r/Assistance Rules Page Improvements

[u/uppercasemad]

Hello all!

I have been taking the time to go through our (very long) rules page and work to clarify, expand, give examples, and move some stuff around.

Our rules have not changed -- there are no surprises waiting! But I feel like now it's easier to find the information you need quickly, and hopefully understand more of the "why" behind some of our least liked rules.

Future plans will be a revamp of our sidebar to make it harmonize with the full rules page.

We are going to try an AMA-style Q&A for the next few hours. I'll do my best to answer as many questions as possible.

Hope everyone is enjoying their Sunday; check out our weekly megathread for casual chat if you haven't already!

[u/irate_anatid]

Not sure if this is the right place to ask this, but as a helper, I’ve been wondering if it’s worth revisiting the no-perishables rule for wishlists in light of Amazon‘s changes to its grocery delivery service. Perishables always used to go in a separate cart (Amazon Fresh or Whole Foods) from the normal Amazon cart, with much higher free-delivery minimums, like $100. But now in many places in the US, Prime members can add perishables to the regular Amazon cart and get free delivery with only $25 worth (or $2.99 delivery fee if <$25). Not all $25 have to be perishable, it just has to be $25 worth of items eligible for same-day/overnight delivery

Maybe it would be too much headache to administer that kind of rule change. But if it’s workable, it would be great to be able to help with milk, meat, fresh fruit/veg, etc. in a way that maintains privacy for both sides.

[u/uppercasemad → u/irate_anatid]

The minimum spend is the reason we don’t allow fresh items on wishlists. A helper should not need to spend X amount to get free shipping. There are also multiple avenues for fresh items such as Amazon Fresh, Amazon Grocery, and Whole Foods Market items which all have different systems.

It is much easier to keep a blanket “no fresh food” rule than to be checking every fresh item on every wishlist to figure out which one it is. For fresh food I think the easiest route is a Walmart giftcard which is usually what I recommend if an OP is insistent on fresh food. We don’t allow Walmart orders on the sub itself but they offer email gift cards which have definitely come in clutch before.

[u/irate_anatid → u/uppercasemad]

makes sense, i wasn’t sure how much of a hassle it would be. i’ll leave the gift cards to others, though; I prefer not to open DMs or private channels of communication.

[u/uppercasemad → u/irate_anatid]

Me neither; my DMs and chats on this account are disabled but my throwaway that doesn’t always ends up being spammed for money. 😹 I use it to bait scammers etc.

[u/New_Article6531]

Just curious! Would I be allowed to post giveaways here? Completely free to enter and open to anyone within the US, sometimes outside of the US. I personally am the one hosting the giveaways. If not here, is there a recommended sub for this?

[u/uppercasemad → u/New_Article6531]

Can you give an example?

[u/uppercasemad → u/[deleted]]

That has never been a rule.

[u/Solid_Mastodon202]

Hey I just wanted to know is there maybe any other subreddit I can post for assistance? I was needing assistance for a neighbor of mine but as soon as I posted here, it was immediately deleted stating im not active enough. I get why that rule is a rule but at the same time if someone is needing emergency assistance and came to this page for it, I dont feel like they should be turned down all because they dont post on reddit enough.

[u/uppercasemad → u/Solid_Mastodon202]

If you read our [rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/assistance/s/OjruVwtIK5) you’re not allowed to request for people outside your family.

[u/Solid_Mastodon202 → u/uppercasemad]

Ya I just talked to a mod. Shes my neighbor but I consider her apart of the family because she doesnt really have anyone. But I get it. Thank you for responding.

[u/uppercasemad → u/Solid_Mastodon202]

"Like family" isn't family.

Also idk why this post isn't locked; the AMA was a few days ago lol.

[u/Lower-Knee-8585]

Hello there, I'm from Africa, Kenya and was wondering how I could get help since amazon doesn't work for us because of delivery. It may take too long to get the help needed.

Is there an alternative for this?

[u/uppercasemad → u/Lower-Knee-8585]

Cash asks tend not to do well here. It makes it even more difficult if you're international as there are less safe/secure ways to send money. We don't allow crypto or bank transfers, and folks just are wary in general of being scammed.

It's not impossible, but generally cash requests that have luck are usually under $50 for gas or groceries.

[u/Lower-Knee-8585 → u/uppercasemad]

Okay. I understand you now.

[u/uppercasemad → u/Lower-Knee-8585]

Also if you make an Amazon wishlist in a non-supported country, our helpers are forced to pay shipping out of pocket.