Is 'To Pledge' legally binding ?

[Bumfluff]

I ran the London Marathon as part of my clients team, I was told the money raised by the team would be pooled and matched by the client to cover the minimum we needed to raise for the charity. I have now been told as a contractor my monies raised can't be pooled or matched and I must make sure I cover the minimum amount myself, I've raised a fair whack but now due to this I am £1k short of the minimum.

I want to make sure the charity get as much as they can but I not willing to cough up an extra £1k but am ok with extra £500. The only thing I have agreed with the charity is I agreed to 'Pledge to raise a minum of x amount', there were no more terms or conditions, is a 'Pledge' legally binding or is that just agreeing to 'try' and raise that amount. Anyone else not been able to raise the minimum amount for a charity and how was it handled ?

[AtW]

I would not run marathon even if they paid me £1000, I would not do it for £5000 also.

So if you had balls to agree to run it for free and pay £500, then have guts to follow it through.

Chances are if you whimp out of this one then you'd lose your contract too as you will be viewed as unreliable so in the next round of cost cutting the axe might just fall on yer neck. Hence you need to ask yourself if £500 extra for charity is worth to keep your gig and look like a man who keeps his word.

[moorfield]

Like one of those ZanuLabour "Pledge cards" ? In that case, not legally binding at all.

[Bumfluff]

I would not run marathon even if they paid me £1000, I would not do it for £5000 also.

So if you had balls to agree to run it for free and pay £500, then have guts to follow it through.

Chances are if you whimp out of this one then you'd lose your contract too as you will be viewed as unreliable so in the next round of cost cutting the axe might just fall on yer neck. Hence you need to ask yourself if £500 extra for charity is worth to keep your gig and look like a man who keeps his word.

If I covered the full amount I need to now they won't match it would of cost me £1250 to run the marathon, I enjoy running but not that much, I willing to cover £750 of it. Its the clients error IMO they said it was fine we pool it then match, then they changed there mind

[AtW]

If I covered the full amount I need to now they won't match it would of cost me £1250 to run the marathon, I enjoy running but not that much, I willing to cover £750 of it. Its the clients error IMO they said it was fine we pool it then match, then they changed there mind

If you paid £50 and final bill was £1000 then I could understand, but £750 to run marathon is equally as crazy as extra £500 to do it.

You might have been stupid to agree to it in the first place, but if you did then it's time for you to decide if following through your pledge is worth more than £500 to you.

Take my advice - pay up this time and never ever again run London marathon, over years you'd save money to cover for this stupid mistake and thank me in the process.

btw, when did exactly honour died out in England? If you given your word then bloody keep unless the other side acted totally dishonourably.

[ASB]

It may or may not be legally binding. Not entirely helpful but there you go. Depends on all the conditions.

Essentially if there is no consideration - and it could be held that allowing to run was consideration - then there is no contract and the pledge in unenforcable.

[Example, pledge to remember charity X in your will. Let the charity know this, this is not legally binding. But some charities might, for example do you a "free will" in exchange for a pledge to leave them - this might be legally binding]

However it does seem to me you have acted in the utmost good faith. Your client hasn't. They have encouraged you into this venture with the promise of matching your sponsorship, then turned around and said "what we meant was".

Personally I'd tell 'em "sod off, my share is what you're getting."

Bill Gates has some experience of not honouring pledges.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/arti...s-charity.html

[AtW]

Bill Gates has some experience of not honouring pledges.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/arti...s-charity.html

640KB of RAM will be enough for everyone...

IGMC

[d000hg]

What's this "minimum amount" thing? I take it the charity you wanted to run for had competition and wanted to pick those who could raise the highest amount?

I think you should pay your share, and if you feel bad then a bit extra as goodwill. Explain to the charity your 'employer' has refused to cover you, and sadly due to the recession you can't afford the extra £500 but here is your share + £100.

[Board Game Geek]

Make sure the employer gets some free bad publicity.

[Bumfluff]

Thanks peeps, I would post my justgiving website address but its in my name and then your folks and the taxman will know who I am. It was for a good charity 'Dreams come true' for terminally ill kids.

I'm going to see what the client comes up with, I'm hoping that the collective amount for the other runners when matched will cover there minimum and have an some spare that can cover me. If thats a no go I will cough up another £500 (company expense) and then I am not far off the minimum, I will try and raise the rest in other ways.

If anyone does fancy sponsoring me PM me and I will send the my link and a link to the official pictures of me running, where I look ill and then even more ill and then rather grey.