How to unsubscribe from unwanted postal mail

UCOP tends to receive a large volume of unwanted postal mail in the form of

  • Magazine Subscriptions
  • Development Training/Seminar Advertisements
  • Retail Mailers/Cards
  • Alumni Material
  • Catalogs
  • Service Advertisements
  • Return-to-sender

which can put a strain on our teams and environment therefore we encourage all staff to follow the below guidelines to minimize UCOP's receipt of unwanted postal mail.

Most companies have websites. Once there, search for links titled ‘Contact Us’ or ‘About Us’. There you may find customer service emails you can directly respond to or internet forms that are forwarded to the correct persons once submitted. Other times, email addresses are listed on their home pages, which equates to less research for you. Some sites are more elusive than others, so patience is essential when researching contact information.

Unfortunately, some of the unwanted mail will have to be opened. Not only will this step help eliminate the need to access a company’s website, it will also prevent you from unsubscribing and/or destroying valuable information (i.e., a bill addressed to someone who no longer works in your department or for the University may need to be forwarded to Accounting). Your manager should be able to provide further direction if you are unsure about a piece of mail that you or your department receives.

Listed below are a few brief phrases you can use when contacting companies. Of course, they can be tailored to best suit the message you want to relay. Your subject line should always be ‘UNSUBSCRIBE’. In doing so, companies know immediately your reason of contact and that action must take place on their end.

If the addressee is no longer with the University:

  • Please remove _________ from your postal mailings. He/She is no longer with our institution. The delivery address was ___________. Thank you.

If the addressee is still with the University, but located at a campus, lab or medical center:

  • Please remove ____________ as an effective mailing address for ______________. He/She currently resides at __________________. Kindly refer to their website to obtain accurate contact information and redirect future correspondence accordingly. Please update your records to reflect this data. Thank you.

If the addressee does not want mail sent to them:

  • Please remove ________ from your postal mailings. He/She does not desire information at this time. The delivery address was _________. Thank you.

**HELPFUL TIP** When completing internet forms, do not provide your name in the fields that require it. Type ‘UNSUBSCRIBE’ for both your first and last name. The same concept applies when a contact number is required. Enter an invalid phone number such as ‘987-654-3210’. Why this method? Who knows if companies collect this information for future (creative) marketing needs. Why take the risk, right?