Just 12 per cent of Irish adults make fixed monthly donations to charity, new research has found.
Good Intentions: Consumer Preferences for Charities in Ireland by Amárach Consulting found that older adults (aged 55-64) and high-income earners were more likely to make these regular donations.
The study found that nine out of 10 people donated to one or more charities during the year and the average donated was €15 a month. Street collections were the most effective way for charities to raise money.
Some 26 per cent of Irish people preferred to donate to health-related charities with 21 per cent opting for children-related charities.
Older adults were more likely to support health-related causes while younger adults donated to children-related charities.
For this reason, the study predicted that health-related charities would fare better in the future as our population aged, while children-related causes would not do so well.
Some 15 per cent of donors preferred Third World charities, with higher income groups more likely to support this cause.
The research also found that Dubliners accounted for 40 per cent of all charitable donations, despite accounting for only 29 per cent of the population.
And although men only accounted for 48 per cent of donors, they made up 52 per cent of charitable donations.
Irish people are expected to give €450 million to charity this year. Mr Michael McLoughlin, Amárach Consulting's managing director said this was not "exceptionally generous" when compared with other wealthy nations. Our donations equate to 0.34 per cent of our GNP while the donation from US citizens is 2.10 per cent and the UK donation is 0.77 per cent.
"However, such comparisons are notoriously difficult and even unfair. There are immense tax, cultural and other differences between the countries," he said.
The study also found that qualifying charities were losing out on €25 million a year because they were not claiming back tax from regular monthly donors who were in the PAYE system.
