Throwback Thursday: here's advice I dug out of the Miser Mom archives about getting rid of unwanted mail. (I figure if I can re-use scraps of wood and recycle cardboard, I might as well reuse and recycle good advice!) The first part of this advice was stuff I originally published when N-son was a young teenager, still living in our home.Why write about mail during Plastic-free July? Most of the mail we get is some kind of paper, but the paper is occasionally wrapped in plastic, or contains plastic enclosures. So it's indirectly related to reducing the amount of spurious plastic in the world. It seems bizarre that we'd have to go out of our way to stop getting plastic garbage we never asked for or wanted in the first place, and yet . . . well, read on.
The credit card offers that come with postage-paid return envelopes, I return with the request "please remove us from your mailing list". In fact, because somehow my husband keeps attracting new credit card offers, I printed up a bunch of mailing labels with that phrase that I slap onto the credit card offers, just to save time. In double fact, I like these mailing labels so much that I printed up multiple sheets of them, and gave copies to my daughters for Christmas, so they can do the same. (You're welcome, daughters! Nothing but the best for you!)
By the way, those "privacy" statements that I get annually from the credit card companies? I've taken to reading them carefully, and then contacting the companies (or delegating my husband to contact them, since they're mostly his credit cards) to limit sharing if that's not already the default. That has also helped a lot in reducing unwanted junk mail.
Update: it turns out that by changing privacy settings on all his credit cards, we stopped the new offers coming in even more effectively than writing back to individual companies that solicited us.
If junk mail doesn't come with its own return envelope, I save it in a yellow folder titled "please remove us", and when the folder gets full, I spend an hour or two removing myself from mailing lists. Fortunately, this folder takes longer and longer to fill these days; I think the last time I had a "please remove us" binge was eight or nine months ago.
I've made extensive use of a web-based organization called Catalog Choice. If Catalog Choice has the company on file, usually a few clicks will stop future mail from that company. Today I managed to get on the "please remove us" list of four or five companies in about 15 minutes. But that left six more pieces of mail where the only way to stop new mail was to make telephone calls. Ugh!
Enter N-son. I offered him an exorbitant fee (50 cents per catalog or flyer) to do the calling for me. He, of course, was reluctant; it's scary talking on the phone with a business when you're just a kid. But his apprehension just convinced me all the more that this would be a good life skill for him to have, so I coached him through how to make a call, and I gave him one piece of mail at a time so I could ensure each call went according to plan. The only company he didn't reach directly was a place called "Carpet Mart", and he left a message on their answering machine. We'll see how that goes!
N-son did so well that I wish I had thought of conscripting my children in my anti-junk mail crusade several years earlier. Not only would I have saved a bunch of telephone time myself, but I would have given my children lessons on how to talk to a sales person or customer representative, and let them realize how non-scary it actually is. Parents with younger children, take note!
Here, in case you've never done it yourself, is how to get off a mailing list with a phone call. Usually, the hardest part is finding a number to call. Call that number, and when someone answers, say "we would like to be removed from your mailing list." Sometimes they transfer you to somebody else. You will need to read the name and address that is listed on the mail you already got, and sometimes a catalog number and/or customer number. Say thank you, and you're done.
Technically, most of this unwanted mail is "recyclable", but it's getting harder and harder to find places that want to recycle it. In my area, there's one recycling center that accepts well-sorted donations, but they do it as a kindness: office paper actually loses them money. (Other things like chip board and aluminum are money makers, provided it's well-sorted and clean, which is why they're so careful about what they accept).
https://www.consumer.ftc.gov/articles/0262-stopping-unsolicited-mail-phone-calls-and-email
If you decide that you don't want to receive prescreened offers of credit and insurance, you have two choices: You can opt out of receiving them for five years or opt out of receiving them permanently.
To opt out for five years: Call toll-free 1-888-5-OPT-OUT (1-888-567-8688) or visit www.optoutprescreen.com. The phone number and website are operated by the major consumer reporting companies.
To opt out permanently: You may begin the permanent Opt-Out process online at www.optoutprescreen.com. To complete your request, you must return the signed Permanent Opt-Out Election form, which will be provided after you initiate your online request.
http://www.ecocycle.org/junkmail
First, look for any of the following phrases: return service requested, forwarding service requested, address service requested, or change service requested. If you find any of these phrases, write "refused, returned to sender" on the unopened envelope. Mail sent to "Resident," "Current Resident," or "Current Occupant" can be refused if it contains one of the above endorsements, or is sent First Class. When you receive unsolicited promo products, you can mark the envelope “Return to Sender” and put it back in the mail.
I go on these binges too! How old was N-son when you had him practice the calls? If this problem still persists by that point I might have JB do so for us too! I try to practice as many life skills with them as possible.
ReplyDeleteGood question! He was in his mid-teens. I do think this is reasonable for kids in late elementary or middle school, though.
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