Junk mail opt-out schemes for dead people are big business. So big that the two main players in the market have no intention of setting up a service that actually works.

The Read Group Plc has accused the charity sector of mailing millions of people who have either moved or died. Charities are 'abusing the trust of its donors', according to the company.

On average, 80 pieces of addressed junk mail are sent to people who have died in the first twelve months following death. Nearly 47 million pieces of 'direct mail' are sent to the 584,000 Britons who die annually.