I got a spam from Barclaycard about a week or so ago. I don’t know why, though I do have a Barclaycard. It’s completely interest free for purchasing Premiership season tickets – the only reason I got one. I’m always careful to tick the “no I don’t not want a lack of no junk mail not sent to my house or email account” box on the forms.
Anyway, spam arrives. It has a little bit at the bottom to “click here if you don’t want any more of this ****”. So I duly clicked. A web page appears with my email address next to a button telling me to “click here to confirm”. I click.
“There has been an error. Please contact our customer support…” and so forth. OK, I’m tenacious. So I emailed them. Nice and politely to be taken off the list, thank you very much.
An automated reply followed. Then three days later another response from a human being asking for my full name and address so they could action my issue. Obviously, I queried this. After all, why would they need my home address to delete an email address they already have from the system? I told them so and refused to give them my details.
Another day goes by, another reply (from the same person) again requesting my details. There’s no answer to my question as to why they need to know where I live. So I reply again, this time mentioning the fact that they’re legally obliged to remove me from any and all junk mail and spamming lists should I so request. Also, again asking why on earth they needed my address anyway.
Two days later and another reply. This time, thankfully, I’ll be removed from the mailing list. There are some catches though…
“Your email has been forwarded on to the relevant department who should be arranging for no future mailings to be sent to you.
However, please note that as our marketing campaigns are usually prepared up to three months in advance, it is possible that you may still receive some e-mails from us during the next weeks.
We apologise for any inconvenience caused and kindly ask you to allow 60 Days for your details to be completely removed from all of our marketing lists.”
Sixty days. To be removed from an email spam list. If it takes them that long to do a simple search / delete from a computer database, no wonder I don’t bank with them.
And still no explanation as to why it took three emails, a broken web page and two inane requests for my name and address before they got off their lazy arses and did something about it.
