Another Post Office rant...

[raider5gt]

Our postal service is really good,I have never had any bad experiences with them,well except when they bring the bills lol,I have a good relationship with our postman and postwoman,if i am not home and the parcel is to big,they will always leave it in my car,so I dont have to make the trip to the local office to pick things up,unless there needs to be a signature for something.

[enyawd72]

I think that the USPS is not supposed to put packages or mail inside of anything but a mailbox. I remember asking my mailman a few years back why they won't put mail inside of the Newsday box I have and they said it's the rules that they are told to go by the post office. That's most likely the reason they won't put it inside the tote that you provided. They are just following what they are taught not to do.

I don't think that could possibly be true, otherwise they could never ship anything that was larger than a standard mailbox. They obviously have no problem taking oversized packages and charging postage for them. Even their own medium and large size flat rate priority boxes won't fit in a standard mailbox.

[Iron Mego]

It is true. They don't just leave packages that are larger than your mailbox. They'll come to the door, and if you're not home you get a notice to go pick it up. Mailboxes have to be approved by the USPS.

https://www.usps.com/manage/know-mailbox-guidelines.htm

[wayne foundation 07]

Hey buddy I figured out who was delivering your mail !!!




no worries though, I talked it over with the people at the main branch and they are getting you a new one, he'll be on the job tomorrow, just watch out they say he likes to talk and is a little bit of a know it all

[enyawd72]

It is true. They don't just leave packages that are larger than your mailbox. They'll come to the door, and if you're not home you get a notice to go pick it up. Mailboxes have to be approved by the USPS.

https://www.usps.com/manage/know-mailbox-guidelines.htm

They absolutely DO leave packages that are larger than your mailbox without a notice. They've been doing it with my packages for close to 20 years, at five different addresses in three different cities and two states.
Not one postal employee or carrier has ever done what you say with any of my stuff. The only notices I get are for packages that require a signature. Everything else gets left. Always has.

[Iron Mego]

Then your carriers aren't following USPS guidelines.

[megomania]

I think what was missing here is the courtesy to either a) leave a friendly note for your carrier stating your wishes or b) having a friendly conversation stating your wishes. I think simply relying on a 3x5 index card getting passed on to a carrier from the office and expecting the carrier to know your intentions for the container without any written or verbal communication is an error on your part.

Also, I think to call people idiots who do bust their butt in rain, snow, humidity and deal with jerks (not saying you are one) every day is pretty short-sighted. I'm sure there are some slackers in the Postal System but there are also a lot of hard-workers.

Just because your mail carrier didn't interpret your non-verbal communication correctly, it doesn't mean he/she is an idiot or lazy. They might have just been doing what they thought was appropriate at the time.

It's your thread though...call people what you wish.

-Chris

[Iron Mego]

Actually, if you filled out the Carrier Release card, then they SHOULD leave the packages where you have specified. Barring that, I know I wouldn't leave packages in a tote without the owner's permission. But, as others have mentioned, there could be a different carrier every day who is just trying to get through a route they are unfamiliar with. I haven't been able to "get to know" my carrier because I swear it's a different person almost every day.

[cjefferys]

That's why I'm glad I get most of my goodies sent to my workplace. If it doesn't fit in our mailbox, the mailman brings the box into our office and says "Hey, it's job security".

[enyawd72]

Then your carriers aren't following USPS guidelines.

Today they left my MM Secret Santa package. Nowhere does it say in your link that packages larger than the mailbox won't be delivered. They'd have to hold onto millions of packages if that was the case.

[Iron Mego]

Today they left my MM Secret Santa package. Nowhere does it say in your link that packages larger than the mailbox won't be delivered. They'd have to hold onto millions of packages if that was the case.

Haven't you ever gotten a notice for an undelivered package? Why do you think you got the notice? Because a) the package was too large for your mailbox, and/or b) no one was home to accept the package. This is standard procedure. Obviously they attempt to deliver any and all packages, but if they can't then you get a notice. If they are simply leaving the packages, then they aren't following USPS guidelines. You have to supply the Post Office with a Carrier Release form if you want your mail left in an alternate spot other than a mailbox. And that only applies to general mail that isn't insured or that doesn't require a signature. Not every carrier follows the guidelines, no one is naive enough to believe it never happens, but it's not what they are supposed to do.

[enyawd72]

Haven't you ever gotten a notice for an undelivered package?

Only if it had to be signed for.

Seriously, if the P.O. didn't deliver every package that didn't fit inside a mailbox, they'd have them piled to the ceiling. For the last 20 years my packages have always been left without me asking...whether it was on the porch, in the bin, between the screen door...no matter where I lived. I have never heard of any policy otherwise. If it does exist, then nobody follows it. My sister has a friend whose husband works for the P.O. I'll ask her to find out.

[Iron Mego]

From USPS:

Parcels must be taken out for delivery on the first trip after they arrive at the office.

331.2 Oversized Parcels

* * * * *

331.22 Leave Outside the Box

[Revise text to read as follows:]

Uninsured parcels or parcels that do not require a signature may be left outside the box or in an unprotected location such as a stairway or uncovered porch when the addressee has given written directions for an alternate delivery location or the mailer participates in the Carrier Release Program by endorsing the package “Carrier — Leave If No Response.”

a. Customer Authorization to Leave. If a customer has filed a written order stating that parcels too large for the box may be left outside the box or in another designated location, you may do so.

b. Mailer Authorization to Leave. When a parcel is en*dorsed, “Carrier — Leave If No Response,” and no one is available to receive it, you may leave it in an unprotected location, e.g., stairway or uncovered porch. A PS Form 3849, Delivery/Notice/Reminder/Receipt, with the “It Is Located: ________” block completed must be left in the mail receptacle notify*ing the addressee of the mail if left in an alternate lo*cation. Mailers who participate in the Carrier Release Program understand that there are unsecured areas where the Postal Service will leave parcels and also understand that carriers will leave parcels without protection from inclement weather.

c. Liability. By following the mailer’s or addressee’s in*structions, the Postal Service provides customers with a more convenient way to receive parcels. Car*riers are not liable for loss or theft when the custom*er’s instructions and postal regulations are followed.

[enyawd72]

That's downright hilarious. I never filled out a carrier release request in my life til this year and they've left HUNDREDS of packages on my doorstep over the years.

So apparently they consciously choose to completely ignore their own procedures...and folks wonder why I refer to them as idiots.

[palitoy]

I have a PO box, the ladies, they take good care of me.