Do you know where your donations are going when you drop used clothing into one of those roadside bins?

You may be surprised to learn that some of those bins have been put there by for-profit companies, and they are located right beside the registered charity bins.

“Very confusing for the donor because the donor just sees these bins. They all look like charity bins,” said Deanna Barlow with the Developmental Disabilities Association.

DDA is a registered charity with Canada Revenue Agency and 100 per cent of its profits go to charity. Barlow says DDA’s clothing donations have fallen dramatically since the for-profit companies installed their bins.

We took a drive around Metro Vancouver and saw several bins grouped together. Among them were two bins belonging to for-profit companies that say they support charities but wouldn’t tell CTV News how much money they donate.

Big Brothers of Greater Vancouver has seen a drop in clothing donations too. We caught up with Slav Gudelj, the manager of the clothing donation program, at the Big Brothers bin at Victoria Drive and 53rd Avenue in Vancouver. Five clothing bins were bunched together, and two were owned by for-profit companies.

“This bin was producing about 15, 20 bags of clothing a week for us, of donations. It’s down to five -- six if you’re lucky -- on average,” said Gudelj.

He blames the for-profit companies for the dip in donations, saying they are squeezing out the registered charities.

Multiple bins also attract illegal dumping, and when that happens, all bin owners usually get notices from city officials telling them to remove them.

The City of Richmond is taking action. Effective July 1, only registered charities will be allowed to place bins on Richmond public property. Charities will have to apply for a permit and follow all the rules, including displaying a registered charity number, and the donations will have to benefit Richmond residents.

“Fifty per cent of the revenue has to go to that charity, and preference is given to charities that are running programs in Richmond,” said Ted Townsend, Corporate Communications Manager for the City of Richmond.

Vancouver is reviewing its policies but so far has not committed to regulating the donation bins. Burnaby has completely banned donation bins on public property.

Two years ago Canada’s Competition Bureau sent warning letters to for-profit companies operating in Vancouver, advising them to be clear that they are for-profit companies. The bureau also warned consumers to be wary of bins that say "sponsor" or "support charities."

The letters appear to have had little effect. Consumers we talked to still thought they were donating to a registered charity.

You can check the Canada Revenue Agency to see if a charity is registered and you can also see how much money goes to charity and how much is spent on management and administration costs.