It’s a bit like some drivers and road signs like “No Right Turn”. Complain to them and you’ll get a stream of excuses about how they know what the sign says but, oh, it’s “inconvenient” or “So you never break the rules?” or anything but admit they’ve done something wrong.

Or you get punched.

@Steve: Thank you for your insights there. I’ve seen the walkers’ jobs advertised as “get paid to exercise” or equivalent and thought that a bit rich.

I’ve chatted about the Code during some of my conversations with the larger stores etc who’d been in touch — and yes, there’s exemptions for political material and purely informational material from local government and the like.

Similar exemptions exist in the Spam Act 2003 for political and religious material, and material from registered non-profit organisations.

Firstly, I agree with most of the comments that have already been made here. There are definitely a lot of deliverers that couldn’t give a toss. The mob that used to do the KMart catalogues in our area actually used to advertise the fact that their deliverers used postie bikes, despite the fact that it’s illegal to ride a motorbike on the footpath in QLD, unless you’re a postie on duty. They actually stopped doing it a couple of months ago, so I assume someone got busted by the cops. We used to get a lot of their stuff just thrown in the yard, which, as someone else commented is illegal, it’s littering.

When I started delivering earlier this year I was given a copy of the code of practice that we’re expected to follow. As you’d expect it includes not delivering to households with “no junk mail” or equivalents on the letterbox and I stick to it. That said, we occasionally get political stuff that we’re supposed to put in all letterboxes. I refuse to do that since as far as I’m concerned it’s still junk mail.

As far as delivering to letterboxes with “no junk mail’ stickers. I get really pissed off when I walk up to a letterbox in an area I haven’t done before, I’m just about to stick a bundle in the box and I realise they’ve put a sticker inside the bit where the junk mail goes, where I can’t see it until I get right up to the box. If the postie has put a big delivery in that part of the letterbox, the sticker is then covered up. This is nearly always on big letterboxes that have plenty of room on the front for a sticker.

As far as punishing the advertisers, I think that’s a bit unfair in most cases as it’s the contractor that’s at fault not the company that’s paying them in good faith to do the right thing. That’s probably why KMart changed over to Salmat for their deliveries. If you ring up the company in question and complain a lot of them will follow up by complaining to the distributor in question. I know Coles do because my wife who works for Coles has passed on a few complaints about junk mail, including complaints from people about not getting deliveries. Yes, some people do complain about not getting it.

Just to finish off, our weekend delivery arrived today with a note regarding delivering to no junk mail letterboxes. It seems there’s been a lot more complaints recently about that very problem and they seem to think it’s because a lot of new people have started in the lead up to Christmas. I think there’s a very good reason for new people starting. When I first started, I considered it as being paid to exercise. After a while you realise that you spend more time folding the stuff than you do out delivering it. Then when you start to look at how much they’re paying you, you realise thay they’re paying you to deliver to less houses than you actually do. So after a year you get pissed off and decide a nice walk down the beach is better exercise than delivering junk mail for someone that’s ripping you off. So every few months you end up with a new person delivering your junk mail.

I’ll be stopping in February when the final year of my science degree starts. I’m not illiterate and I’m not young (almost 45) as someone suggested, but I do have a bit of a problem with some junk mail deliverers just like the rest of you.

I believe a “No Advertising Material” is more appropriate, and encompasses most non-postal items in general.

Even better, I have seen “Australia Post Mail Only” stickers which is clear and precise.

Better still, remove your mailbox all together, and have a redirection on all mail to your address set up to a Post Box – I have personally done this in the past due to by mailbox being less than secure, and my suspicions of some mail going missing.

Back when I was a kid, we had a notice on our letterbox at home asking for no junk mail, and I remember my Mother diligently putting each article of junk mail into an unstamped envelope addressed to the company in question with a note inside telling them to stop it (with our address on it), and posting them back. I’m sure it cost her a sheer fortune in envelopes over the years, but it was effective to some extent.

Hmmm… This also reminds me that I haven’t followed up on this saga for ages. There has been a reduction in advertising material now that the Big Two distributors have been warned. However by far the biggest offenders continue to be real estate agents. And the Real Estate Institute of Australia has now failed to reply to two emails to their media enquiries address.

Now they send the mail WITHOUT a return address and in an unmarked envelope!

To me, this is more infuriating than the ‘junk mail’ deliveries, although I’m dealing with those by returning them to the advertisers.

Your comment also reminds me, indirectly, that I need to do an update post. I’ll try to get that done before the weekend.

The problem with all this is that a new restaurant opened recently in my area, and they junk mailed me. Now I can’t go there — and I really wanted to — but I won’t, because that would make me a hypocrite.

I am also considering making an add-on to the No Junk Mail sign that states: “This includes:” and then lists the non-compliant businesses. I hope that the shock of a deliverer seeing the name of the company they are delivering for listed would be a discouragement — but it probably wouldn’t.

None of the real estate agents have ever responded. Nor has the Real Estate Institute of Australia even acknowledged my email from 9 September, let alone answered the questions. Pathetic.

@Shane: I do recall someone telling me that for poorer or housebound people, the catalogs and the free local newspapers are an important part of staying in touch with their community. I wouldn’t want to deny them that. It’s their choice.

The Universe is indeed screwing with you. Specifically. And personally.

As an aside, the industry firmly believes that most people want junk mail and anecdotally they are right. Many people like getting the weekly Woolies brochure to see what’s on sale next week, or the latest Harvey Norman catalogue for bargains on LCD TVs, or the new Target brochure so they know when to stock up on cheap socks and knickers. PMP and Salmat often claim that their clients get more complaints when the expected junk mail doesn’t arrive which is often a sign that a walker needs closer inspection. Undelivered or unwanted junk mail is not part of their business plan as it alienates potential customers who harrass their clients who in turn start to question why they are paying PMP and Salmat all this money in the first place. In a manner of speaking.

As another aside, they prefer it to be called “unaddressed advertising material” (although in the immortal words of Dr Hibberd “…and hillbillies prefer to be called ‘sons of the soil’ but it ain’t gonna happen”)

Anyway, as I’ve mentioned, Real Estate agents aren’t members of the DSB and therefore will continue to put whatever crap they feel like in your letter box. Ditto for the local takeaway. Missives from your local MP will continue because politicians have always excluded themselves from delivery codes of conduct on the grounds that they are providing a community service (normally people don’t mind but the issue rears its head at every election as the deliveries go into overdrive). Same will go for Sydney Buses.

The community service provision in the code is designed to allow people to deliver things like Neighbourhood Watch newsletters, support the work of local charities and, of course, our elected representatives.

Right. I’ve crapped on too much again. I haven’t dealt with this issue since April 2007 so I’m not quite sure why I can remember all of this now but I wouldn’t be able to tell you what I ate for dinner three nights ago.