unexpected benefit of the credit crunch??

18 years ago

I have noticed recently that I'm getting hardly any mail via the USPS. It finally dawned on me - I'm no longer getting all those obnoxious credit card offers. At one point I signed up for something that stopped it for about six months but then it started again. So every night I'd stop at the trash can in my garage and carefully tear up at least five new credit card offers.

I'm now getting NONE of those. Plus I even think the catalog quantity has dropped (could be related to cost cutting due to economic situation). I have many times thought what a waste all of that is - since I throw/recyle nearly all of it. I have signed up for something to stop catalogs from companies I don't buy from but even the ones I do buy from seem to have decreaesd though.

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Comments (23)

chelone
18 years ago
I have been wageing war on those "ads." for a few years now. I have called the senders, told them to stop sending me that garbage, and I've kept a LOG. I have vitually ended the tide of unwanted mail.

Seems, though, that you've hit on the basis of it all... it costs money to send that garbage... and when money gets tight and lending policies are tightened it makes sense to rein in the mailing... a FIXED cost!
turnage (8a TX)
18 years ago
If they enclose a postage paid return envelope, I send all that stuff back to them, along with a few discount store circulars or whatever else is handy. They get the message after a couple of times.
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partst
18 years ago
I hate junk mail. I had it stopped for several years until the NRA sold all of DHÂs information to any and all insurances companies on the planet. It took almost 2 years to stop it. I was not happy and now that I am turning 65 this year itÂs started again. How do they get my information? I call and ask them to take me off their mailing list or sent the cards back in the prepaid envelope with a big note to take me off the list.

Even though Amazon says it dosnt sell or share information I donÂt believe them. It seems when we order something soon after we stare getting catalogs in the mail. We donÂt have mail delivery and Amazon is one of a few places that have both our P.O. Box number and street address and thatÂs what almost all the unsolicited catalogs have as our address.

Gibby, If you want to stop the credit card offers call the opt out number, 888 567 8688, and follow the instruction. It works! It stops Equifax, Experian, Innovis and TransUnion from sharing your information with just about anyone who wants to check your credit so they can make you an offer for a credit card. We had our names permanently removed in 06 and havenÂt gotten anything since. I also did this for my elderly dad and have given that number to everyone in the family.
bethesdamadman
18 years ago
"Even though Amazon says it dosnt sell or share information I donÂt believe them. It seems when we order something soon after we stare getting catalogs in the mail."

It's not Amazon - - - it's the companies from which you are ordering through Amazon.com. You have to be very careful when entering and completing your order information. There's usually a small box somewhere that is pre-checked for you to receive the junk mail. You have to find the box and un-check it.

I find that the biggest transgressors in this area are magazine companies. They constantly sell lists of their subscribers to other companies. I solved my junk mail problem - well sort of anyway - a couple of years ago when I decided to sign up for the magazines that I wanted using my dog's name. Now, whenever I get credit card applications and other junk mail addressed to him I can immediately throw it in the recycling bin without bothering to open it and shredding the contents.
edselpdx
18 years ago
turnage... a person after my own heart.

I, too tear those up, along with any other junk mail that may have arrived that day and send them back in the postage paid envelopes. May not be efficient, but it's satisfying. They still send me new ones.
GawdinFever
17 years ago
OPT OUT

Aside from not having so much junk, you have less chance for identity theft happening to you!

Here is a link that might be useful: OPT OUT
3katz4me
Original Author
17 years ago
I opted out in the past and it was great for awhile - then they started coming again. The opt out option above does not appear to eliminate all such offers. In any case the volume of credit card mailings is still pretty low though I do get a few. It's so strange - I use credit cards very little and haven't gotten a new one in many, many years. You'd think they'd somehow realize it's a waste of money to keep sending me that stuff.

I can remember thinking to myself a while back it's no wonder people get into credit card debt trouble. The credit card companies and retailers were obsessively obnoxious constantly trying to entice you to open more accounts. I thought it was nuts - it was nuts then - and it's even more nuts now in light of the overleveraged condition of many people.
western_pa_luann
17 years ago
"I can remember thinking to myself a while back it's no wonder people get into credit card debt trouble'

It IS not the fault of the CC company.... it is the fault of the person that decides to take advantage of those offers.

Personal responsibility...
Pipersville_Carol
17 years ago
Setting aside the pros and cons of junk mail for a moment, something piqued my curiosity recently...

I was in Halifax, Nova Scotia and noticed that many residential mailboxes had hand-made "No Junk Mail" signs affixed to them.

Is it legal for a postal employee to not deliver mail because of a sign like that? If the company sending the junk mail has paid for postage, isn't it entitled to delivery?

And sometimes it's difficult to tell junk mail from real mail. Seemed like those signs were asking a lot of the mailman.
jannie
17 years ago
I haven't seen a credit card offer in months. I haven't ordered anything from any catalogs in a long time, probably two tears. I just throw any catalogs I do get in my recycling container.
greg_h
17 years ago
pipersville_carol,

In Canada, the "No Junk Mail" signs indicate that the mailman should not put unaddressed advertisement mail in the mailbox.

Any junk mail that is personally addressed to you will be still be delivered, so there is no judgement call for the mailman to make.
scryn
17 years ago
ugh, I am still getting the same amount of junk mail and credit card offers as before.

I notice a lot of them are from my mortgage information. I only know this because the town mis-spelled my first name when they wrote down my name from the mortgage for school taxes. Now I get numerous flyers and offers under that mis-spelled name. It is very frustrating!

I have called junk mail people to get off their mailing list and a lot of them have call centers over seas and the people I get to talk to don't understand (or pretend they don't understand) me when I ask to be taken off their mailing list.

I think I will start sending all those envelopes back like some of your are doing. Maybe then they will stop sending me stuff!

-rj
chisue
17 years ago
We stopped getting CC offers when we froze our information with the three CC rating companies. We aren't planning to apply for credit anywhere in the immediate future, and if we were they can 'unfreeze' in about a week on request.
calliope
17 years ago
Almost all of your credit card, banking, utility providers will send you privacy statements, and give you an option to limit the information they share. It's a pain in the butt to have to reply and request it, but I don't pitch them in the rubbish anymore. I do reply. I would prefer to see them request to share information, and not be able to do it otherwise. We all know that they wouldn't get a good response. But, they have lobbyists who scream to our lawmakers and we don't bother to get involved, do we? Look at the amount of work it took for a no-call law to evolved.

Our biggest offenders can even be goverment entities, who should be our ally in privacy protection.
gonativegal
17 years ago
My DH read recently on the Internet that among others things cc companies are either reducing the number or in some cases not taking on new customers. They also mentioned reducing credit limits on already existing customers (with good & bad credit alike)and hiking interest rates.
western_pa_luann
17 years ago
"They also mentioned reducing credit limits on already existing customers (with good & bad credit alike)and hiking interest rates."

I don't know who you are referring to with the ambiguous "they".... but,

We have found the exact opposite to be true...

Last week our VISA credit limit went up a few grand, and my Discover interest rate went down (which I don't care about as we never carry balances on any of our cards).

And just yesterday, we got a letter in the mail from AMEX. They TRIPLED DH's credit limit.

None of these changes were initiated by us.
kframe19
17 years ago
Not to brag (well, OK, to brag a bit) but my credit rating is so high that I'm still getting at least 2 offers a day.
qdognj
17 years ago
"brag a bit" about getting credit card offers? You're kidding,right? People who have terrible credit ratings get multiple credit card offers everyday of the week...
western_pa_luann
17 years ago
ummm... my credit rating is very high and I get none.

I opted out of them all.
kframe19
17 years ago
""brag a bit" about getting credit card offers? You're kidding,right? People who have terrible credit ratings get multiple credit card offers everyday of the week..."

Yep, they do.

But I'd bet that they don't see the rates that I see.

Between 3.99% and 9.99% for the life of the card, not a teaser rate.

You get stuff like that when your credit rating is in the 820s.
qdognj
17 years ago
carrying a balance on a credit card is a foolish idea,period...Now if you zero% financing,then i would agree with you...
trianglejohn
17 years ago
I have no idea what my credit score is and I still get offers - even 0% introductory offers!, but not as much as before. Yesterday was a new one on me, I received a credit card along with the offer to open the account. All I had to do was call the 800 number and activate it. This was not for any card account I already have (closed them all months ago). This was not a fake card where I sign up and they send me a real card later, it as a brand new credit card ready to go.

I cut it up. been there, done with all that.
ladytexan
17 years ago
We get offers daily from CC.

We are now trying to get one company to cancel their card and they won't. We paid it off, called and told them to cancel - got a bill for $5. We called again, got a bill next month for another $5 and $60 for 'card protection'. We wrote a letter - next month $5 more and a $15 late charge. We sent a registered letter - next month $5 more and another late charge. We called again, one lady said she could take of ONE late charge, nothing else. One lady said she didn't have the authority to cancel a card. This month another statement and charges.

This week, we get an attorney to send a letter.

unexpected benefit of the credit crunch??

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unexpected benefit of the credit crunch??

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