Mailman (City Letter Carrier)

Mailman (City Letter Carrier)

MailmanDave

17 Years Experience

Long Island, NY

Male, 43

I am a City Letter Carrier for the US Postal Service in NY. I've been a city letter carrier for over 17 years and it is the best job I've ever had. I mostly work 5 days per week (sometimes includes a Saturday) and often have the opportunity for overtime, which is usually voluntary. The route I deliver has about 350 homes and I walk to each of their doors to deliver the mail. Please keep in mind that I don't have authority to speak for the USPS, so all opinions are solely mine, not my employer.

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Last Answer on February 18, 2022

Best Rated

Did someone in my house take my mail after it was delivered and give it to me later? A letter was postmarked 2/11/15, I got it 3/28/15- the envelope didn't indicate it had been delivered to a wrong address first. So what else could explain the delay?

Asked by Edison about 11 years ago

I can't say for sure what happened to the letter, but if it were originally misdelivered it isn't likely to have taken more than a month and a half to get properly delivered to you. The delay could be explained if the original recipient held on to the letter for awhile without putting it back in the mail to be properly delivered. It certainly is possible that someone in your house took the mail and gave it to you later, but I don't know your household dynamics or relationships.

Can a mail carrier write my house number on the outside of my mailbox with a sharpie?

Asked by Steven about 11 years ago

I don't know if they can do that, but I would do it if it weren't clearly posted on the house or on the mailbox. This is important so that the letter carrier can deliver the mail properly. I am very big on communication so that anybody can fill in on any route and deliver the mail properly. As far as marking the house number on the outside of the mailbox, I don't know that it is necessary. A sticker on the inside lid or inside the box that clearly states a house number should be fine.

Hey, I applied for the usps as a city carrier , passed both assessments, n filled out a few job vacancies, I had just fixed my suspended license 2 weeks ago, it was suspended since last yr for a texting violation,think I could still be considered?

Asked by Quentin over 10 years ago

I don't know how much your license suspension will affect your job chances with the USPS. You do need a valid driver license to be a letter carrier as far as I know. You said you have fixed the suspension for texting while driving recently. I don't know if you need to provide this information to the USPS proactively or only if they ask. I would think somewhere along the application process they'd ask you questions about your past driving history and possibly request a motor vehicle department drivers abstract which has your history of suspensions convictions violations, etc. Please be sure to answer all questions honestly and possibly have proof available that your license is no longer suspended. Good luck to you and put that phone down while driving. I understand it's tempting.

do mailman sometimes deliver the mail, then come back around and do the priority packages? Especially if it is a substitue mail carrier? Thanks.

Asked by mcmjuly over 11 years ago

Sure, sometimes a carrier may forget that they have a package for an address and come back later to deliver it. It's also quite possible that some Priority Mail arrived at the PO after a letter carrier has left to deliver their route. In that case, another (or even your own) may be around later to deliver the priority Mail, but it is sometimes just left for the next delivery day if it arrived too late at the PO to send someone out or they may not even have to be delivered that day.

I am expecting some mail in next few months at a house I own & rent to tenants. How can I ensure USPS will deliver it to that address? I do not wish to have it auto-forwarded to another address. Should I just leave a note for the mailman?

Asked by Dido over 11 years ago

If you don't have an auto-forward in effect for mail to go from the house you own to another address, then it shouldn't be a problem. I do think that leaving a note for the letter carrier is a great idea. If there is a forward on file then the letter carrier may not even see the letter before it is forwarded. The forwarding is often an automated system called PARS that redirects the mail prior to the original letter carrier seeing any mail to be forwarded. I hope this helps and thank your for the question.

If schools close will you/a mailmen or women still come to deliver us our newspapers or mail?

Asked by Shayreisch@yahoo.com over 11 years ago

Yes, if a school is open or not has no direct bearing on whether or not the US Mail gets delivered. That being said, if a school is closed due to extreme weather, it is possible that we can't deliver the mail either. Generally it would take a pretty heavy snowfall and unplowed roads to stop us from delivering the mail. In my career as a letter carrier, we have only suspended delivery a few times due to poor weather. Our delivery vehicles are very poor on icy and snowy roads which is quite unsafe and makes me a bit nervous to drive in those poor conditions.

If you notice a broken mailbox what do you do with the mail and how do I get it as soon as possible

Asked by Heem almost 11 years ago

I usually will continue to deliver the mail as long as the mail can be sheltered from the rain and other elements and hope that the customer will fix the mailbox in a reasonable amount of time. Some letter carriers will not deliver the mail to a mailbox that has fallen to the ground or is broken in some way. I suppose that is their option. If the mail isn't being delivered, it is likely being held at the PO for a certain amt of time (I don't know how long). You can probably go and pick it up there as long as you present identification that matches your address and if the clerk can find the mail that is being held.