Collecting plastic milk bottle tops for "charity"

[Ann]

On the same vein as Kiki's post, I have been asked constantly to save milk tops as someone "wants to sell them to save up to buy a wheelchair" This request has come from three different people who I don't know but apparently are urgently in need of wheelchairs. I find this a little bizarre as I'm sure the Red Cross or even the NHS may help if that was the case and they were that immobile. But the main thing is - just how many tops would you need to collect for one - the mind boggles! Is this a scam do you think?

[tenrec]

How can it be a scam? Most people would recycle or throw away the bottle tops? You would need a heck of a lot to make any real money with ....

[Ann]

Yes I know that's what I was thinking tenrec - I hope the poor people who are asking for them for a wheelchair haven't been duped.

[tenrec]

Oh, I get what you mean. Yes, that would be awful.

[factor-fiction]

It could be a hoax I'm afraid
http://messybeast.com...s-hoax.htm#bottletops

[boxtops]

Ann, this one's been around for years - I collected sacks of the things a few years back and took them to the person collecting - then someone told me that it was a scam, so I stopped. However a Google does suggests that lids can be sold for scrap so I supposed money can be made - we just put ours (separated from the bottle) into our normal recycling bin these days.

[boxtops]

factor, thanks - it was around 2006 I was collecting them.

[gen2]

A Myth.

"GHS Recycling pays £25 for 500kg - that’s a whopping 325,000 tops, or up to 200 bin bags full. The fuel costs of transporting them would be more than double that. "

[factor-fiction]

There was a hoax a few years ago where emails were sent asking people to send postcards I think to some boy with cancer to fund some treatment and the poor family were inundated with hundreds of thousands of unwanted postcards. I don't know whether this is similar. It is sad if it someone gets pleasure from these hoaxes

[Kiki-frog]

What a shame it's a hoax. It's probably slightly believable because so many of us have memories of Blue Peter appeals for the old foil bottle tops. And if people do think they are going to receive a much-needed wheelchair, that's just terrible.

[ummmm]

Years back I remember my Nan collected the foil milk tops for charity.

[TheOtherHalf]

We get through so much milk at the hospital, that we always save the tops. There is always someone wanting them and when they ask, they are amazed that we already have loads of bags full. Why throw them away if they can be of use to someone.

[tonyav]

I can remember Blue Peter used to have appeals years ago for silver foil, milk bottle tops etc, if i remember correctly they were for blind dog training.

[wolf63]

I don't think that I have seen milk in a bottle for years.

[factor-fiction]

I agree, TheOtherHalf, provided they are actually of use to whoever takes them off your hands. It may be though that the person who takes them off you is someone who has fallen for the hoax and has been collecting worthless items unnecessarily (as in some cases here http://messybeast.com...s-hoax.htm#bottletops)

[ummmm]

Wolf...milkman still delivers in bottles.

[wolf63]

ummmm - can't remember the last time that I saw a milk man. However I have lived in the city centre since 1986.