flyers in mailboxes legal or illegal?

[renecooke87]

-is it legal to drop off flyers and or business cards in peoples mail boxes if they are not home? -Is it legal to go to or call a business to see if they are interested in lawn care? I was just wondering before i go out and try this..I do not need any legal problems. If you know of any good websites for this please let me know im locatd in GA

[Fresh Cut]

Lawn care business tips

I've been told that it's illegal to put stuff in people's mailboxes, but I still do it when I need to. Most of the time it's when people call me for estimates and when I get there to do it nobody's home, so I just leave my door hanger in the mailbox or on the mailbox behind the flag. Where are you located in GA?

[mburse1977]

worst thing they can do is email are call you and tell you to stop after that you can be fined. But chances of someone even doing that is slim so i would say you are safe. There is a law for people on a no call no email type thing but they have to give you a warning first before they can fine you and i know of no one in the business that has ever even got that.

[The Cleaning Doctor]

Mailboxes are considered part of the USPS and thus it is illegal to put things into it. All it would take is for a postman or postmaster to have a bad day and you get federal charges. You are not even supposed to hang things on the mailbox. I always leave my estimates in the front door. Yes I slide it between the door and the jamb so it sticks out from the inside as well as the outside. Here are a few links talking about who owns the mailboxes

http://www.mackinac.org/article.aspx?ID=5394

http://www.rightnation.us/forums/ind...showentry=3932

http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/...p/t-10442.html

[mark123]

Originally Posted by The Cleaning Doctor

Mailboxes are considered part of the USPS and thus it is illegal to put things into it. All it would take is for a postman or postmaster to have a bad day and you get federal charges. You are not even supposed to hang things on the mailbox. I always leave my estimates in the front door. Yes I slide it between the door and the jamb so it sticks out from the inside as well as the outside. Here are a few links talking about who owns the mailboxes

http://www.mackinac.org/article.aspx?ID=5394

http://www.rightnation.us/forums/ind...showentry=3932

http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/...p/t-10442.html

Thank you! Best answer award.

[mark123]

As stated above the mailbox is out. Don't touch it. It's illegal. There is a sort of work-around. If there is a slot for a newspaper you can technically use that. If there is a separate box for a newspaper with the local paper's name on it then you can't really use it or at least you shouldn't if you have any semblance of integrity.

Don't put things on people's cars. You'll probably get a severe beating and rightfully so.

Don't throw things in people's yards or driveways. You'll hopefully get a severe beating and I'll join in.

Be aware of local ordinances when you go to an office. There may be a no soliciting ordinance. I used to work for a door to door operation and our boss sent me and a few people to a new area to drum up business. I put a flier on a lady's door and she chased me with a broom and call the sheriff on me. We all got arrested. The sheriff ran us in, told us we couldn't do door to door in his area and ordered some stuff from me. :lol: Luckily he didn't book us.

I really hope the US Post Office begins taking it more seriously and making an example of those that stick stuff in mail boxes. It all comes down to having integrity. Doing what's right even if you'd never get caught doing wrong. Buy a stinkin' postage stamp!

[renecooke87]

i WOULD LIKE TO SAY THANK YOU TO ALL THE FEEDBACK

[kdexpd]

Ok, having worked in lawn enforcement, I can bring some truth to this. The mail box is owned by you. The USPS does not own it. I can tell you this because I have dealt with many, many cases involving damage to mailboxes. It is ONLY and federal offense if a mailbox is damaged or destroyed WHILE mail was inside. If no mail was inside, the charge is then considered simple property damage, and is covered under state and local laws for such acts. Many people assume that what others have said about the situation, or what others have been told, is the law. It is not. The mailbox is yours and if you want to remove it, paint it, etc, it is your right to do so. The only reason people get confused about this topic is because the postal service reserves the right to only drop off mail in designated areas. For instance, it wouldn't be against the law to move your mailbox from the street to your front door. The only problem you may encounter is the mail man may not deliver your mail to your door, instead he may only be able to deliver it to the box at the street. Different states and cities may have different ordinances as to where you may place your mailbox, but I can assure you that the federal laws have no ownership to your mailbox itself.

[Steve]

We also learned a little while back that you can't put ads in the newspaper box cause the newspaper owns the box and it's considered to be some sort of trespassing.

Putting Fliers in Newspaper Box Laws?