Nonprofit Resources
Gift Week: Vehicle Donations
Per Example 2 in IRS Publication 4302, page 6, this intended use qualifies because it is significant and substantially furthers the charity’s regularly conducted activity of delivering meals to needy individuals.
*Remember also that the 2014 Form 1098-C has added a Box 2a for “Odometer mileage” — with very little help in the instructions for this line.
From IRS Publication 4302, “A Charity’s Guide to Vehicle Donation”:
Charity Intends a Significant Intervening Use of the Vehicle – If the charity intends to make a significant intervening use (defined below) of the vehicle, in addition to the information required for all acknowledgments, the contemporaneous written acknowledgment must include:
- A statement certifying that the charity intends to make a significant intervening use of the donated vehicle,
- A detailed statement of the intended use,
- A detailed statement of the duration of that use, and
- A certification that the vehicle will not be sold before completion of the use.
Significant Intervening Use — To qualify as significant intervening use, the charity must actually use the vehicle to substantially further its regularly conducted activities, and the use must be considerable. There is no significant intervening use if the charity’s use is incidental or not intended at the time of the contribution. In addition, significant intervening use does not include use of the vehicle to provide training in general business skills, such as marketing and sales. Whether a use qualifies as significant intervening use depends on its nature, extent, frequency, and duration.