Attorney General Phil Weiser stops phony cancer charity from bilking donors

Attorney General Phil Weiser stops phony cancer charity from bilking donors

Sept. 25, 2025 (DENVER) - Colorado is joining a coalition of 18 other states and the Federal Trade Commission in a settlement agreement with Kars-R-Us.com, Inc. and its operators, Michael Irwin and Lisa Frank, that will restrict them from future charity fundraising, Attorney General Phil Weiser announced today.

From 2017-2022, Kars and its owners raised more than $45 million through vehicle donations on behalf of United Breast Cancer Foundation, or UBCF. The donations, the company claimed, were to be used to provide free and low-cost breast cancer screenings that the company claimed in advertisements would "save lives." 84,000 people donated their vehicles to Kars, falsely believing the donation would be used for a worthy cause.

In reality, only about $126,000, or less than 0.5%, of the donations wound up helping to provide breast cancer screenings. Most of the rest of the money, just under $35 million, went to pay Kars, Irwin and Frank, and their vendors. Of the money that went to UBCF, most went to purposes other than cancer screenings, including a large sum to compensate UBCF's CEO.

"Charity scams like the one in this case are despicable, and I'm glad to be working with a bipartisan group of attorneys general, other state officials, and the FTC to put an end to the Kars scheme," said Attorney General Weiser. "I am encouraging Coloradans who want to do some good, whether it's through donating their hard-earned money or valuable property like a vehicle, to do their homework and make sure a charity is legitimate before donating. Services like CharityNavigator tell consumers how much of their donations actually go to help the cause. Scammers are not interested in supporting a good cause; they simply seek to take advantage of good-hearted people for personal gain and must be held accountable."

In addition to prohibiting Kars and its current owner Frank from any future illegal fundraising activities, Irwin-who was the president and co-owner of Kars until 2022-will be permanently banned from fundraising or providing direct or indirect fundraising services and from making misrepresentations about any product or service. Kars, Irwin, and Frank also face a fine of more than $3.8 million, which will be deferred based on their inability to pay. That fine will be immediately payable if the defendants are found to have lied to the FTC or the state coalition about their financial standing.

Coloradans who want to learn more about how to spot charity fraud, or report any fraud or scam, are encouraged to visit StopFraudColorado.gov.

Read the allegations against Kars, Irwin, and Frank (PDF).

Read the details of the settlement agreement (PDF).

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Media Contact: Elliot Goldbaum Community Education and Communications Manager (720) 508-6769 office [email protected]