We have had this happen as well and we actually look at past history of the family, have they ever fundraised before, how much, etc. It happened two years ago and we did not refund the money mainly because it was looked for and never found, stories kept changing, etc. the secretary in the main office keeps great track of anything coming in and it is away from anyone else's hands. Since then we have really tried to push the check issue, getting all checks. It has increased the amount of checks and really that way you can be sure. I am not sure what others do but I would say no unless there is some proof, of course you could argue that it could ruin your groups reputation, I dont know...good question now that I think about it.

We just had our Sarris candy delivered, and naturally the problems began. We were confronted by a mom who claimed that she turned in $60 in cash to the school office along with the order form. Then today the lady said that she had it in an envelope marked with her daughter's name and room number and her child turned it into the teacher. Yesterday the woman said she didn't know how much money was turned in, and now today she said it was $60. We searched in the teacher's room, the child's locker and desk, in the office, and in the PTO office. We never received the order or the money. Our PTO keeps copies of all order forms and checks, but we have no system in place regarding cash being turned in for fundraisers. The woman expects the PTO to replace the money because she can't afford to return all of her customers' money. We don't feel that we are responsible for refunding her money since we never received the envelope from her child. My question is this, should we refund her money or not?