No less than 3 times per month, I open my mailbox to find junkmail from a TV company called DirecTV. I've been getting their stupid sign-up request forms for over a year now, despite the fact that I have never given them any sort of feedback indicating that their entreaties are appreciated or welcome. I get equally frequent mailers from Dish Network, State Farm Insurance, and Geico Indemnity Company. What makes these people think I'm going to simply change my mind one day, or that if I do, it will be a result of reading one of their stupid mailers that I clearly have never even opened?

I don't have the time in the day, nor the patience, to jump through all the hoops it would take to get my address removed from the mailing list of all these companies, and I shouldn't have to.

What I am proposing is legislation to impose a 3 Strikes rule on companies who advertise via junk mail. They get 3 attempts at advertising at any given address. If no positive feedback is received from an address that they have tried to reach by mail 3 times, that address MUST be removed from their mailing list before the 4th letter is sent (consequently, there had better not BE a 4th letter).

I propose that the same legislation be applied to telemarketing, regarding phone numbers and the company's Do Not Call list.
-- 21 Quest, Jun 01 2011

direct mailing associate's do not mail list https://www.dmachoi...ember/regist.action
A form which supposedly gets you less junk mail for three years. [ye_river_xiv, Jun 02 2011]

Other things you can do to get less mail http://www.privacyr...org/fs/fs4-junk.htm
[ye_river_xiv, Jun 02 2011]

Inquisition Mail Sorter http://www.halfbake...ion_20Mail_20Sorter
Shameless self-promotion. [ye_river_xiv, Jun 02 2011]

Sadly, the wheels of bureaucracy turn slowly. You may benefit from one of the following links. (One of these things is not like the other.)
-- ye_river_xiv, Jun 02 2011


I wonder whether you could write to the company that sends the mail, informing them that any further correspondence from them constitutes a contract to pay you $x processing fee per item, applied retrospectively to items already received. (This has been suggested for unwanted email; I assume you are talking about snail mail here).

There's a legal principle that a wrong not repelled is a wrong occasioned; I have a feeling that they have a common-law right to continue to send you post until you explicitly deny them that right. While I agree with you in principle, it may be problematic.

On a similar vein, I think that junk mail should not be delivered to letter boxes unless they have a "junk mail accepted" sign clearly posted on them; but again, the law doesn't tend to work that way.
-- spidermother, Jun 02 2011


1. Create a user account on their website. 2. Change your address to 1555 West 1555th St or similar nonexistent address. 3. Smile and enjoy no further junkmail from them.
-- phundug, Jun 03 2011



random, halfbakery