Pet owners sharing costs of transport?

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Redcatwings

Pet owners sharing costs of transport?

Post by Redcatwings » Sun Oct 20, 2013 12:13 pm

I am a new pilot here with question.
Is it common practice to ask for fuel reimbursement from pet owners, or is this a "ride sharing" kind of thing?
Would be more willing to participate if there was some relief for fuel costs...
Steve

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Re: Pet owners sharing costs of transport?

Post by admin » Sun Oct 20, 2013 1:23 pm

Redcatwings wrote:I am a new pilot here with question.
Is it common practice to ask for fuel reimbursement from pet owners, or is this a "ride sharing" kind of thing?
Would be more willing to participate if there was some relief for fuel costs...
Steve
Hey Steve, and thank you for volunteering with Pilots N Paws! This question has been asked in the past and here is the response. The relief pilots have for fuel costs is through the use of Pilots N Paws 501c3, there is no other legal avenue open to you to accept compensation for helping rescues transport animals in need. Here is a previous post on the topic:

Hi Everyone,

Pilots N Paws is a non-profit 501c3 charitable organization. As such, our pilots are eligible to claim part of their flight expenses as a donation. Each pilot must check with their tax advisor for appropriate claims. The IRS regs do change on occassion so we are not in a position to advise you.

A pilot who is asking for compensation for their volunteer flights is in violation of the FAA regs. For the most part, General Aviation pilots are not permitted to receive any monetary compensation for their volunteer flights. An exception is GA pilots who fly freight. The no compensation rule includes most charitable groups though PAL has recently sought and received an exclusion. There are numerous requirements they have to meet which are not possible for our pilots or program. We have the information of what is required by them in order to receive reimbursement for fuel costs and would be glad to share if anyone would like to read them.

Regarding our wonderful volunteer pilots and for clarification, please refer to the following threads:

viewtopic.php?f=3&t=2084

and also this discussion on our 501c3:

http://www.pilotsnpaws.org/forum/viewto ... f=3&t=1230

On the upper right hand corner of each page is a FAQ section that has a section for both pilots and rescues. Pilots have a plane icon and rescues have a lifesaver ring. Many of your questions can be answered there we encourage everyone to read both sections.

As always, if you have any questions, please feel free to ask and thanks to each of you for helping the animals who need us.

Admin

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