I have an aunt who used to do this very thing. She said it works like a charm!

Sorry to bust your bubble, but Uncle Cecil dealt with the question 23 years ago, and his verdict is that it won't work.

Sorry.

([www.straightdope.com])

I don't care so much about the credit card offers, since my credit is so borked I don't get them. What's bugging me lately is all the letters I'm getting (2 at a time) from companies denying me credit. I just bought a car and apparently they had to shop me to every bank in the country to find one that would finance me. For 2 weeks I got 6-8 letters a day from different banks explaining why they weren't going to offer me credit. It's slowed down to once a week or so, but it's still annoying.

Seriously though, what do I have to do to get off of the Val-Pack, grocery store and CVS shopping lists? I hate those circulars. I don't shop there and I never use coupons. It's such a waste for one, and for 2 it blocks up my mailbox. I came home from a weekend away to find my *actual* mail soaking on the ground while the grocery flyer sat nice and dry in the box. I live across the street from the post office, maybe I can go have a chat with them.

@Jean Naimard: did you even read the article you posted? they arent the same. this one states, tape the letter to a BOX, not directly to a brick. you tape it to cardboard shipping box, and put whatever you want INSIDE the box. thats the difference.

Wow, a comment from instructuctables.com is a news source? Consumerist has sunken to a new low.

Yes, this is not a new concept. I have read where people have put a variety things in a box to see what could get through. This was popular around the time of the AOL CD outrage.

Someone needs to start marketing envelope-sized lead plates for just this purpose. I'd be tempted to buy a few for a few egregious junk mail offenders.

@babaki: @babaki: I think Jean did read it, but you don't seem to have caught this part: "According to rule 917.243(b) in the Domestic Mail Manual, when a business reply card is "improperly used as a label"--e.g., when it's affixed to a brick--the item so labeled may be treated as "waste." That means the post office can heave it into the trash without further ado."

Forget the direct mail company ... you're punishing the mail carrier. That's just cruel.

@fluiddruid:
What if I was returning a brick?

If you want to get revenge on the junk mailers, don't do something silly such as taping the return envelope to a brick or a box. The Post Office discards those.

What most companies have are these automated mail processing systems that open and scan the contents of mail.

My hypothesis is that you could put something very sticky and messy inside the envelope that would require manual intervention to repair the mail processing system. I have no experience with this, so its a YMMV scenario, but I think its a more sensible idea.

@Jean Naimard: Cecil is of course correct, but his reference is outdated as the Domestic Mail Manual has since been updated.

View it in the current DMM at 507.8.4.6: "BRM may not be used for any purpose other than that intended by the permit holder, even when postage is affixed. In cases where a BRM card or letter is used improperly as a label, the USPS treats the item as waste."

environmental impact anyone?

I used to get the same offer about 3 times a week when I lived in Texas. Every once in a while, I'd open it at the mailbox and put a small rock in the reply envelope and drop it in. It didn't take me but 10 seconds and made me fell better knowing they were going to pay extra for the weight and the thickness.

@DallasDMD: Yes because sending unidentified and improperly packaged sticky messy substances through the mail isn't going to get noticed by anyone at all at the post office.

what about the stupid newspaper type things they throw in my drive way?
How do I stop that? or at least find out where they come from so I can drop about 1000 of them off there one day?

@DeeJayQueue: Where did I mention anything about sending improperly packaged mail?

I've done this for years. But it doesn't have any effect; I keep getting junk mail from the companies I send it back to.

there must be better, more logical ways to voice your displeasure with those companies than by doing something stupid and causing Nice Mr/Mrs Mailperson to needlessly strain themselves while carrying a box full of bricks, (which will probably be tossed out anyway if the other posters here are correct.) That sophmoric prank won't even bring your "plight" to the awareness of anyone who's in a position to do anything about stopping it, UNLESS you happen to put your name and address on the back of the business reply card (you know, so that they know who NOT to send materials to in the future). HOWEVER, that's a catch-22, because you're tampering with the mail syatem, and that same info could be used to identify you (especially if your brick-box causes an injury, damagess mail sorting equipment, etc..)

The problem with this is that you can do it and do it and never know if you ever actually did anything.

You can get letter size lead plates from China.
Code:MATTEL

@DallasDMD: "very sticky and messy inside the envelope that would require manual intervention to repair the mail processing system."

Sounds pretty improperly packaged to me.

I'm not absolutely sure, but I think they pay the post office by the piece, not by the weight.

I read that entire thread. A lot of people were suggesting putting glitter, hole-puncher scraps, and even powdered sugar in the envelopes, which ends up just causing a huge mess for the lowly employee charged with processing your application. They're undoubtedly the ones who are going to have to clean it up, and they probably are losing money for the time they have to spend wiping it up.

This puts no pressure on the company to stop harassing you with their junk, and accomplishes a net total of nothing. Consumerist is usually very good at suggesting ways to fight back against large corporations...unfortunately, this is not a very good method.

@Steeb2er: I drop mine at a mailbox.

@DeeJayQueue: The text you quoted doesn't say anything about how you should package the contents. The mail processing system is designed to open up the actual envelope and remove the contents. How someone packages the contents is up to whoever might try this idea.

@mgyqmb: If enough people did those things, they would actually stop sending junk to people who didn't want it. If you don't like the consequences of your job, then tough. War is war!

Does it really matter? It's all bulk rate postage anyways. It costs the marketing company the same, whether it's a 1 ounce envelope or a 1 pound box.

A smart consumer will just shred those credit card offers and toss the remains in the recycling bin.

Does anyone actually know if such envelopes are weighed and the recipient billed for this weight? I checked some of the links and there's no citation about this. Snopes didn't do a very thorough job.

I doubt the box of brick thing would work, but for years I've been taking advantage of pre-paid envelopes.

I stuff everything they sent me (including the original envelope) back into the pre-paid envelope. Sometimes I add other junk paper I don't want. Then mail it back. They then get to pay for the postage, and get to throw out their own trash. I don't know if this is the cause, but I now only get maybe 1-2 pieces of junk mail a week, TOPS.

Even if you put nothing in it, at least send them back the empty pre-paid envelope. Then they have to pay for it.

@mgyqmb: That's like discouraging people from playing pranks on telemarketers. What's wrong with you? It's like... it's like you're not even one of us anymore!

Seriously, though? Being upset about the "lowly employee" in these companies is foolish. They know who they're working for, it's not like they're any less guilty.

Don't mail powder, or something that makes the paper look oily or moist. That looks anthraxy, and will get you in trouble if found out.

@DeeJayQueue: I think there's an optout on the Valpak website. It took a bit of time to take effect for me but at least I don't get those damn things anymore.

@ptrix: If they can't handle the replies they get, maybe they shouldn't be sending people junk mail. That, of course, being the point.

why waste your time doing this? life is too short to do these things that no one on here seems to be sure if they even work. i'll save my time and effort for a better cause.

@hypnotik_jello: Hey, when it's your website you can pick what goes on it. Until then, well, if you don't like the story, just skip it.

people, just write "refused" on the envelope without opening it and leave it for your mailman to pick up. This method of returning unwanted mail is in the domestic mail manual, go look it up.

There's no need for this childish brick/lead/goop bullshit that doesn't do anything but massage your own ego and cause a lot of heartache for wage-slaves in either the post office or some mailroom somewhere.

As one who has used direct mail effectively for his own business, I can't condone this. There are legitimate channels for opting out of this stuff.

I myself cut my junk in half by opting out of "prescreened credit offers". It's really not that hard and a lot more effective then antics like this.

Handling junk mail isn't time consuming: Make 3 piles by the front door:
1.) Bills / letters / important / etc.
2.) Interesting unsolicited stuff.
3.) Uninteresting unsolicited stuff. This pile should be in the trash can.

Thanks for the link to OptOutPrescreen.com. Haven't seen that site before.

I find it odd that on that site they list "benefits" of receiving credit card offers. Wouldn't it make much more sense to list the dangers of credit card offers, particularly ID theft?

I love massaging my ego.

I rip up whatever application they send me and stuff it back in the envelope, then mail it. That way there's no question about who sent it back.

Correlation: no more credit card offers. Haven't received one in ages. Don't know if it was my send-back method, but maybe? Hopefully?

@Buran: Thanks for the tip! I'll take it under advisement.

An oldie but a goodie - this was against MCI junkmail

[www.vertical-visions.com]

But what do I do about the flurry of postcards RCN keeps sending me about their terrible deals?

@marisol: whoops! What I meant to say was that my aunt would save up all her junk mail and put it all in one of their envelops and mail it back to them. Fight fire with fire approach.

it must be halloween....dissapearing comments......spooooky!

re:jasmo: I believe bulk mail won't be returned by writing refused on it.

There are legitimate channels for opting out of this stuff.

@cbartlett: I never opted to get it in the first place.

I sent a bunch of destroyed CC applications back at one time but I don't know if it was that or the fact that I've moved that accounts for the decrease in applications in the mail.

What the hell is going on here with the comments - they keep disappearing and reappearing

Some of these companies now put a tracking number on the back of the envelope and also on some of the paper junk inside. We were getting at least 3 a day from the various card companies at one point. I really ticked me off since these had credit card apps in them, potential ID theft fodder. I started out opening them to shred the app but finally got sick enough of it I started shredding the apps only. Then use a sharpie to block the tracking code on the back of the envelope and shove the paper junk from another card company in the return envelope.

They can throw this crap away on their dime.

HOW I GOT REMOVED FROM CC JUNKMAIL LISTS: by INconsumer,

first thing you'll want to do is call the card company itself. next, ask for a supervisor (as the usuall csr is too incompetent to perform your request). then tell the supervisor to remove you from their mailing lists. then PRESTO! i stopped recieving said cc offers. AMAZING! but i guess i just like doing things the hard way since this process here seems WAAAY easier....NOT!