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Don't they have some way to mail that requires a signature anymore? Like at least for a phone or credit card or car registration.
I still think that if people can steal your mail and no one wants to do anything about it, what do you all think they'll do about a mouse trap? Tell them all kinds of people mess around in your mailbox; anyone could have put it in, hoping to get you.
POB works great except for the so-called SmartPost/SurePost deliveries where FedEx/UPS don't believe PO Boxes exist.
I gave up on home delivery of USPS after the plow kept destroying my mailbox.
Now everything goes to my PO box even if addressed to my street address. Works great except for the so-called SmartPost/SurePost deliveries where FedEx/UPS don't believe PO Boxes exist.
I've been using PO Boxes for decades, and never had anything stolen from them, but have had a few items misdelivered, usually where the postal worker was off-by-one when putting the mail in the slots behind the scenes.
Having to buy or pay for something additional IS being a victim.
YES! Thank you for putting into words what's been bugging me about the idea of a PO Box. Too much emphasis on protecting the potential victim or putting them through major hassles "for your safety" instead of finding and punishing the criminals. If you've flown commercial airlines or tried to un-freeze your credit when applying for a credit card lately, you'll see other examples.
To answer a few questions: I do have Ring and so do many neighbors, but the images captured of vehicles in the middle of the night weren't clear enough to get license plates. There's just not enough to go on from the neighborhood cameras.
Having said that- I live alone, I'm 66, I weigh about 125 lbs. soaking wet and I don't own a gun. Two questions if I get a PO Box:
1. It appears that even mail with your street address gets diverted to the PO Box. True? I'd actually be happy with that.
2. If I get a box too small to accomodate an 8.5 X 11 envelope, what happens to those? I'm especially concerned about tax-related forms.
Some USPS sites offer the new Move to Competitive Street Addressing feature
Quote:
Originally Posted by athena53
Two questions if I get a PO Box:
1. It appears that even mail with your street address gets diverted to the PO Box. True? I'd actually be happy with that.
2. If I get a box too small to accomodate an 8.5 X 11 envelope, what happens to those? I'm especially concerned about tax-related forms.
1. Correct, but you might need to talk to your postmaster to ensure they don't attempt street delivery first, causing a delay of an extra day.
2. I have a "medium box", so they'll usually curl up envelopes to make them fit. For packages and other items that are really too large to fit, if there's no special delivery requirements, they'll put them into a "parcel locker" (set of big boxes located off to the side) and leave a key to that box inside the PO box.
Did you tell them the CORRECT address, which is NOT the POBox address but the (Post Office) building address? See my post above.
And no, I don't think you can send your merchandise to another store. Never heard of it.
The store that had the item out of stock looked up on their computer to see if another store in their chain had the item. When they found one that did, they called that store to confirm. Once confirmed, the other store was specifically told to send it to the one that didn't have it in stock. They ignored the instructions and sent it by UPS to my PO Box. The item was then returned to the store that sent it.
So, yes, chain stores routinely send items to other stores in their chains.
1. Correct, but you might need to talk to your postmaster to ensure they don't attempt street delivery first, causing a delay of an extra day.
2. I have a "medium box", so they'll usually curl up envelopes to make them fit. For packages and other items that are really too large to fit, if there's no special delivery requirements, they'll put them into a "parcel locker" (set of big boxes located off to the side) and leave a key to that box inside the PO box.
1. If you want all your mail delivered to your PO Box you will have to fill out a "change of address" form. Your local PO will have packets that explain the procedure. My PO used to leave such packets with other forms. The last time we needed to change our address, we had to ask a clerk for a packet.
2. Yes, if they have room in the "parcel lockers" for your package that can't fit in the PO Box, they will put your package in there. If they do that, you will find a key in your PO box that has the number of the parcel locker on it. Take the key, open the locker and leave the key in the lock. Don't worry---once the key is in the lock, only the PO workers can remove it. If all the lockers are full (or you have a package that's too big for the locker), they will put a notice in your PO Box. If that happens, take the notice to a clerk and s/he will retrieve your package for you.
Also, as a side note --- be sure to bring all your outgoing mail with you and mail it while you're inside the PO.
Most---but not all--- PO locations allow you to access your PO Box 24/7. If you're not sure if your PO is like that, be sure to ask a clerk.
1. If you want all your mail delivered to your PO Box you will have to fill out a "change of address" form. Your local PO will have packets that explain the procedure. My PO used to leave such packets with other forms. The last time we needed to change our address, we had to ask a clerk for a packet.
<snip>Also, as a side note --- be sure to bring all your outgoing mail with you and mail it while you're inside the PO.
Most---but not all--- PO locations allow you to access your PO Box 24/7. If you're not sure if your PO is like that, be sure to ask a clerk.
Thanks- the Change of Address form sounds like the most straightforward and then I can change with individual vendors/companies/contacts over the next year since they no longer forward after a year. I know they don't forward junk mail so will still have to be vigilant about the occasional unsolicited credit card application. It did occur to me that I still get the occasional Christmas card from friends and family members and better let them know over the next year. What a PITA!
I ALWAYS send outgoing mail from the PO- fortunately it's right on the way to/from the gym I use every day. Thankful for that.
Thanks- the Change of Address form sounds like the most straightforward and then I can change with individual vendors/companies/contacts over the next year since they no longer forward after a year. I know they don't forward junk mail so will still have to be vigilant about the occasional unsolicited credit card application. It did occur to me that I still get the occasional Christmas card from friends and family members and better let them know over the next year. What a PITA!
I ALWAYS send outgoing mail from the PO- fortunately it's right on the way to/from the gym I use every day. Thankful for that.
I, too, noticed that despite having all our mail going to our PO Box, we would still get the occasional credit card solicitations coming to our house. One way you can try to put a stop to that is to call whatever bank that sent them and tell them to stop sending them to you.
Other than that, once you get a PO Box and let companies, governmental offices, friends and family know your new mailing address, it will definitely cut down on what mail comes to your home---and most of the mail that will come to the house will be junk mail.
In your state, are you allowed to have your PO Box address on your drivers license? If so, look into doing that. In my state you can have the PO Box address on your license as long as the DMV also has your physical address.
We decided that it was a good idea to have the PO Box addresses on our licenses because if we were in a car accident and had to exchange info with another person, they will have no way to know your physical address. Once I had a co-worker who got into an accident. She was an older woman who lived with her son and his family and they lived in an affluent area. When the man who got into the accident with her saw where she lived, he figured she was rich and sued her, even though the police said that each of them was at fault.
YES! Thank you for putting into words what's been bugging me about the idea of a PO Box. Too much emphasis on protecting the potential victim or putting them through major hassles "for your safety" instead of finding and punishing the criminals. If you've flown commercial airlines or tried to un-freeze your credit when applying for a credit card lately, you'll see other examples.
To answer a few questions: I do have Ring and so do many neighbors, but the images captured of vehicles in the middle of the night weren't clear enough to get license plates. There's just not enough to go on from the neighborhood cameras.
Having said that- I live alone, I'm 66, I weigh about 125 lbs. soaking wet and I don't own a gun. Two questions if I get a PO Box:
1. It appears that even mail with your street address gets diverted to the PO Box. True? I'd actually be happy with that.
2. If I get a box too small to accomodate an 8.5 X 11 envelope, what happens to those? I'm especially concerned about tax-related forms.
And again: if you're worried about your mail being stolen, why is your mail still in your mailbox "in the middle of the night"?
To answer your questions:
1. Yes, all mail is diverted to POBox. I physically removed my mailbox and the post from the street and don't have any other mailbox related to my home address.
2. Anything that doesn't fit into a small box is placed in a bigger box and the key to that box is placed in your POBox so you can open it and remove. The key is marked with a number that corresponds with the bigger box# where your stuff is stored.
Every Post Office has bigger boxes dedicated for mail/parcels that don't fit into customers boxes. Anything so big that it doesn't fit into those dedicated boxes is held by the Postmaster. You get a notification in your POBox about a parcel you should pick up at the counter.
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POB works great except for the so-called SmartPost/SurePost deliveries where FedEx/UPS don't believe PO Boxes exist.
Some USPS sites offer the new Move to Competitive Street Addressing feature
