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View Full Version : How to address a mail Delivery issue



GiGi
October 21st, 2014, 05:14 PM
So over the last few months the mail in my mail box has started to decrease.

My assumption has been that it's because I have switched to e-billing, but now I'm wondering if it is a delivery issue.

A friend of mine is getting married and two Saturdays ago I helped her address wedding invitations... She took them to the post office that day. We live 20 miles from each other. People in the same town as me have received the invitation and sent back the RSVP's. I still haven't gotten mine. My friend did just get the invitation back in the mail stating that my address doesn't exist.

I have also gotten threatened by the water company for not responding to them regarding my well that I hadn't seen before. (It needed testing even though it's not connected to the house). I got that straightened out but I was supposed to get the results and the bill but still haven't received it in the mail.

I am the only one getting the mail out of the box, so this isn't someone misplacing it.

The trick to my address is there is a fire number in front of the numbers, and there is the same street in the same zip code, essentially the same city. And we have rural carrier.

Grrr... So aggravated!

tandaina
October 21st, 2014, 05:27 PM
We had address issues when we moved into a brand new house on a brand new street. Post office claimed it didn't exist. We had to go into the big regional post office and file paperwork. Eventually it all got fixed but I'd say go see your post master and find out if there is a better way people can spell out your address, or at least file an issue so they can look into it?

mhosea
October 21st, 2014, 05:45 PM
Yeah, ditto. I'm assuming that you're in the US (because I know nothing about how to deal with the post office in any other country). First, type your own address into the zip code look up tool:

https://tools.usps.com/go/ZipLookupAction!input.action

and see what happens. If there is a problem, follow up with the post office on that. If everything seems to be in order there, get that invitation, verify that the address is correct, and (assuming that it is), call the post office and ask them why that happened and to ask them if there's anything that can be done to keep it from happening again.

tandaina
October 21st, 2014, 06:06 PM
Oh and don't forget your four digit zip code extension. Go to the post office, get your accurate extension and make sure people use it. Technically mail can get to you with *just* the 10 digit zip code, nothing else needed. So that's another thing to check into.

GiGi
October 21st, 2014, 09:37 PM
After looking at the mail I have gotten over the last few weeks, the thing I notice is the all have the 10 digit zip code, even the junk mail. My friends invite did nit nor does the water company. I wonder if that has something to do with it.

mrcharlie
October 21st, 2014, 10:27 PM
Oh and don't forget your four digit zip code extension. Go to the post office, get your accurate extension and make sure people use it. Technically mail can get to you with *just* the 10 digit zip code, nothing else needed. So that's another thing to check into.

The zip plus four is only 9 (5 + 4), and it is a misnomer that it is unique to your mailbox. It may be unique to your mailbox, but it isn't guaranteed to be.

tandaina
October 21st, 2014, 10:29 PM
Oops yes it is 9. The post office has always been very particular about the extra four digits being important. Never had an issue with any mail that used it properly!

mrcharlie
October 22nd, 2014, 01:10 AM
FWIW, I haven't received much mail in the past couple weeks either. Less than I would have expected, but not zero, and I'm using a PO Box.

chojo
October 22nd, 2014, 05:13 AM
I'm gonna reply to your letter in the next day or so let's hope you get it! On the upside post from America seems to be very quick at the moment averages 3-4 days from US to UK. I got yours on monday which is amazing considering you only posted it friday. Bravo USPS The royal mail couldn't get a birthday card to the other side of town that fast. The thing is, if my letter doesn't arrive do you think it's the post office to blame or was i just too lazy to write?:confused:

alc3261
October 22nd, 2014, 05:22 AM
To all UK Penpals - Economy International 81p for 20grams gets to the US/Canada in 3-4 days the same as Airmail 97p for 10grams or £1.28 for 20grams. So, save your money and buy 81p stamps!!

GiGi
October 22nd, 2014, 08:59 PM
I'm gonna reply to your letter in the next day or so let's hope you get it! On the upside post from America seems to be very quick at the moment averages 3-4 days from US to UK. I got yours on monday which is amazing considering you only posted it friday. Bravo USPS The royal mail couldn't get a birthday card to the other side of town that fast. The thing is, if my letter doesn't arrive do you think it's the post office to blame or was i just too lazy to write?:confused:

Can you add these four digits to my zip code. 7505

The only mail I have gotten lately is junk mail or other correspondence that has all 9 (5 +4) digits of my zip code.

I'm really surprised you got it that fast because the receptionist complained that it was the only thing she had to walk out to the mail box!

chojo
October 23rd, 2014, 08:23 AM
I'm gonna reply to your letter in the next day or so let's hope you get it! On the upside post from America seems to be very quick at the moment averages 3-4 days from US to UK. I got yours on monday which is amazing considering you only posted it friday. Bravo USPS The royal mail couldn't get a birthday card to the other side of town that fast. The thing is, if my letter doesn't arrive do you think it's the post office to blame or was i just too lazy to write?:confused:

Can you add these four digits to my zip code. 7505

The only mail I have gotten lately is junk mail or other correspondence that has all 9 (5 +4) digits of my zip code.

I'm really surprised you got it that fast because the receptionist complained that it was the only thing she had to walk out to the mail box!

Well it went off this morning with all 9 digits so fingers crossed!

GiGi
October 23rd, 2014, 11:20 AM
I look forward to it.!

KrazyIvan
October 25th, 2014, 08:55 AM
In my current work, I setup new locations for our company. Part of our verification process is to add zip plus 4, always.

biscuit
October 25th, 2014, 04:40 PM
I am the only one getting the mail out of the box, so this isn't someone misplacing it.

Where I used to live, we occasionally had mail stolen from the mailbox, especially around the holiday season. There was a string of maybe six boxes in a row, and with the way the road went there wasn't a lot of visibility. So it was pretty easy for someone to swipe mail from all the boxes without being seen. You don't always notice when some mail goes missing, but it can be a real PITA with missing bills and such. My solution there was to install a locking box, but because the opening where the mail went in was narrow, it meant small parcels couldn't no longer be delivered to the box.

KrazyIvan
October 26th, 2014, 10:34 AM
I am the only one getting the mail out of the box, so this isn't someone misplacing it.

Where I used to live, we occasionally had mail stolen from the mailbox, especially around the holiday season. There was a string of maybe six boxes in a row, and with the way the road went there wasn't a lot of visibility. So it was pretty easy for someone to swipe mail from all the boxes without being seen. You don't always notice when some mail goes missing, but it can be a real PITA with missing bills and such. My solution there was to install a locking box, but because the opening where the mail went in was narrow, it meant small parcels couldn't no longer be delivered to the box.

This reminds me about my perents mail box, their postal carrier was convicted for stealing mail. No apparent reason. The persons home was filled with other peoples unopened mail.

mrcharlie
October 26th, 2014, 04:44 PM
I have a lawyer friend; early in his career he was taking Public Defender cases, and one was delivery driver, perhaps newspaper delivery, who was stealing mail. The police found a LOT of mail in his car when they arrested him. He claimed it all just fell out of mailboxes through his car window while he was delivering (newspapers I think). Note that it was not a couple pieces of mail; it was in the tens or hundreds of pieces.

My friend had to meet with him at least four or five times before he could convince him that this explanation was not going to exculpate him.

I've also had a USPS carrier who was either a) drinking on the job (rumor I heard from another postal employee) or b) maladjusted in some way and was delivering a large (like, 5% maybe?) percentage of the mail on his route to incorrect addresses. I would find mail in my box for other addresses at least once a week, but since I had a dog that needed walking most of the time I would re-deliver it while walking my dog. Sometimes I would receive something inbetween carrier visits indicating others were doing the same, or I'd receive something with writing on it circling my address or saying please re-deliver or something. Other neighbors told me the received nearly none of their mail unless someone else in the neighborhood brought it to them; I mostly had the opposite problem (was receiving a lot of others' mail).

This problem stopped and started a couple times during a period of over a year before the USPS dealt with it permanently. I suspect there are union/HR CYA/contract issues that prevent them from just firing or re-assigning a problem carrier of that sort very quickly.

I suspect these sorts of things happen more often than most people realize. But the, there have been a remarkably small number of pieces of mail I've sent or been sent to me that were lost or heavily delayed in my lifetime. We expect it to be dead reliable because usually it is.

GiGi
October 26th, 2014, 10:00 PM
We have rural route delivers,. I'm not sure if that makes a difference or no. And I've lived her for 8 years. Personally I think she's kind of lazy. She won't get out of the car and drop off the boxes, and if something keeps her from being able to drive her car right up too the box she won't leave the car.