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I keep receiving marketing emails and I want them to stop

If you’re getting marketing emails but decide you no longer wish to receive them, it’s understandable that you want to know how to stop organisations, including sole traders, from sending them to you.

This guide will help you understand what data protection and e-privacy law says when an organisation is sending you marketing emails. We’ve also written guidance about marketing texts.  

 

Are organisations allowed to send me marketing emails?

Yes, but organisations must only send marketing emails to you in the following circumstances:

When you opted into marketing

This could be when you: 

  • purchased, or negotiated to purchase, a product from them; 
  • used their services; or 
  • signed up to receive messages when visiting their website.

Example

Thank you for your order, we would like to tell you about similar products in the future. If you’d like to receive marketing messages, please tick any of the boxes below:

☐ Email
☐ Text
☐ Phone call
☐ Post

Submit

When you didn't opt out

This is known as the soft opt-in. When organisations collect your details, they should give you a simple way to opt out of marketing. If you don’t opt out, organisations are allowed to send you marketing emails that advertise similar products or services to those you purchased, or negotiated to purchase, in your contact with them.

Example

We’d like to send you marketing emails about gardening products in the future. If you don’t wish to receive these emails, please tick this box □ 

If you’d like to learn more, please read our guidance about the soft opt-in.

When the marketing you receive is from a charity:

  • about their charitable purposes;
  • in response to you providing your contact details after you:
    • expressed an interest in their charitable purposes; or
    • offered or provided support for one or more of those purposes; and
  • they’ve provided a simple way for you to refuse it when you provide your contact details, and in each email after that.

If you provided your contact details whilst using a charity’s service, it may not be appropriate for them to use the soft opt-in to send you marketing.

If you’d like to learn more, please read our guidance about the charity soft opt-in.

Organisations, including charities, must stop sending you marketing emails when you opt out. Usually, this should happen quite easily. However, if you continue to receive messages, you can consider reporting this to the ICO through our complaint form.

However, there are strict rules about the content of these marketing messages. One of these is that they must give you an opportunity to opt out in each subsequent message.

Does the soft opt-in apply to all emails that organisations send to me?

No, the soft opt-in doesn’t apply to all emails. For example, activities such as campaigning or fundraising by political parties.

Example

A supporter makes a donation to a political party. The party provides an opt-in box that clearly explains people can tick it if they want to hear more by email. The supporter decides they would like to hear about the party’s campaigning, so they tick the box.

The political party sends an email to the supporter with information about their campaigning as it has their consent. 

However, the party can’t send emails unless they have consent, as the soft opt-in doesn’t apply. 

Can I stop these marketing emails?

If you’re receiving marketing emails you can ask the organisation to stop sending them. You should follow any opt-out instructions within the email. This usually involves clicking an unsubscribe link.

Be careful about replying to any emails if you don’t recognise who has sent them to you. If you believe it’s a suspicious email, you may be able to block it and report it to your email provider.

If the email doesn’t provide any opt-out instructions, you should look for the organisation’s contact details on their website. Use these contact details to inform them that you want to opt out of marketing emails. Tip: You can usually find a suitable email address in the organisation's privacy notice.

The Fundraising Preference Service is a free service to help you manage marketing communications from charities in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. This service allows you to choose how you want charities to contact you or ask them not to contact you anymore. All you need is the name of the charity and their registered charity number to use this service.

However, if you continue to receive emails, you can consider reporting this to the ICO through our complaint form. If you’re interested in learning more, please read our guidance on the Privacy and Electronic Communications Regulations .

How can I avoid receiving spam emails?

You should:

  • be careful who you give your email address to;
  • consider having separate personal and business email addresses;
  • choose an email address that is difficult to guess;
  • as best practice, don’t share your email address (eg by putting it on the internet);
  • check privacy policies and marketing opt-outs before giving your email address or any other personal information;
  • avoid responding to spam emails, if you have any doubts about who has sent them. Replying shows that your email address is live;
  • don’t click on the adverts in spam emails. If you do, it shows your email address is live and you may receive more emails;
  • use a spam email filter on your computer. These are programs that work with your email package to sift through new emails, separating spam emails from wanted emails and blocking them. You can search the internet for one that is suitable for you;
  • keep your systems well-maintained. Software updates and patches that fix known problems are generally available through manufacturers’ websites, and are usually free to download and install; and
  • consider using anti-virus software to protect against viruses.

What can I do if I’m getting unwanted marketing emails at my work email address?

If you’re a sole trader or in an unincorporated partnership, your work email address is treated in the same way as your home email address. You can therefore follow the advice above.

However, the rules on marketing emails are different if you’re an employee of a corporate body (ie a company, Scottish partnership, limited liability partnership or government body). Organisations are allowed to send marketing emails to your work email address without your consent, unless your corporate email address identifies you. You have rights under the Data Protection Act if, for example, your corporate email address is [email protected].

These rights mean you can write to the organisation asking them to stop any marketing to your work email address. When they receive your request, they must stop sending you marketing emails as soon as they can.

If you’re receiving unwanted marketing emails to your work email address from an organisation you know and trust, you may use the unsubscribe option. Whilst the law doesn’t require organisations to stop sending marketing emails to your corporate email address, many organisations will do so as a matter of good practice when they’ve received an objection or opt-out.