ATTORNEY GENERAL RAOUL, FTC AND BIPARTISAN COALITION STOP DECEPTIVE BREAST CANCER FUNDRAISING SCHEME

ATTORNEY GENERAL RAOUL, FTC AND BIPARTISAN COALITION STOP DECEPTIVE BREAST CANCER FUNDRAISING SCHEME

September 25, 2025

Raoul Alleges Kars-R-Us.com, Operators Raised Millions for Breast Cancer Screenings; Less than 1% of Proceeds Funded Screenings

Chicago - Attorney General Kwame Raoul joined the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and a bipartisan coalition of attorneys general and agencies to stop a deceptive nationwide charitable fundraising scheme. Raoul and the coalition filed a complaint and proposed settlement alleging Kars-R-Us.com Inc. (Kars) and its operators made false claims to deceive tens of thousands of people across the country to donate vehicles.

Attorney General Raoul and the coalition filed a lawsuit against professional charitable fundraiser Kars-R-Us.com Inc. and its operators, Michael Irwin and Lisa Frank, who purported to solicit charitable donations nationwide on behalf of United Breast Cancer Foundation Inc. (UBCF), a New York-based charity that claims to assist individuals affected by breast cancer. Raoul, the FTC and the coalition allege that Kars ran national and local TV, radio and online ads in English and Spanish to solicit vehicle donations and contributions with little regard for the truth or accuracy of the claims made on behalf of UBCF.

"Donors should be able to trust that their donations will support a charity's stated mission without worrying that they are being misled," Raoul said. "I am pleased that our partnership with the FTC and this bipartisan coalition will ensure this professional charitable fundraiser is held accountable to donors. I look forward to our continued collaboration and giving donors the peace of mind that their donations will actually go to those who need them most."

According to the complaint filed by Raoul, FTC and the coalition, Kars claimed donated vehicles would allow UBCF to "save lives" by providing free and low-cost breast cancer screenings. However, the complaint alleges that only 0.28% or $126,815 of the more than $45 million raised was used to provide breast cancer screenings. More than 84,000 Americans donated their vehicles to Kars, which includes approximately 3,000 vehicles from Illinois.

"This case should send a strong message to fundraisers that the FTC will take action if they misrepresent the truth and exploit the kindness of generous donors for their own gain," said Christopher Mufarrige, Director of the FTC's Bureau of Consumer Protection. "We are grateful to our state partners for joining this effort to protect the public from fundraising schemes like this one."

Under a proposed settlement order Raoul, the FTC and its state partners also filed today, Kars and its operators face restrictions on future fundraising activities. Additionally, Irwin, who was Kars's president and co-owner until 2022, will be permanently banned from fundraising.

Additional restrictions in the proposed settlement include:

• Permanently banning Irwin from fundraising or providing fundraising services to any person, directly or indirectly, and prohibiting him from making misrepresentations in connection with the marketing or sale of any product and service.
• Prohibiting Frank, Kars' current president and sole owner, from making misrepresentations associated with fundraising, or in the marketing or sale of any other product or service.
• Prohibiting Kars, its employees and anyone actively working for or engaged with the company from making misrepresentations associated with fundraising or the marketing or sale of any other product or service.
• Requiring Kars and Frank to substantiate fundraising or marketing claims.

Irwin, Frank and Kars also face a total monetary judgment of $3,882,091, which is partially suspended based on their inability to pay the full amount. If Kars, Frank and Irwin are found to have lied to the FTC and state partners about their financial status, the full judgment will be immediately payable.

Bureau Chief Kristin Louis is handling the case for Attorney General Raoul's Charitable Trust Bureau.

Joining Raoul and the FTC in this case were attorneys general of Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Indiana, Maryland, New York, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Oregon, Utah, Virginia, West Virginia and Wisconsin. Also joining the case were the secretaries of state of Maryland, North Carolina and South Carolina, as well as Utah's Division of Consumer Protection.