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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

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Original poster

To want to put a sign on the door telling them to sod off?

75 replies

dogscatsandbabies · 28/03/2014 15:37

It is not usual for me to be at home during the day. Usually work full time but am now on maternity leave. In the past 3 days I've answered the door to 3 cold callers who have tried to sell me make-up, a Netflicks replacement and sign me up to a charity prize draw.

Is it going to be like this all the time I'm off? At least the huge bump is currently a great excuse to say I have no intention of spending money but seriously- should I put up a sign or just hope a chainsaw salesman comes round next and wield that in their faces?

OP posts:

MistressDeeCee · 01/04/2014 20:04

To be honest though, unless expecting someone Im not in the habit of opening my front door. After all, I'm under no obligation to do so. Even if they can see me through the window, see a light on etc, I simply don't care. Its so annoying when you're resting and they disturb you by ringing the bell; much more so when you have DCs.

I love the signs posters are putting up .

NoodleOodle · 01/04/2014 20:10

If a political party ignored a "no junk mail" sign of mine, it would really put me off them, for employing people to dim to understand that 'junk' wasn't only to be interpreted literally but to also include any unsolicited mail.

Put a sign up, get a camera, just don't answer the door. The less often these tactics work, the quicker the culture to do them will desist.

matildasquared · 01/04/2014 20:35

If you don't want political leaflets, you'll probably want to put up a sign saying so.

When I was helping my husband campaign for councillor, I put leaflets through letterboxes--ONCE ONLY! We didn't leaflet over and over. And we never knocked on doors because we thought that was too intrusive.

But one small flyer outlining a candidate's qualifications and position, so that you can be a more informed voter? How on earth is that "junk mail"? You can only get so much info from the local paper.

Sorry you got my hackles up! When I was leafleting for my husband I literally had people come out of their houses and throw my leaflet back at me. One guy followed me down the street, shouting. And no, it wasn't a gross defamatory leaflet, it was a leaflet with a picture of my husband's smiling face and a few bullet points about his platform. (I don't want to say the party for the sake of his privacy but it wasn't a wing-nut party.)

Bananapickle · 01/04/2014 20:50

Think I'm going to get a sign as I keep getting double glazing sales men which frustrates me as I open our brand new front door and point to our newish windows.
I even had one point out my lovely new windows!! So why are you bugging me then?!!
YANBU

Anniegetyourgun · 01/04/2014 20:52

Matilda honey, they're all wing-nut parties. Especially the so-called mainstream ones.

matildasquared · 01/04/2014 20:58

Yeah but look at that smiling face! How could anyone crumple that leaflet?!

rumbleinthrjungle · 01/04/2014 20:58

Same problem here as Starfish - they ring the bell and then explain why the notice doesn't apply to them.

Me: did you see the notice?
Random Stranger: I'm not cold calling, I just want to know if you're planning to update your guttering?
Me: That IS cold calling?!
Random Stranger: No it isn't, I just want to know -

I have a chronic illness, frequently getting up and walking to the door seriously bloody HURTS.... my favourite ones are the ones who keep knocking even after I've ignored the first knock, and the second knock until the dog is totally hysterical, and then peer through the window at me NOT getting up and NOT coming to answer the door and wave.

I always answer the door. I don't know why, it's like a siren call, I end up going to talk to them every time!

matildasquared · 01/04/2014 21:02

Just don't open the door! It'll get easier after the first time, trust me. They move on.

eurochick · 01/04/2014 21:04

I highly recommend an invisible house. We live down a little street with a row of houses opposite and only two on our side, both behind 6 foot gates. No one ever finds us (including the people we want to, like taxi drivers). We are number 9. 10 is on the other side. We get dozens of calls saying "we're outside no. 10 but can't find you". They seem amazed to see a house there when we tell them to look behind them!

On the plus side we rarely get any junkmail and I don't think we have had a single cold caller in 5 years.

DownstairsMixUp · 01/04/2014 21:14

I'm liking just standing at the window and waving to them but not answering the door. Or maybe just staring at them till they walk away. They probably won't come back then.

elfycat · 01/04/2014 21:16

I live in a great spot where even my 3rd closest neighbour hadn't realised there was a house where we live and she'd lived there for 4 years eurochick great isn't it. We live at 51a - a 1930s detached bungalow built in an older road of terraces.

We were walking back down the road together and she offered to carry my bags as I was having an asthma moment. When I told her where I lived she looked confused and came to peer around the hedge.

But I never buy from someone who initiates contact to sell me something. I told this rule to a phone seller who told me that I was rude. A few days ago someone started asking me all kinds of questions about energy usage without having told me anything about who he was, he was also clearly on hands free and not paying attention so I refused to answer any other questions unless he introduced himself and pulled over and gave the call his full attention, and even then I wouldn't be interested in whatever it was he was trying to sell.

OooOooTheMonkey · 01/04/2014 21:44

I need one of those signs. And a no junk mail one, all those pizza leaflets are too tempting!
I don't understand JW's. Do they ever get any members that way? Surely if someone wanted to be a JW they could just pop along to their local Kingdom Hall and be initiated welcomed.
I also once swore at JWs for getting me out of bed with a hangover, I think I got crossed off their list too, they never came back. I live somewhere else now and the only JW I have had so far was an old biddy and I didn't have the heart to tell hr to f*ck off. Waiting for my next opportunity though

fideline · 04/04/2014 20:52

Well the 'stop' sign from above link has been on front door for 36 hours and I haven't had a single cold caller in that time. Must be a fluke.

Tiredmumno1 · 04/04/2014 22:20

We used to have a sign on our door, one particular take away still insisted on shoving leaflets through. DH got annoyed one day and called up to tell them it was ridiculous we really don't want any of their leaflets. His response: Well I won't be delivering to you then you are on my blocked list

makes me giggle now

fideline · 05/04/2014 08:49

Weird man!

I post them all back without a stamp, particularly the ones that get shoved through the door in triplicate. The waste makes me ggggrrrr.

Birdsighland · 05/04/2014 11:15

If someone unexpected calls to the door when I'm upstairs, I open an upstairs window, look out and ask them what they want (have a dodgy muscle issue atm and stairs is a pain if unnecessary).

Mostly, it's ok and I tell them I'm not interested or just leave the literature. One guy very high handedly instructed me to come downstairs and open the door. I equally high handedly demanded to know who he was and what he wanted at my door. I don't know what he was trying to hock me, but I thought it was some cheek when he was uninvited on my premises. He kind of wandered off then.

limitedperiodonly · 05/04/2014 11:40

DH had swine flu a few years ago. He was really, really ill. I left him sweating in bed to do some shopping. On the way I noticed two Jehovah's Witnesses so I asked them not to knock on our door because he was so ill.

The woman thanked me. She wasn't bothered about dragging someone at death's door out of bed but was worried about catching it.

limitedperiodonly · 05/04/2014 11:51

eurochick My street starts at number 22. There is a bit with the same street name over the junction which you'd think would have the lower numbers on it, but it's an estate and the houses fronting my street have the estate address instead.

I think the original houses were wiped out in WW II bomb damage and the estate built over them.

We sometimes get people canvassing for political parties knocking and asking where the ghost houses are. I tend not to get annoyed at them.

MardyBra · 05/04/2014 11:55

I don't want to put a sign. They look crass and I have an elegant front door even if the rest of the house is a shithole. And why are many of them sexist ("no salesmen")?

I'd rather have a law banning door to door cold selling. It's a fucking intrusion.

limitedperiodonly · 05/04/2014 11:56

True. Whenever I see those signs I always think the person who lives there is mad.

Sallyingforth · 05/04/2014 12:10

Mad to have a sign saying "Callers by appointment only" ?

That fine, you won't be troubling me then :)

RedRoom · 05/04/2014 12:19

Might be worth printing a sign that just says "Fuck off".

An excellent idea from pricklypea.

limitedperiodonly · 05/04/2014 12:25

I doubt I would.

SuffolkNWhat · 05/04/2014 12:28

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

pricklyPea · 05/04/2014 12:55

Glad my ideas are appreciated by someone RedRoom
Dh isn't quite on board. :)

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