Ask a Mailman (City Letter Carrier) anything

1237 Questions

Last Answer on February 18, 2022

lost a certified in outgoing mail, when came back from route will it come in dps or back to post office. could they discipline me or just let it go if the letter turns up

Asked by jvitto48 over 10 years ago

I would hope they let it go, but I can't say for sure what will happen to you. It should come back in the DPS or via your registry clerk. Hopefully it won't just disappear. I haven't heard of anybody being disciplined for this, but I work in a pretty small environment and don't know what happens in other offices. I hope it shows up, works out for you, and learn to be a bit more careful in the future with the accountable mail.

548 Votes

If you go to deliver mail but see there is a For Sale sign out by the mailbox will you keep the mail or still deliver it to the mailbox?

Asked by G-hoard over 10 years ago

When a house is for sale, I will continue to deliver mail there unless the current owner/occupant has moved out and I don't see a new name on incoming mail. In this case, I mark any incoming "resident" mail as "vacant" and either discard it or return it to the sender depending on the class of mail. Once I see a new name on incoming mail, I commence delivery to that house. I don't know if this is the correct procedure, but it seems to work out fine. Thanks for writing.

546 Votes

Has the mail already been delivered on Stonesboro Rd Ft Washington Maryland today 4/8/2016

Asked by Sophia Woodland over 9 years ago

As I'm writing this reply on April 12, I'm pretty sure that the mail has been delivered on stonesboro rd in ft Washington, MD by now for April 8. ???? This q and a isn't for USPS customer service or any real-time questions. I mostly answer questions about being a letter carrier and possibly make suggestions if someone has a customer service problem that doesn't need immediate attention. With regards to your question, I think that only your local PO would know when and if mail was delivered to your street.

546 Votes

What's the best shoes you say would be best for a CC also I wear size 15

Asked by Mr. OKC almost 10 years ago

Getting that large size shoe may require a custom order. I was just at the website for US Uniform Company. One of the items I looked up only went as high as size 14. I only looked at one type of shoe. I buy Rocky or New Balance Black leather low top athletic shoes for walking. They will have the mandated SR/USA tag if purchased through an authorized uniform vendor. I can't say any one shoe is better than the other since I don't recall every being uncomfortable in any of them. I don't remember the brand but some definitely wore out faster than others resulting in an expensive (usually more than $100/pair) replacement order. I probably go through at least 2 pair of shoes per year and walk about 5 miles per day on my route, 351 residential deliveries to their door.

546 Votes

Also on Jobstr...

Zookeeper and Animal Trainer

Are a lot of people in your line of work vegetarian/vegan?

Sr. Software Engineer

Is it basically impossible for a skilled programmer to be out of work these days?

Hotel Employee

Can you give guests room upgrades at your sole discretion?

What steps should I take if a postal carrier overlooked my mail

Asked by shakita over 10 years ago

Shakita, I'm not sure what you mean by the postal carrier overlooked the mail. Do you mean that they looked inside it when they shouldn't have? If you know this for sure, I'd call or visit your nearby PO and speak with a delivery supervisor. It would seem hard to prove though I don't know the details in your case. If you meant that the postal carrier overlooked an outgoing piece of mail and forgot to take it, I'd recommend making it very visible to them next time and if it becomes a problem, please leave a note saying "please take outgoing mail. Thank you". I hope I have answered your question whichever way you intended it.

544 Votes

My mail man left a note in my mail box saying that he would not deliver my mail until i move my car, which is parked on the street a few houses down my house. The note has no reference to an authority...just his note. My mail box is not blocked.

Asked by mayra almost 11 years ago

I don't think the mailman should have left you a notice saying that unless you are blocking someone's mailbox down the street. Even if you were blocking another mailbox down the street, I don't believe he has any authority to suspend delivery to your house because of it. We can leave notes in a mailbox though there are some official notes we can leave like "your mailbox needs attention." I don't know if you want to approach your letter carrier directly and explain that your car has nothing to do with blocking your mailbox (which you said isn't blocked, period). If mail delivery doesn't resume I would suggest contacting your delivery post office and speaking with a delivery supervisor about this. From what you've described, this sounds like an irrational situation.

543 Votes

I mailed a check to the wrong address and placed it in my building's mailbox for pickup by the mailman, once the mailman comes for pick up will he be able to allow me to retrieve my mail?

Asked by Kimberlee about 10 years ago

I am not sure if the mailman will allow this since many of us act differently than others and we are rarely told of any rules (if any exist) regarding this situation. If I were your letter carrier and I knew you (or you could positively ID who you were) and the mail was easy to find in the outgoing mailbox I'd have no problem allowing you to retrieve that mail. I don't know how full your building mailbox gets. Some buildings just have a few pieces of mail left for pickup. Others are overflowing with outgoing mail. As I answer with many questions on this question board, "It depends". The consistency within the USPS is quite inconsistent.

543 Votes

Showing 652 - 658

Show All

569 More Answers by Mailman (City Letter Carrier)

Last 7

91 92 93 94 95 96

...

Next 7 Answers

Mailman (City Letter Carrier)

Ask me anything!

What do YOU do?

lost a certified in outgoing mail, when came back from route will it come in dps or back to post office. could they discipline me or just let it go if the letter turns up

If you go to deliver mail but see there is a For Sale sign out by the mailbox will you keep the mail or still deliver it to the mailbox?

Has the mail already been delivered on Stonesboro Rd Ft Washington Maryland today 4/8/2016

What's the best shoes you say would be best for a CC also I wear size 15

Also on Jobstr...

What steps should I take if a postal carrier overlooked my mail

My mail man left a note in my mail box saying that he would not deliver my mail until i move my car, which is parked on the street a few houses down my house. The note has no reference to an authority...just his note. My mail box is not blocked.

I mailed a check to the wrong address and placed it in my building's mailbox for pickup by the mailman, once the mailman comes for pick up will he be able to allow me to retrieve my mail?

Mailman (City Letter Carrier)

Ask me anything!

What do YOU do?

lost a certified in outgoing mail, when came back from route will it come in dps or back to post office. could they discipline me or just let it go if the letter turns up

If you go to deliver mail but see there is a For Sale sign out by the mailbox will you keep the mail or still deliver it to the mailbox?

Has the mail already been delivered on Stonesboro Rd Ft Washington Maryland today 4/8/2016

What's the best shoes you say would be best for a CC also I wear size 15

Also on Jobstr...

What steps should I take if a postal carrier overlooked my mail

My mail man left a note in my mail box saying that he would not deliver my mail until i move my car, which is parked on the street a few houses down my house. The note has no reference to an authority...just his note. My mail box is not blocked.

I mailed a check to the wrong address and placed it in my building's mailbox for pickup by the mailman, once the mailman comes for pick up will he be able to allow me to retrieve my mail?

Login

Forgot Your Password?

Register