Ask a Mailman (City Letter Carrier) anything

1237 Questions

Last Answer on February 18, 2022

I've lived in my apartment for five years. Suddenly I'm getting standard (advertising) mail addressed to the previous tenant. This made sense when I first moved in, but why now all of a sudden and is there anything I can do about it?

Asked by Scott almost 10 years ago

I'm not sure why you have recently started getting standard mail addressed to a tenant from 5 years ago. It's possible that name and address was on somebody's mailing list which was then sold to other companies/organizations. One option is to put the mail back in the mailstream or mailbox and write "person doesn't live here" on the envelope. A conscientious letter carrier would make note of it and only deliver mail addressed to you (the current tenant). Another option is to just discard/recycle the unwanted mail. Most standard mail doesn't get returned to the sender if unwanted by the recipient. We put it into a big recycle bin at work and I think it gets shipped off to a processing or recycling facility. The rate a mailer pays for standard mail usually doesn't include any type of address or return service to notify them of outdated names on their mailing lists.

564 Votes

Is there turth in the fact that a mailman needs to deliver the man no matter what (bad weather, disaster, difficult mailboxes, etc.). If so why do mailman sometimes refuse to deliver mail? Why do they request for you to pick it up, if delivery is job

Asked by Curious mail questioner about 10 years ago

It's not true that we deliver in all conditions no matter what. If a letter carrier thinks it is too dangerous to deliver mail to an address they can refuse to do so no just need to tell the supervisor when they return to the post office. It's rare that I'd not deliver mail, but some of my co-workers may not try as hard to deliver the mail. It's usually better to try and get the mail delivered. This way we don't have to bring it back another day with even more mail. I'm not sure why they request mail to be picked up. If there is road construction it is sometimes difficult to get to houses, or roads could be flooded, or snowed out. We are supposed to attempt delivery each day to each address. Our unofficial motto has to do with delivering mail in all comditions, but that is a bit more folklore than reality.

564 Votes

Im waiting on mail from california. It has full address but apt doesn't exist. Will my mail carrier still have it or will it be at local post office? How long does mail usually takes if mailed from California Friday coming to Georgia?

Asked by Brittany over 10 years ago

Mail from California to Georgia which was mailed on Friday should take about 3-4 days to be delivered. If the address is correct but lacking the apt. # it is possible the letter carrier will return the item to the sender marked "insufficient address". If the letter carrier knows where the letter should be delivered to, they normally will deliver it properly. It usually won't be sitting at your local PO and would be hard to find even if it were. I'd say be patient and hopefully it will show up by Wednesday.

563 Votes

Is there a way i could gwt my mail early from the post office before courier leaves for route? If so what woyld be the best way to do so.

Asked by wayne over 10 years ago

I don't know if there is a way to do this for sure. We generally frown upon this at the PO as it takes time for the letter carrier to gather up the mail for someone before leaving for delivery. The reason is that in many offices the mail is automated so the carrier doesn't have your mail easily accessible. It may be in trays that the carrier doesn't access until they leave for delivery. The only way to do this is to go to the retail counter and ask the sales and service associate if you could get your mail. They may flat out say that they don't do this. I have rarely been asked to get a person's mail while still at the PO so I think we don't even allow it at our office, Basically, what I'm saying is that it can't hurt to try but don't be surprised if the answer is no.

562 Votes

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A Hostel I was staying at said the postman automatically returns to sender (without delivering it) anything not addressed to the Hostel directly. Is this possible? or would the Hostel have to manually return it themselves?

Asked by Feeling Lied to about 10 years ago

It is possible you've been lied to as your name suggests which I find to be very bad. Unfortunately I can't confirm if this is the case or not. I don't know of any rules either way as to why the postman would automatically return any mail that doesn't have the hostels name included in the address. It is pretty common for people to receive mail or packages at a hotel or some type of short-term stay facility. A woman who I work next to has a Comfort Inn that is part of her delivery route. I'm pretty sure she delivers any mail with the hotel's street address on it. It's then up to the hotel to notify the recipient that mail has arrived and then return any mail which may be for someone who is no longer there. I think that the letter carrier will accept any returned mail from the hotel and mark it "refused" or "attempted, not known" and it should go back to the sender. You ask "is this possible?" It certainly is possible as nothing surprises me about what happens at the USPS because the consistency of service among the employees and offices is not good in my opinion. I think we should deliver the mail as addressed (especially to a hotel, hostel, Airbnb, etc) and not worry about the names on the mail and let the receiving office decide whether to keep it, return it, or discard. Individual mail cannot be forwarded from a hotel or any business. In the future, if you want something mailed to a hostel, I'd recommend putting both your name and the name of the property you are staying at.

561 Votes

What do you do if a dog is about to bite you?

Asked by Savvy over 9 years ago

The USPS is always warning us to steer clear of dogs and don't pet them even if the owner says "my dog doesn't bite". There are some dogs on the route I deliver which I trust to come up to me. I don't pet them but sometimes they will come up to my leg. For the most part i don't get involved with dogs. If we think a dog will bite us we are taught to use our satchel (if we are using one) as a shield between us and the dog. Another item we carry is "Back Off" Dog Repellent which we can spray at the face of a dog if we are bitten or about to be bit by a dog. The dog will usually back off and get disoriented. I have never been bit except for a nip on my legs which I didn't report to my supervisor. There are many dogs on the route which I deliver but most owners are very responible in not letting them out off-leash.

561 Votes

Hi, I deliver a route and a half all walking consisting of 15 Loops. First time I was told it is a 4 hours work load then 2 weeks later it became 3 and now it is 2 hours work load all the same walking route. How many hours should it take me ?

Asked by Hot for Mail over 10 years ago

I don't know how long 15 loops should take you. It depends on the amount of houses per loop, the terrain, the spacing of the residences, and the volume of mail. Each letter carrier also works at a different pace. In the office where I work, in one hour we can usually get 4 loops done in one hour if they average 17-22 stops per loop. This is by no means standard and just what I've experienced. I can see it being different where you work. Continue to work safely and accurately. It seems odd that the same amt of loops started out as 4 hrs and decreased to 2 hours. If you feel the time allowed is unreasonable, please speak up if questioned why it took so long. In the example/pace I gave you, 15 loops would take approximately 3.75 hrs. Your mileage may vary.

561 Votes

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Mailman (City Letter Carrier)

Ask me anything!

What do YOU do?

I've lived in my apartment for five years. Suddenly I'm getting standard (advertising) mail addressed to the previous tenant. This made sense when I first moved in, but why now all of a sudden and is there anything I can do about it?

Is there turth in the fact that a mailman needs to deliver the man no matter what (bad weather, disaster, difficult mailboxes, etc.). If so why do mailman sometimes refuse to deliver mail? Why do they request for you to pick it up, if delivery is job

Im waiting on mail from california. It has full address but apt doesn't exist. Will my mail carrier still have it or will it be at local post office? How long does mail usually takes if mailed from California Friday coming to Georgia?

Is there a way i could gwt my mail early from the post office before courier leaves for route? If so what woyld be the best way to do so.

Also on Jobstr...

A Hostel I was staying at said the postman automatically returns to sender (without delivering it) anything not addressed to the Hostel directly. Is this possible? or would the Hostel have to manually return it themselves?

What do you do if a dog is about to bite you?

Hi, I deliver a route and a half all walking consisting of 15 Loops. First time I was told it is a 4 hours work load then 2 weeks later it became 3 and now it is 2 hours work load all the same walking route. How many hours should it take me ?

Mailman (City Letter Carrier)

Ask me anything!

What do YOU do?

I've lived in my apartment for five years. Suddenly I'm getting standard (advertising) mail addressed to the previous tenant. This made sense when I first moved in, but why now all of a sudden and is there anything I can do about it?

Is there turth in the fact that a mailman needs to deliver the man no matter what (bad weather, disaster, difficult mailboxes, etc.). If so why do mailman sometimes refuse to deliver mail? Why do they request for you to pick it up, if delivery is job

Im waiting on mail from california. It has full address but apt doesn't exist. Will my mail carrier still have it or will it be at local post office? How long does mail usually takes if mailed from California Friday coming to Georgia?

Is there a way i could gwt my mail early from the post office before courier leaves for route? If so what woyld be the best way to do so.

Also on Jobstr...

A Hostel I was staying at said the postman automatically returns to sender (without delivering it) anything not addressed to the Hostel directly. Is this possible? or would the Hostel have to manually return it themselves?

What do you do if a dog is about to bite you?

Hi, I deliver a route and a half all walking consisting of 15 Loops. First time I was told it is a 4 hours work load then 2 weeks later it became 3 and now it is 2 hours work load all the same walking route. How many hours should it take me ?

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