While households in France receive an average of 40 kg of advertisements per year, we have examined the solutions to stop receiving spam in your mailbox.
According to the government’s Stop Pub campaign, between 800,000 and 900,000 tonnes of unsolicited print advertisements are distributed each year in France to households that have not chosen not to receive them, the equivalent of 40 kg of leaflets per box. letters and 12 million trees.
With certain sectors such as retail and cinema excluded from advertising on national television until 2007 in order to protect other media such as the press and radio, many companies have traditionally opted for the distribution of leaflets advertisers.
As the numbers dwindle, if you’re tired of finding junk mail in your mailbox or want to do your part for the environment, here’s what you can do to stop receiving it.
The stop-pub sticker
In 2004, the Ministry of Ecology implemented the Stop Pub sticker, which is placed on your mailbox and informs companies that you do not wish to receive unwanted mail.
You can pick one up at a fulfillment center near you or print one yourself.
If you are worried about the aesthetics of sticking a sticker on your mailbox, you can also buy a particular design from the online store.
If you continue to receive advertisements despite the display of a Stop Pub sticker, you can report the company or companies on the StopPub.fr site. Offending companies will be sanctioned, with initial fines starting at €1,500 and up to €15,000 per instance for repeat offenders.
What to do if you receive other types of unsolicited advertising or spam
If you receive spam sent directly to you, you must register on the Robinson List by sending your contact details by post to Fevad, the Federation of e-commerce and distance selling. You will find the address and the form on the Fevad website.
If you receive spam that you are not subscribed to and cannot unsubscribe, you can report it to Signal Spam.
If you receive spam text messages, you can forward the message to the number 33700. You will then receive a text message asking for the spammer’s phone number. Once you send it in response, you will receive a message informing you that the report has been completed.
More information, including how to identify spam, can be found on the Voice Spam and SMS site.
If you receive unwanted internet calls from private companies, you can register your phone number so that you do not receive these calls on the government’s Bloctel service.
This free service is good for three years, although users have reported that it doesn’t always work, in which case you can find more tips below.
