Karmactive Staff
Royal Mail is asking households with dogs to display a sign reading “I have a dog”—the four-word prompt at the top of a card that continues: “Please wait whilst I secure my dog before opening the door.” The full card is designed as a doorstep pause cue for postal and delivery workers, not a warning to the general public.
An Post, Ireland’s postal service, recorded 148 animal attacks on postal workers in 2024, with dogs involved in the overwhelming majority. In the UK, Royal Mail reported 2,019 attacks on its staff in the year to July 2026, an 8% fall from the previous period, averaging 38 attacks every week. Over half of attacks took place at the front door. Lizz Lloyd, Royal Mail’s head of health and safety, asked dog owners to display the sign as part of the campaign ahead of the Christmas delivery period—the busiest time for high-volume parcel rounds.
The sign is practical: it tells the postal worker that a dog is present at the property and prompts a brief pause—time for the householder to secure the dog before the door opens or the letterbox is lifted. Over half of attacks happen at the front door, and a short pause can break the sequence that leads to contact. This kind of doorstep incident isn’t limited to postal rounds either; a recent XL Bully attack in Penicuik that drew an armed police response underlines how quickly an unsecured dog can escalate a routine encounter. If an attack does occur, Royal Mail can suspend deliveries to the affected address until the situation is resolved.
The sign card is available as a free download from Royal Mail’s dog awareness page and is designed to be displayed visibly at the front gate, letterbox, or door panel. Royal Mail’s dog attack figures are published directly by the company; they are separate from Health and Safety Executive workplace injury statistics, which track a different scope of incidents.
An Post’s campaign runs alongside Royal Mail’s UK push, with both services focusing on the Christmas delivery period as the point of highest delivery frequency across both countries.
Households with dogs that may approach the door or gate during deliveries are encouraged to display the sign prominently.
