What is the risk of not honoring unsubscribes promptly?

Failing to honor unsubscribes promptly creates legal, deliverability, and reputational risks that compound quickly. Legally, CAN-SPAM requires processing opt-outs within 10 business days, while GDPR requires action "without unreasonable delay." Continuing to send after someone unsubscribes violates these requirements and exposes you to enforcement actions, fines, and potential lawsuits. Beyond regulatory penalties, subscribers who continue receiving emails after unsubscribing often escalate-they'll mark your messages as spam, file complaints with consumer protection agencies, or publicly share their frustration.

From a deliverability standpoint, delayed unsubscribe processing is extremely damaging. A subscriber who clicks unsubscribe and then receives another email from you has a high likelihood of reporting that email as spam. Spam complaints are among the most heavily weighted negative signals in ISP filtering algorithms, and even a small increase in complaint rates can trigger inbox placement problems or outright blocking. The subscriber has already signaled they don't want your emails; sending more virtually guarantees a negative engagement signal that hurts your sender reputation.

The reputational damage extends beyond deliverability metrics. Subscribers who feel ignored or disrespected will share their experience-on social media, in reviews, through word of mouth. "I unsubscribed three times and they kept emailing me" is a common complaint that damages brand perception. In an era of heightened privacy awareness, being seen as a company that doesn't respect communication preferences erodes trust broadly. Every email sent after an unsubscribe request is a message that says "we don't respect your choices"-and subscribers respond accordingly.