Junk Mail

Do you open your mailbox each day to find it stuffed with unsolicited mail, catalogs, credit card applications, and advertisements? The best way to reduce unwanted mail is to stop it at the source. Taking some time to make a few phone calls or writing a note will save you a lot of time sorting through your daily mail.

Reducing unwanted mail saves landfill space and conserves natural resources.

How Do I Get on Mailing Lists?

Every time you enter a contest, make a donation, buy something, order a product by mail, write a check, or send in a subscription or warranty card, chances are your name and address are being added to a mailing list of some kind. Then the mailing list may be sold or traded.

What Can I Do to Reduce Junk Mail?

Be patient; it takes three to six months before you notice a reduction in your junk mail by following some of these tips.

Call Mail-Order Catalog Companies

Most catalogs provide an 800 telephone number for placing an order; call this number and ask to be taken off their mailing list.

Contact Specific Organizations or Businesses

If you receive unwanted flyers or mail, call the customer service department of the organization or business responsible and request that your name be removed from their mailing list.

Return Junk Mail

Envelopes stamped "address correction requested" or "return postage guaranteed" can be retuned unopened to the sender by writing "refused, return to sender" on the envelope. DO NOT write this on mail without that special notation; the post office will not return it to the sender.

Get Off National Mailing Lists

Write to the address below and ask to be placed on a "suppress" file. Include a list of your name and address in all the different ways it appears on your junk mail. The Mail Preference Service places your name in the suppress file for five years. The Direct Marketing Association sends this list to its business subscribers four times a year.

Mail Preference Service
Direct Marketing Association
P. O. Box 9008
Farmingdale, NY 11735-9008

Notify Mailing List Brokers

Some companies specialize in collecting and selling mailing lists. Write or call these companies and ask to be placed in their "suppress" files:

R.L. Polk & Company
Attn: Name Deletion
File List Compilation and Development
6400 Monroe Boulevard
Taylor, MI 48180-1814
(800) 873-7655

MetroMail Corporation / List Maintenance
901 West Bond
Lincoln, NE 68521
(800) 228-4571

Donnelly Marketing, Inc.
Data Base Operations
1235 North Avenue
Nevada, IA 50201-1419
(888) 633-4402 or (800) 223-7777

Reduce Coupons, Ads, Product Samples

If you don't want these items, check for the name of the company distributing the item. Write or call and ask that your address be removed from the company's lists. One company mailing these items is:

Advo Incorporated Delivery Services
1001 W. Walnut Street
Compton, CA 90220-5191
(310) 637-0438

PennySaver/Potpourri
(800) 479-4795

Contact Credit Bureaus

Credit bureaus may sell names and addresses to banks and credit card companies. You can now contact Equifax, Trans Union, and Experian by calling a single toll-free number: (888) 5-OPT-OUT or (888) 567-8688.

Or, by mailing a letter to:

Name Removal Option
P.O. Box 97328
Jackson, MS 39288-7328

Avoid Warranty Cards

Warranty cards are a means of gathering names for mailing lists and to inform customers about product recalls. When you purchase a product, you may be covered by the manufacturer's warranty even if you do not send in the warranty card. Check with the manufacturer to find out whether or not your are covered and keep the receipt as proof of purchase.

Personal Checks

Write on the bottom of checks and mail orders "DO NOT SELL MY NAME."