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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

Read receipts

51 replies

Nennypops · 07/05/2014 22:10

i.e. Those emails where you get a message that the sender has asked to be sent notification when you've opened the email. Does anyone else find them vaguely irritating? To me it feels like they're trying to check up on me, and/or looking for an excuse to be offended because they can tell I looked at their email hours ago but haven't got round to replying. So I always click the button saying "Don't send" and feel childishly satisfied that I've foiled them.

Yes, I know I could set it so that read receipts will never be sent, but I feel I want to know who the control freaks are. I know I'm BU and irrational, and it's a total First World problem, but there you are.

OP posts:
NinetyNinePercentTroll · 07/05/2014 22:11

I'm the same. I use at work for certain things but never personally

HerBigChance · 07/05/2014 22:12

They are the mark of a Deeply Irritating Colleague, in my experience.

daisychain01 · 07/05/2014 22:16

They can be very useful if you need evidence of something official being in the hands of the required person. They can't deny having opened the message!

Its called CYA

Original poster
Nennypops · 07/05/2014 22:18

But they can deny it. They specifically get the option of whether to send a read receipt or not, so if they want to deny it, they just click to say no. So why bother?

OP posts:
SwedishEdith · 07/05/2014 22:24

Sometimes people just have them set because they messed about with their email options when they were avoiding work and never got round to changing them back not me, of course I was more amazed that so many people are so obedient and did actually click the Yes button

AndreasVesalius · 07/05/2014 22:27

I deliberately click on don't send. I revealed this on a course once and in the break the course leader came over to tell me that this meant I was deeply troubled and had problems with authority.

NickNackNooToYou · 07/05/2014 22:32

I also always click 'don't send' totally have a problem with authority Grin

AndreasVesalius · 07/05/2014 22:34

As I said to her, I have no problems with authority as long as I'm the one wielding it. Grin

ceeveebee · 07/05/2014 22:34

I had a colleague once who put read receipts on every email and also marked them all urgent. That just meant I usually completely ignored them for at least a day just to annoy her

Casmama · 07/05/2014 22:35

I click don't send too- sometimes hesitate when it is someone senior to me but then decide I could probably get away with saying it was an accident if pulled up for it.

ShakesBootyFlabWobbles · 07/05/2014 22:38

I hate it when you open them, the read receipt automatically sends, then the phone goes immediately and they want to discuss the email you haven't had the chance to read and consider yet. Just go and do one. Hmm

Goldmandra · 07/05/2014 22:39

They can be useful if you explain in the email that you've used one so you know that you have the right email address. That and when we were taking the local authority to court so I needed to show that they had received my evidence are the only times I would use one.

AreYouFeelingLucky · 07/05/2014 22:43

It doesn't matter if people click 'don't send' on ours. It registers that an interaction with the email has taken place, and updates the read record.

Thinking about it, you could do that with anything - the 'don't send' click would be the first interaction, and prove receipt.

God knows why we have one, though.

MiniBirdYay · 07/05/2014 22:44

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

Primadonnagirl · 07/05/2014 22:47

I never send read receipts ...but I have set mine to receive them!! Ha Ha!! I am evil and plan to take over the whole world!!!!!

Merel · 07/05/2014 22:53

A pet hate of mine too. There are people in my office who have this enabled for every single message. Does anyone ever press 'Yes'? I don't out of principle, as it bugs the shit out of me, and I make sure I read every email a colleague sends me without them having to track me.

PrincessBabyCat · 07/05/2014 23:41

I've never heard of those. But they sound really annoying. As it is, I hate it when facebook tattles and lets people know you've read their messages. I'd just read them, then reply in my own good time when I was ready. Hmm

ThingsThatShine · 07/05/2014 23:49

I also just click don't send. I deal with someone at work who always sends her emails with read receipt requests and it just comes across a bit pushy!

daisychain01 · 08/05/2014 03:31

Agreed its easy to click do not send. The whole thing with Read Receipts is the context. If they are overused then they become meaningless.

I also think there is an element of organisational culture.

Where I work, I would never send an email with a read receipt, it would just look bad. But I can imagine why someone would need to use it. Clicking on the Do not send read receipt gives a message in itself. It means after a while you can bet the person has read the email but refused to let that be known.

-If my manager were to send a read receipted email, I wouldnt dream of clicking do not send. He would never ever use the feature but I would always comply.

-If it were a supplier I would probably click on do not send and think, bollox how very dare you

  • if it were a friend, I would wonder, why, just why??
  • if it were a colleague - same as for a friend, Id be questioning why and may even ask them
evertonmint · 08/05/2014 07:49

I use them in very specific circumstances - a project I do requires emails to employees in about 70 different countries with a detailed request for data. They have a tight timeline to turn it round, and it is for year end external reporting by a plc. Therefore I need to know who has received the email, who is out of office, and who to chase if it's not been read. I also then have people who I have a read receipt claiming they never received it and it is very useful to know whether this is the case or not before I decide how to proceed with getting what I need from them. It's part of my audit trail on an auditable piece of work. My life would be harder without it.

Don't think I have ever used them otherwise except on something time critical or important with one or two colleagues who from experience were notoriously bad at checking, reading or responding to email. I would then know when chasing by phone whether they had seen it if not.

I can't imagine ever using it on everything, and certainly not on personal emails to friends. That's just plain weird!

BakerStreetSaxRift · 08/05/2014 08:04

I used to have a work email that didn't give you the option of declining the read receipt, (Lotus Notes I think). I body hated it.

All it meant was if I got an email from certain people late in the afternoon marked urgent, i didn't open it. It could have been an easy thing that I would have done straight away, but instead they had to suffer the consequences of being an obnoxious twat and wait until I deigned myself "available" a few days later

My new email is outlook and it gives the option of not sending one. I never send them. If it's so body urgent, just pick up the phone and I'll tell you when I can do it.

BakerStreetSaxRift · 08/05/2014 08:05

Body=bloody. My phone doesn't like swearing.

frostyfingers · 08/05/2014 08:32

I put a read receipt on formal communications like job applications, but not otherwise.

Peacesword · 08/05/2014 08:38

They are so irritating. There's only one person who I send one to, and I completely understand why in her role she needs to know people have read the message. Otherwise it's a definite "don't send".

The people who seem to use them the most seems to be those who also mark everything urgent, want information from you immediately - yet are the hardest to get responses out of if it's them being asked for something.

Shouldwego · 08/05/2014 09:36

I never send read receipts ...but I have set mine to receive them!! Ha Ha!! I am evil and plan to take over the whole world!!!!!

Oops, me too Grin