Addressing Letters

[Yorkie580]

Not sure if this is in the right place...

When I was at school we were told to address letters Dear Sir if we didn't know the name/sex of the person we were writing to. Is this still acceptable or is it not considered to be PC anymore?

[spudqueen]

I still write 'Dear Sir'. I think it should be taken as an acceptable thing to do - not that I don't think that women don't work there!

[redcrx]

I always start mine Dear Sir / Madam if Im unsure but It doesnt offend if i receive letters addressed Dear Sir (I am female). What i do get annoyed about is when i receive a letter with my name on and it still states Dear Sir :)

[Yorkie580]

Thank you. Perhaps I should write more letters. Thanks again.

[chijiki]

If you are writing to a PERSON you should start the letter with 'Dear <persons name>'
If you are writing to a COMPANY or ORGANISATION then the salutation depends on the relationship between the sender and the recipient.
In a business letter to someone you do not know you should address your letter 'Dear Sirs'.
When the person in the company is known to you only by their position and not by name you should start with 'Dear Sir' or 'Dear Madam'
When writing a business letter where the person is known to you it is correct to use that persons name.
e.g. 'Dear Miss Smith' or 'Dear Mr Smith' etc.

[Octavius]

Unless I know the recipient is a woman, or I know the name of the person I am writing to, I generally address to 'the company' by putting: Dear Sirs.

Dear Sir / Madam is not generally used any more - perhaps 'sir stroke madam' was too risque! But as said if you know it is a woman, but not the name then Dear Madam is acceptable.

[joko]

i would go with dear sir or madam,

better to play it safe and not offend someone for something so simple - women in business are especially sensitive to gender issues and may be offended, and no-one is going to be critical of sir/madam

i think calling everyone sirs is a little sexist and old fashioned

[SaxyJag]

'Dear SIr' is OK if you know it's a man. 'Dear Madam', on the other hand, just sounds plain daft, and there's more than one person who's received a letter addressed to 'Dear Sire or Madman'.

Like Octavius, I always go with 'Dear Sirs', and no one has complained yet. 'Dear Sir/Madam' is frightfully old fashioned and belongs in the 'I remember when' category with typewriters, carbon paper and indented layouts.

[joko]

how do you know no-one has complained?

who would they complain to? there isn't a bureau that logs complaints of this nature!

according to a book i have called "email and business letter writing - a best practice approach" by lynn brittney, its states that if in doubt of gender, marital status or name, use dear sir or madam rather than make an assumption - this book was written in 2000.

i personally would be slightly irked (mildly) if i was the head of a company or department and got a letter addressed to dear sirs, as it assumes that the place is staffed by men.
it may be a pleasantry and largely innocuous but when there is a greeting available that acknowledges that woman have a place in the workforce too and it isn't used it could be the deciding factor in who they give the job to.

as has been said, many people wouldn't even notice let alone care, but some do, even only slightly, so i guess you have to consider - do you want anything to even remotely jeapordise whatever you are writing about??

[SaxyJag]

I would be told if they didn't like what I'd put, as I very often tell others if they get it wrong and I have to contact them about something.

If someone who doesn't know me addresses letters to me as 'Dear Sirs', then that's fine - I'd assume they use it because it's polite. If they put 'Dear Sir / Madam' I'd think them old-fashioned in terms of office practice and somewhat indecisive, and if I got a letter addressed 'Dear Madam', 'Dear Miss' or 'Dear Mesdames' etc., I'd think they were a bit weird - or some sort of embittered woman on a feminist crusade.

However what I really object to is 'Dear Saxy Jag' or 'Dear Mrs Saxy Jag'. It's exactly the opposite of the personal it tries to be and smacks of mailshot.

[rescuer]

If you are replying to a letter you have received it is to be hoped that the sender has put their name and title under their signature. Their first name should be in full eg. 'J.Smith' could be 'John' or 'Jean'. If the writer is female they should put 'Mrs' or 'Miss' before the name - and preferably not use that terrible 'Ms'. If they do not wish to use their first name in full then they should certainly use their title.

And I certainly prefer paragraphs to be indented. A letter looks more inviting when paragraphs are indented. Most 'sales letters' are indented.

[maxximus]

to whom it may concern.

[Yorkie580]

I originally thought of tow whom it may concern but i throught it sounded more impersonal and slightly waffley??

[BetsyLou]

If I received a letter addressed to 'Dear Sir' i'd be extremely annoyed. It's not a matter of being on a 'feminist crusade', it's just bloody rude! 'Dear Sir or Madam' might be old fashined but it's not as out of date as assuming anyone worth writing a letter to must be a man...

At work, if we don't know the name of the person we're writing to we put 'Dear Customer', though obviously that isn't universally applicable to business letters in general. I usually think it's best to just try to find out who you're writing to. What is this letter for, if you don't mind me asking?

[Yorkie580]

It's a letter to an insurance company - I've dealt with so many people that it's hard to pinpoint anyone in particular becasue I've been speaking to different people evrytime - hence the letter... I'm fed up with nobody being able to answer my question becasue they don't know the history.

[compman]

Another thing - if the letter is addressed to a person by name it should be concluded by writing 'Yours sincerely'.

A letter where you start by writing 'Dear Sir/Madam' or similar, without giving a specific name, should be ended by 'Yours faithfully'.

[rescuer]

Hi, Yorkie. From what you now say I would suggest addressing the envelope and the top of your letter to the "Chief Executive" of the insurance company and start your letter with "Dear Sir" unless you can obtain the name of the Chief Executive (by phoning the company and asking for his name) in which case you can put "Dear Mr ---------" then send the letter by Recorded Post.