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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

to think that people who demand "EMAIL READ" receipts are bossy control freaks?

51 replies

morningpaper · 28/10/2009 10:13

What's the MATTER with you? Why do you want to know WHEN I read my email?

And no I'm NOT going to send you a read receipt you control FREAK.

OP posts:
FlamingoBingo · 28/10/2009 10:14

I never send them back either

BiteOfCock · 28/10/2009 10:18

It's like people who ring your mobile if you don't pick up your landline. And then text. And then ring the landline again. And then withhold their number to call your mobile again...

Leave me alone!

ICouldHaveWrittenThis · 28/10/2009 10:19

Sorry, but I think YABU. Sometimes I do need to know when an email has been read

Fibilou · 28/10/2009 10:19

Depends why they are sending the email. I attach read receipts at work very regularly as it is important in my job that I know emails have been read and will be actioned and are not just sitting festering in an inbox or deleted
On a personal note I run a fundraising committee in my rotary group so have to ensure that emails requiring action have been read. I also sell celebration cakes so if I'm emailing a supplier/customer I also want to know that the email has been read.

FlamingoBingo · 28/10/2009 10:21

Why do you think that them being read means they won't fester in an inbox or be deleted, fibilou?

bitofadramaqueen · 28/10/2009 10:23

There are a couple of people at work who have their email set up to request them as standard. So I send 'here's the info blah blah' they reply 'thanks' and I get a request for a read receipt. Drives me bonkers.

If they need to know that I've read their email that says 'thanks' they have more time on their hands than I do!

Original poster
morningpaper · 28/10/2009 10:23

NO NO NO

you come across as demanding and controlling

OP posts:
Tortington · 28/10/2009 10:23

totally agree. it means nothing anyway. just that its ben opened

Bramshott · 28/10/2009 10:24

Mostly YANBU, but occasionally they are useful - if you're sending out an email to let people know that something has been cancelled for example, it's good to know that they've got it (although always only about 10% of people send them so then you have to phone in any case - sigh!)

NorbertDentressangle · 28/10/2009 10:25

The thing is it doesn't mean they've been read -it means they've been opened and the recipient has probably thought " I can't be arsed to read that now, I'll look at it later" only to ignore it.

FIL always requests a read receipt for jokes/funnies etc. I'd understand if it was something important but its not

mangosTrickyrice · 28/10/2009 10:26

I've only ever attached read receipts when sending emails to a supervisor who's notorious for not responding, being very vague however you try to approach him (in person, phone, email) and a total pain in the arse. The read receipt makes it's his responsibility to tell me if he's unhappy with the action I'm taking, rather than leaving me hanging for ever weeks.

Are you all crap at replying to emails?

Fibilou · 28/10/2009 10:29

"Why do you think that them being read means they won't fester in an inbox or be deleted, fibilou? "
Because of the nature of the job I work in I have to engage in a lot of backcovering activities. If I send an email to another officer asking them to complete an enquiry, two weeks later they haven't done it and I say "why didn't you take that statement" and I have a receipt to say they read the email then they can't pretend they never read it and try to say I never asked them.
Then when they repeatedly don't undertake the enquiries it escalates to their supervisor that they aren't undertaking enquiries requested for court.

Furthermore one of my responsibilities is ensuring that other officers attend court for trials when called - hence my court emails go out with a read receipt so I know the officers are aware they have to go to court but don't have to bother replying to me to confirm their attendance.

silverfrog · 28/10/2009 10:29

I htink it entirely depends on why it is being requested, tbh.

I know that having the read receipt doesn't mean the emial has actually been read, but sometimes it is important to know that your attempts at communication have been acknowledged.

I haven't had to request a read receipt for ages - it used to be the case that even if the person said no to the read receipt, you still got a message saying something along the lines of "message displayed on XXXX computer at 10.21am". Maybe Microsoft have changed that more recently though - no idea really, as mostly used a web based mail that doesn't support read receipts these days!

BiteOfCock · 28/10/2009 10:29

The thing is it's not just a receipt to say you've read the thing, it's a tacit agreement to do what the sender is demanding or explain why not. Bossy and rude, and I shan't, so ner!

SqueezyCheesyCock · 28/10/2009 10:31

YA mostly NBU.

If it's an important work issue then fine. Outwith that, I think it's quite intrusive. I know someone who does the report thing on the mobile phone and I think that is worse.

traceybath · 28/10/2009 10:31

People do it to cover their backs don't they?

I don't like them either - feels a little stalkerish to me.

But then I also hate people who don't check attachments and who write really long scrolling emails. Sorry - I don't do scrolling in emails - write succintly please or stuff gets lost in the waffle.

PoisonToadstool · 28/10/2009 10:31

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

BertieBotts · 28/10/2009 10:34

DP and MIL do this with texts. If you don't reply within 5 minutes they will send the same text again. Every 5 minutes. I now don't reply straight away on purpose but it is annoying when I haven't had chance to reply and my inbox ends up so full of identical text messages that new ones can't come in so my phone is bleeping at me constantly as it tries to recieve them.

angelene · 28/10/2009 10:34

Outlook does it automatically though doesn't it? I've never had a request to send a read receipt, how odd.

I too have to engage in arsecovering activity so the tracking function on Outlook is useful.

whoooooisasking · 28/10/2009 10:36

Arse covering basically.

ClaireDeLoon · 28/10/2009 10:36

YANBU I hate these, and I never send them back.

I send emails, I too expect them to be read and actioned, but I trust the other person to do that. I don't need to demand that they prove to me they've read it.

woozlet · 28/10/2009 10:37

I have used them at work, stops people being able to say that they didn't receive the email or haven't looked at it yet etc.

BiteOfCock · 28/10/2009 10:40

Exactly! Controlly loons, all of ya!

Action this ( )*( )

Original poster
morningpaper · 28/10/2009 10:41

there is NO NEED to have a read receipt - the fact that you sent it is more than enough

It is MADNESS

OP posts:
Fibilou · 28/10/2009 10:42

"I send emails, I too expect them to be read and actioned, but I trust the other person to do that. I don't need to demand that they prove to me they've read it. "
Lucky you that you work with people that will action what you've asked ! If I relied on other officers to complete their enquiries without being chased 50% of my court files would get discontinued as they simply don't do things without being chased endlessly.
I recently had to get a statement taken in another area and emailed the investigating officer to do it. It took 5 emails over a 3 week period and escalating it to his inspector to actually get him to do it because he just couldn't be bothered.

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