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The Cat & That Birthday Card

TGI-ECT

先輩
6 Jan 2007
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If you use the Yamato Transport Company's service to send a birthday present to your friend in Osaka from where you live, maybe Tokyo, it is no problem; unless you include a birthday card with any sort of name printed on or in the card.

If you include a birthday card with your friend's name the Yamato Company regulations will not allow them to send that birthday present.

And it would seem that this is banned from happening by law and that is because they gave me Page 4, Article 9, section 5, number iii and it seems to be indicating this company regulation is because of the law.

Now I believe that should mean that no commercial enterprise is allowed to send that box containing that birthday present if that card with the name is inside that box.

But isn't Japan Post now a commercial entity?

In addition, I do not clearly understand what difference it makes whether the "personal information" is in the box or on the outside of the box; like somebody's address?

That is how this business got started, the "We can't send personal information." revelation.

A gentleman at their company also told me that the employee that picks up a parcel will ask you if there is any personal information in the box.

Have any of you ever heard or read about anything I have printed in this post?

I went to great lengths to confirm this information in two phone calls to the company, so I did my job with respect to the accuracy of what was given to me over the telephone.

Anybody have any thoughts? - - - ***besides you better xxxx your Yamato stock after I hit submit***
 
Honestly, I have never heard about this regulation and have been receiving birthday gifts from my in-laws for years: usually delivered by takyubin and with hand-written birthday cards enclosed. Does this only affect cards with the full name printed on the envelope?

Cough, cough, and would they really open the package to inspect?
 
I did not ask specifically how much of a person's name was required to cause that law to be triggered, but I must admit that I was in a state of surprise and floundered somewhat when talking to the first employee during the first call.

But I received the clear impression that any entry of any sort of name was a violation of their regulation and/or the law.

My second phone call when trying to confirm what I was informed of in the first went south very rapidly and I was only able to confirm that any sort of information was a violation of the company regulation and/or the law.

But it was during the second phone call that a further surprise hit me because I remembered an educational institution some 20 years ago that used Yamato to send educational material to students and it then hit me that a serious breach of the law may have been taking place. As a result I again lost focus on a proper questioning of that employee and that employee was rapidly becoming irritated at my questions.

Since I did that OP I have been wondering if some sort of special legislation was passed by the Diet to protect Japan Post and that this law was only placed on the books during PM Koizumi's administration?

But that was a fair number of years ago, yes? And even since then I have not heard or read anything about this sort of ultra read on some law about personal information being sent in any document or parcel by a company engaged in activities like Yamato's business.

It strikes me as amazingly weird!

And as I wrote in the OP, even the information on the outside of an envelope or box about a person's address and name is being "sent" by the use of that service, so what defines that personal information can't be sent only if it is inside an envelope or box?

Again, it just seems way, way, way too weird!

Let me show you one of the documents --- parts of --- the first employee referred me to:

:::::::::::::::::::: Copy Starts ::::::::::::::::::::
International Door to Door Parcel Delivery Service
Terms and Conditions
Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism Permit(国政参複)No. 68
Date of Approval: May 25, 2010
Contents
Chapter 1 General Provisions (Articles 1 and 2)
Chapter 2 Acceptance of Transport (Articles 3 through 12)
Chapter 3 Delivery of Parcels (Articles 13 through 16)
Chapter 4 Liability (Articles 17 through 26)

<> <> <> <> <>
Part of Page 4
<> <> <> <> <>

Article 9 (Limitation, etc. of acceptance)
1. Yamato shall not accept the transport of Parcels falling under the following items:
(1) where the weight of the Parcel exceeds twenty-five (25) kilograms;
(2) where the total length of height, width and length of the Parcel exceeds one
hundred and sixty (160) centimeters;
(3) where the value of the Parcel exceeds two hundred thousand Japanese yen
(¥200,000)
(4) where the transport charges are requested as "Parcel collect"
(5) where the Parcel falls under one of the following items:
i. gold, silver, platinum or other precious metals, precious stones
including diamonds and semiprecious stones, currencies of various
countries (notes, coins), any and all types of jewelry, and other
precious materials;
ii. negotiable securities;
iii. private letter correspondence, or communication measures defined
as private letter correspondence under current laws;

:::::::::::::::::::: Copy Ends ::::::::::::::::::::
 
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It should be said that "takyubin" are in direct competition with the Japanese Post Office and there are limits as to what they can and cannot do — and they cannot send letters.. Years ago the "takyubin" in America were also prohibited to send letters, although this has since been rescinded. But not in Japan.

It is a good idea to look at this from the Postal Service's point of view, and how the law protects the Japanese Postal Service from this kind of competition.
 
I can understand that basis for restrictions on these private types, although Japan Post is now a "private" type --- but I do not feel comfortable with something as simple as a birthday card being included in the definition of a "letter" and I also don't believe the employees that actually pick up parcels and such are being diligent in checking if there is any sort of documentation in a parcel.

In fact, the manner in which this was presented to me by both employees yesterday over the phone was that *any* sort of document inside a box violated the company regulation.

Now I am just not figuring that one out when I thought that companies like to include lists of what's being shipped and those lists are included where? In the box? In some sort of little pouch thingy on the outside of the box? Wouldn't that be a violation?

I just don't see how you can run a delivery service and also uphold the regulation/law that not one bit of documentation, like a birthday card, isn't allowed.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . * * * A birthday card ! * * *
 
The simple answer is that Yamato handle gift parcels throughout the year and if you put some
thing in the box that they clearly feel is wrong and you tell them, you are the one creating the
problem.

They only showed you the rules/law because you questioned what they said.

Do things the Japanese way and you will not have an problems, try to do things differently and
or question how the Japanese do things and you will have problems.

The only time the contents will be checked is when the parcel is being shipped internationally.
 
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Okay, so I just went back and poked around like I was doing yesterday before all this blew up in my face and here is what had me interested in their services:

::::: ::::: ::::: ::::: ::::: ::::: :::::
Document Pack Up to B4 size (width and length) Up to 1 kg
* Approx. 250 sheets (approx. 2.5 cm) of A4 paper
* Approx. 150 sheets (approx. 1.5 cm) of B4 paper
::::: ::::: ::::: ::::: ::::: ::::: :::::

And it was while I was trying to confirm a few points that the lady asked me about "personal information" and I asked her to define that and then it all just went downhill, so to speak.

Eventually I tried for a summary with the birthday present and birthday card question and she clearly stated no birthday card could be included.

A second call later then confirmed I was understanding that correctly.

But looking up there at that use of the vocabulary "document" and I have to ask how they can possibly screen those documents? They check each one? They take a company's word at face value that nothing violates any laws?

Something here just smells really, really fishy and we ain't in no fish market.
 
The simple answer is that Yamato handle gift parcels throughout the year and if you put some
thing in the box that they clearly feel is wrong and you tell them, you are the one creating the
problem.

They only showed you the rules/law because you questioned what they said.

Do things the Japanese way and you will not have an problems, try to do things differently and
or question how the Japanese do things and you will have problems.

The only time the contents will be checked is when the parcel is being shipped internationally.

Yes, I obviously let that enter my thinking on this, but I was initially asking about sending documents to the U.S.A. and now I feel that even though you are absolutely correct that we can keep our mouth shut (You sure that's just a Japanese thing?) --- keep our mouth shut and the takyubin police won't be any the wiser, but something just doesn't feel ... - - - Well, I guess I am fishing for something deeper here.

Wait, not so deep. Bottom line is this law is plain ole' bovine excrement! It needs to be taken off the books. Japan Post can't be protected for eternity.
 
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