Fake charity collectors

Whilst out shopping today I saw a woman collecting money. She approached an elderly lady (looked quite frail) and asked if she wanted to make a donation to help the homeless. The lady said no at which point the collector asked if she didn't care about homeless people and that she was probably going to be warm and well fed over the winter. I could see the elderly lady was getting upset so I stepped in and asked the collector which charity she was collecting for, she said it was for the homeless, when I pressed her to name the charity she named a well known local one. I asked her where her badge was and she said they didn't bother with badges. Having worked with this charity myself in the past I knew that was wrong and in any event you need an identifying badge if you are collecting in the street. I pointed all this out to her and she swore at me and walked away.

I know GNs are very generous so please if approached by someone collecting for charity - ask a few questions and make sure they are genuine.