are unsure.
2. Then, sit back and wait for the tow agent to call: Your free tow typically happens within 1 – 5 business days. The agent will call the person you name as “tow contact” and discuss options that suit best. This will be made as simple for you as possible. If you live in a location where this is more complicated, we’ll have your back on that, too!
3. Finally, our agent will pay us. Your charity of choice then receives the net proceeds from the re-sale or recycling of the vehicle. You receive your tax receipt by email. In addition, you will receive emails at each important juncture of the donation process. This includes the tax receipt, of course. All will ensure that you have a healthy email trail for estate purposes as well.

Next steps

By now you may have gathered, we are just a click or a call away.

We are here to make this seamless and simple.

‘Not quite ready to donate? Follow us on Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter! There you will get an overall feel for how we care for each other and our charities. This is a caring community, here to serve you.