Flyers in my door

Cliff,

Please do not exclude the kids in scouts, sports teams, school fundraisers, or other charitable causes. Kids learn a lot when they go door to door - from both the people who order and those who decline. If people are offended, they just don't have to answer the door. I take my kids around when they are doing these things and I also answer my door and order from other kids. It is part of what makes us a community. What kind of community are we becoming?

This is sad.

 

I agree. I always give to the kids. And lets not forget about the volunteer fire/paramedics that come around every year. And I'll add it takes really no time out of my day to throw out the countless cleaning person flyers. When away, I have a neighbor do it.

 

i have no problem with charities and community organizations soliciting door to door- I have the choice not to answer. But the flyers stuck in our doorway are unsightly, if they blow off of my door NOW they are litter in the trees, they signal potential "no goodniks" that we are likely not home, and never once have I looked at one and called the soliciting company- they are instant trash. these companies are wasting lots of money on those flyers that 99% of us trash- it would be better spent advertising in the newsletter or local papers.

if there's a way to stop the unsolicited advertisements from being stuck in the door without becoming a blanket ban on the community organizations and bona fide charities, i'm all for it.

 

I agree that if there is any kind of ban on solicitation, it should not include non-profit organizations such as the Scouts, political campaigns, and school fundraisers. I, too, have not considered flyers left much of an issue. We have a box under our mailbox that is used for that. I know of some people who have installed mailboxes (or other obvious handout containers) next to their doors if they don't have the second box. Granted, some solicitors ignore the secondary box, but most seem to follow it. The few that don't, I don't have a real issue with throwing it away.

 

I know that Beauregard Estates in Leesburg has a no solictations policy so it is possible to have one. I have some friends over there and will ask them how it works.

 

You must be the exception then because my secondary box under the mailbox is continualyl empty. Instead, there are thick fliers stuffed through the weatherstripping of my front door, hung from the door handle on the front door and placed between the flag of the mailbox and mailbox itself. Yesterday alone, we received five different fliers and not one was in the secondary box.

 

I agree with this. Yesterday I yanked three out of my weather stripping. And promptly tore them up. Grrr.

I'm all for a ban on these type of solicitations. Period.

 

First, I said that we would look into the issue, not necessarily implement anything. Here's a response we received from the sheriff's office:


We have a soliciting law in Loudoun County any solicitor must be
registered and must have there solicitor license with tem at all times.
To answer your question, on private property a sign is sufficient on
public streets it is not enforceable. People as you know can walk
through any neighborhood. If you have further questions on these laws
the number to the Commonwealth's Attorney (703)777-0242.


This indicates to me that any resident that receives an unwanted solicitation can contact the county to see if they're licensed. Also, prohibiting soliciting on public streets cannot be enforce if the solicitor is properly licensed. Most of our streets are public.

 

How often are these folks actually properly licensed? As we see people walk/drive around with their solicitations we can ask to see their licenses, and if they don't have them . . . then what? Ask them to leave and call the police?

 

Cliff, we're in the same position down here that you are: we are not a gated community, so we can't regulate who walks down the street. One thing our HOA does do, however, is they will contact a business or organization and let them know if a resident made a complaint about their solicitation. Sometimes getting that call from an official entity makes an impression.

 

It is true that we can not control who walks down a public street, that is why they are public. My property and my front door are not in the public domain, they are private property. Placing flyers in my door constitutes the following offenses: Vandalism, littering, and trespassing. Some folks place the flyers in the mailbox flag or in the mailbox. The only authorized persons to use the mailbox are the postal carrier and the residents of that adress. Other uses are a federal offense and can be punished by a $1000 fine and the cost of the postage for all the flyers.

The state does require solicitors to be registered before they can perform their job. I have called several of the companies that have placed flyers in my door and mailbox and informed them of their illegal actions. I have not seen any additional flyers from those companies. Unfortunately, this could be a full time job all in itself.

There must be a better solution.

 

Sharse-
That sounds abour right. If 20 people asked these folks for their license and called the police if they didn't have it, my guess is thes folks would disappear from our streets.

 

I found out about this ruling of solicitors needing a license and have asked to see the license when they come to our door. They leave rather quickly when they don't have one.

 

Next time I am going to take the flyer, ask the person for licence, if not call police. Then that person might go away before police arrives.. !!!!then what?

 

Of course they'll leave...who's gonna stick around of their own free will after they've been told the cops are on the way?

 

Well .. for one, you have a flyer that you can give the sheriff, and two, you've stopped them bothering your neighbors !!

Both commendable acts !

 

We don't mind local kids raising money for school trips, girl scouts, etc. We do mind young adults coming in to the community selling magazines, cleaners, and other items. They usually have a story to tell to make you feel some guilt.

If we could ban that type of solicitation, please do.

As for the flyers, yes a PITA. if they must, use the small box under our mailbox and we'll collect and throw away weekly/monthly. I should not have to clean up my porch or yard because their paper did not stay in the seal of the door.

 

Cliff or Stacie or any board member: Is my understanding correct that we can place a discreet no solicitation sign on our property "front door/transom windows" and that if it is ignored does this constitute trespassing? Also, does the sign have to have an appropriate font size so that it adheres to the Broadlands covenants? I cannot find anything specific to point me in the right direction.

Also, do you know the number to call to determine if a solicitor is licensed? It may have been in a previous post, and I just missed it.

 

Qzpmal-
Don't know the answers to your questions. I can't imagine the HOA having any issues with a "no solicitation" sign posted by your front door as long as it is within any reasonable size.

 

I spoke with a friend from the Beauregard Estates community off of Sycolin Road. I believe the Leesburg Chief of Police also lives in this neighborhood (but I could be incorrect on that).

He said he doesn't know if there are any rules regarding solicitation within a neighborhood but as a community, they were fed up with the trash and harassment. So, they decided to post signs at all of the entrances stating they were a "No solicitation community".

They do still get people knocking on the doors from time to time. He says he's called the police who simply "consider it a nuisance".

His suggestion was to call the police and discuss our options with them.