Automobiles and car donation
Automobiles and Car Donation
In the primitive age, in the absence of automobiles, domestic animals were the only means by which it was possible for one to travel across distances. Cars were a much later invention and with the coming of automobiles, the whole idea of traversing form one end of the country to other was revolutionized greatly. In the contemporary world, possession of an automobile is a basic necessity and having a personal car is of great help in times of emergency when getting hold of a public vehicle becomes difficult. It has been noticed that at present, automobile manufacturers usually present new car designs quite frequently and therefore many consumers are seen to dump their previous vehicle and opt for a latest design. Moreover, there can be various other reasons because of which can owner may decide to give up his presently owned vehicle in favor of something new. Under such circumstances car donation seems to be a very lucrative option for such car owners. The process of car donation refers to the means by which it is possible to donate such vehicles which will not be used any more by the owner and give them up to charity organizations. The act of car donation is extremely popular in the United States of America because in this country car donation also ensures certain tax benefits to the car owners thus making it an extremely lucrative option. These donated vehicles are auctioned by the charity organizations and the tax benefits depend upon the sale price of the car. In fact it is also noted that for car values being less than $500, it is possible to gain tax benefits upon the estimated sale price of the car that is designated by the car owner, irrespective of the fact that whether the car is actually sold at a much lower price in the auction conducted by the charities. Such a process is referred to by many critics as ‘tax shelter’. Statistics have revealed that in the United States , more than 7 lakh tax payers were able to save about $654 million by means of such car donation.
There are certain guidelines that the donor needs to keep in mind in case of investing in car donation. One must be aware of the final sale price of the car achieved in the auction conducted by the charities and obtain a written proof of the amount that is given to the auction processor and how much is handed over to the charity organization.