Charity Clothes Collections? @ 4.30am

jajjay · 17-07-2011 06:51PM #1

At 4.30am woke to the letterbox been banged closed... looked at watch to check the day and thankfully it was Sunday.... decided to go and look for the leaflet dropper as I am only at the enterence to an estate. Finally found him, but then a few more appeared! Just told them to not go near my house at such an early hour as we have small kids who are easily awoken...... to which the reply from these 'Eastern European' people was basically go 'and F**K yourself you nosy B*star*.

Should there be a law introduced to make it an offence to have anybody approach your house or go near you letterbox between 9pm and 8am the following morning?

etymon · 17-07-2011 06:54PM

and who is going to enforce that law? and has Alan Shatter not got better things to do than introduce the 'Offences Against the Letterbox Act 2011'?!

edit: maybe get the Garda Reserve onto it

MagicSean · 17-07-2011 06:54PM

Close your gate and put a No Unsolicted Deliveries notice up.

Wolfe Tone · 17-07-2011 06:55PM

I used to deliver these things at around 7am in the morning, its the handiest time to do it at tbf.

jajjay · 17-07-2011 06:59PM

Seanbeag1 wrote: »

Close your gate and put a No Unsolicted Deliveries notice up.

Unfortunately, don't have a gate

Elmidena · 17-07-2011 06:59PM

Step 1: Buy/scrounge around for a few white tshirts
Step 2: Buy a fabric pen
Step 3: Scribble everything you thought at 4:30am on them. Doodles add bonus marks.
Step 4: Donate them to the cause they just HAD to tell you about

The Internet Explorer · 17-07-2011 07:02PM

What do you mean by " Eastern Europeans " ?

ronaneire · 17-07-2011 07:03PM

jajjay wrote: »

go 'and F**K yourself you nosy B*star*.

Sound like nice people!

MagicSean · 17-07-2011 07:06PM

Fill the bag with rubbish and put some clothes in the top. Free bin collection.

17-07-2011 07:08PM

Very often these aren't even real charity collections, I wouldn't be expecting them to care about charity, let alone noise pollution.

Maybe put a strip of foam on each of the two parts of your letterbox that meet and make a clatter.

Unfortunately, you can't expect the rest of the world to sleep when you do.

January · 17-07-2011 07:14PM

All the clothes that are fit to be put in the bin go out with those charity stickers... if I have clothes that are perfect enough to give away they go to the local charity shop not to these con artists.

krudler · 17-07-2011 07:18PM

save up your jocks and leave them unwashed, then give em those, keep the change you filthy animals.

17-07-2011 07:18PM

What's the earliest time binmen, milkmen and postmen do their rounds?

Wolfe Tone · 17-07-2011 07:21PM

January wrote: »

All the clothes that are fit to be put in the bin go out with those charity stickers... if I have clothes that are perfect enough to give away they go to the local charity shop not to these con artists.

Not all of the groups that go door to door are scam artists, I used to do it for a legit charity.

You should still give your crap clothes to charity, most of the stuff they get gets recycled and not sold in the shop so they still will get decent money for your rags.

alwaysadub · 17-07-2011 07:24PM

Wolfe Tone wrote: »

Not all of the groups that go door to door are scam artists, I used to do it for a legit charity.

You should still give your crap clothes to charity, most of the stuff they get gets recycled and not sold in the shop so they still will get decent money for your rags.

What happens round my way is when you leave the clothes out even for a legit charity, the bags will be robbed before the charity collects them.

Wolfe Tone · 17-07-2011 07:28PM

alwaysadub wrote: »

What happens round my way is when you leave the clothes out even for a legit charity, the bags will be robbed before the charity collects them.

Yes, Ive caught the fcukers at it, been threatened and even had them pretty much try to hold up the van... For clothes. They do that all over the country.

The garda do fcuk all about it to, despite the fact its blatant theft.

All the legit guys will have ID.

Pandora2 · 17-07-2011 07:33PM

I understand that the most dangerous job at present is milk delivery, in Crumlin/Drimnagh...heard tell of one guy, with 2 14/15 year olds helping him.....at 4.30am, a strange young fella running up your drive.......one woman ran out with an axe and another set off her own alarm...heard he is delivering the milk after dawn now!!!

x_Ellie_x · 17-07-2011 07:34PM

You should buy a 'no junk mail' sign. And you could buy a wall mounted letterbox and drill your letterbox on your front door shut if you really hate people banging it & walking you up.

mikemac · 17-07-2011 07:36PM

x_Ellie_x wrote: »

You should buy a 'no junk mail' sign.

And OP, you probably need to put a few foreign languages on it

MagicSean · 17-07-2011 07:37PM

Wolfe Tone wrote: »

Yes, Ive caught the fcukers at it, been threatened and even had them pretty much try to hold up the van... For clothes. They do that all over the country.

The garda do fcuk all about it to, despite the fact its blatant theft.

All the legit guys will have ID.

How is it theft? If someone leaves a charity bag of clothes outside it is effectively rubbish so it's fair game.

landsleaving · 17-07-2011 07:37PM

This happened in my area a week or two ago as well. It was about 4am, I was just getting to sleep after arriving in somewhat tipsy and watching a movie while drinking the only alcohol left in the house - cheapo Dunnes rum. Cue an unimaginably loud banging coming from downstairs.

'Calm down' I told myself, clutching the sheets tightly, 'it's just something falling in the kitchen'. I got out of bed, crept downstairs with all the courage a drunken fool in an empty house can muster, and looked around. Nothing, no one there, nothing had moved.

I was spooked, to say the least, until I checked the front door - remember, when utterly terrified, always check the most likely source of danger last. A leaflet was jammed awkwardly through it offering some sort of 'clothing collection' clearly the work of an organised crime ring. There was to be no other explanation. I retired to bed and re-read the leaflet in the morning, then rang the phone number on it. Which wasn't in service...

Tl:dr: charity my ass, scarin' me at 4am lookin for my old t-shirts, buncha crooks!

landsleaving · 17-07-2011 07:39PM

Seanbeag1 wrote: »

How is it theft? If someone leaves a charity bag of clothes outside it is effectively rubbish so it's fair game.

Not if it's on your doorstep, and so still on your property, and even if not, if it's marked for charity and it's stolen I could give a f**k how fair it's game, what kind of scumbag steals a bag of clothes for charity?

A scummy one, that's who.

MagicSean · 17-07-2011 07:39PM

landsleaving wrote: »

This happened in my area a week or two ago as well. It was about 4am, I was just getting to sleep after arriving in somewhat tipsy and watching a movie while drinking the only alcohol left in the house - cheapo Dunnes rum. Cue an unimaginably loud banging coming from downstairs.

'Calm down' I told myself, clutching the sheets tightly, 'it's just something falling in the kitchen'. I got out of bed, crept downstairs with all the courage a drunken fool in an empty house can muster, and looked around. Nothing, no one there, nothing had moved.

I was spooked, to say the least, until I checked the front door - remember, when utterly terrified, always check the most likely source of danger last. A leaflet was jammed awkwardly through it offering some sort of 'clothing collection' clearly the work of an organised crime ring. There was to be no other explanation. I retired to bed and re-read the leaflet in the morning, then rang the phone number on it. Which wasn't in service...

Tl:dr: charity my ass, scarin' me at 4am lookin for my old t-shirts, buncha crooks!

Some of them are dodgy and use the leaflets to check out houses. Some of them are not as dodgy and sell on the clothes for cash. I'm sure a few of them are involved in charities too.

Wolfe Tone · 17-07-2011 07:41PM

Seanbeag1 wrote: »

How is it theft? If someone leaves a charity bag of clothes outside it is effectively rubbish so it's fair game.

The bag is labeled and remains property of the charity, in addition people leave them in their porches/on their doorstep.

I've dealt with the garda loads of times over this, it is theft, they have come out a couple of times and made them return the bags they took, and have asked me and others to take the reg numbers etc and report them. More often than not nothing happens beside "we will look into it"

Its not fair game.

landsleaving · 17-07-2011 07:43PM

Seanbeag1 wrote: »

Some of them are dodgy and use the leaflets to check out houses. Some of them are not as dodgy and sell on the clothes for cash. I'm sure a few of them are involved in charities too.

Yeah I've had the legit charities drop the bags off too, and given them clothes, but I always call the number on the leaflet and check first. I like feeling that my old, unusable tat that I no longer want or need is making someones life better.

MagicSean · 17-07-2011 07:49PM

Wolfe Tone wrote: »

The bag is labeled and remains property of the charity, in addition people leave them in their porches/on their doorstep.

I've dealt with the garda loads of times over this, it is theft, they have come out a couple of times and made them return the bags they took, and have asked me and others to take the reg numbers etc and report them. More often than not nothing happens beside "we will look into it"

Its not fair game.

It's not theft. It is not the property of the charity company until it is picked up. It is not the property of the householder once they throw it out. It doesn't matter what label is on it. There should be some legislation introduced for this stuff to sort out these problems but as yet there isn't. The only thing Gardaí can do is make sure they are not collecting without permits. If they are they can be prosecuted by the council I think.

landsleaving wrote: »

Yeah I've had the legit charities drop the bags off too, and given them clothes, but I always call the number on the leaflet and check first. I like feeling that my old, unusable tat that I no longer want or need is making someones life better.

Ringing the number isn't always enough. You should make sure it is a properly registered charity if you want to be 100%.

Wolfe Tone · 17-07-2011 07:51PM

Seanbeag1 wrote: »

It's not theft. It is not the property of the charity company until it is picked up. It is not the property of the householder once they throw it out. It doesn't matter what label is on it. There should be some legislation introduced for this stuff to sort out these problems but as yet there isn't. The only thing Gardaí can do is make sure they are not collecting without permits. If they are they can be prosecuted by the council I think.

Ringing the number isn't always enough. You should make sure it is a properly registered charity if you want to be 100%.

You are wrong, I know for a fact the Garda, at least the ones I have dealt with, regard it as theft. Opening someones porch and nicking clothes is theft.

They are not thrown out.

Kevin Duffy · 17-07-2011 07:54PM

jajjay wrote: »

At 4.30am woke to the letterbox been banged closed... looked at watch to check the day and thankfully it was Sunday.... decided to go and look for the leaflet dropper as I am only at the enterence to an estate. Finally found him, but then a few more appeared! Just told them to not go near my house at such an early hour as we have small kids who are easily awoken...... to which the reply from these 'Eastern European' people was basically go 'and F**K yourself you nosy B*star*.

Should there be a law introduced to make it an offence to have anybody approach your house or go near you letterbox between 9pm and 8am the following morning?

Basically go fúck yourself, or actually go fúck yourself? What exactly did they say? What exactly did you say to him first?

four18 · 17-07-2011 08:01PM

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paranoia

Toby Take a Bow · 17-07-2011 08:02PM

Seanbeag1 wrote: »

Close your gate and put a No Unsolicted Deliveries notice up.

This doesn't work. At least not in my case. I live in a house, and despite the sign, the leaflets still arrive. The sign stopped leaflets from pizza/fast food outlets, though. I'm never quick enough to catch them at it (and judging from the OP's experience, it's probably for the best).

Seanbeag1 wrote: »

Some of them are dodgy and use the leaflets to check out houses. Some of them are not as dodgy and sell on the clothes for cash. I'm sure a few of them are involved in charities too.

How does dropping a leaflet allow them to check out houses?

Needler · 17-07-2011 08:04PM

alwaysadub wrote: »

What happens round my way is when you leave the clothes out even for a legit charity, the bags will be robbed before the charity collects them.

Dublin or Galway?

Charity Clothes Collections? @ 4.30am

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