Ask a Mailman (City Letter Carrier) anything

1237 Questions

Last Answer on February 18, 2022

I had my bank mail a check to someone but it was sent to an incorrect address. The check was cashed/stolen. Would the carrier leave it at an address even though the name was not someone who lived there? Should it have been returned to the sender?

Asked by Nonni5 over 10 years ago

I can't say for sure what should have happened with the check that was mailed to the wrong address. It is bad that the check was cashed by an unintended party. A letter carrier doesn't always know who lives at each address and there are many days where a replacement carrier or CCA (City Carrier Assistant) is delivering the mail. If I'm not sure that piece of mail should go the address on the envelope, I will likely deliver it anyway with a "?" written next to the name. Hopefully the resident at the address would put the envelope back in the mail if it doesn't belong to them and write "doesn't live here" on the outside.

586 Votes

My sister was recently in jail. Our mail carrier saw letters from us going to her at the jail and has been telling a lot of people about her being in jail. Is this legal for him to do?

Asked by Gregory over 10 years ago

I can't quote the statute that says it is illegal for the letter carrier to discuss with others the fact that your sister was in jail, however it is entirely inappropriate and probably against postal regulations re: sanctity and confidentiality of the mail. I see mail going to/from prison while delivering the mail but never say a word to anybody about it. I'm not sure if you want to discuss it with your letter carrier to tell him how wrong it was to say anything to anybody. I also don't know it it would go anywhere if you complained to the USPS about his behavior. Legally, you may also need proof or witnesses if in fact it is illegal what the letter carrier divulged to others. I know I'd be very upset if I found out my letter carrier was talking about things they should be confidential about, but not sure what avenue I would take to resolve it.

585 Votes

Is it against the law to mail a letter from a business outgoing box? I went on a run thinking that I would find a Blue box and all I found was an outgoing business gray box. I put it in there not thinking anything of it, now I'm worried.

Asked by Zach about 10 years ago

I am not too familiar with the outgoing mail gray business boxes. Was it inside a business that was on your run? It's not against any laws to mail a letter from an outgoing business gray box. As long as there is sufficient postage on the letter I don't see why you can't mail that from anywhere. It should be no problem at all. I just wouldn't know the schedule as to when the mail was picked up. If the letter carrier had already taken the mail for the day from the business gray box, it will likely get picked up the following delivery day.

585 Votes

Are mail carriers allowed to have tattoos and/or piercings?

Asked by Rose over 10 years ago

Yes, I've heard of nothing to the contrary and I know that many of the younger letter carriers have tattoos and piercings.

585 Votes

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Can you leave a street you are delivering mail on to use the restroom in a emergency and then return to that street and continue where you left off....?

Asked by Deborah Sala over 10 years ago

Definitely. It's never been an issue as far as I know to take a bathroom break as needed even if it means leaving the street you are delivering mail on to go use a lavatory at a public business. That's what I usually do. I'll leave my route and go to a gas station or the public library that are near my route as needed. It doesn't have to be an emergency.

584 Votes

when can a mail carrier place your mail on hold without giving you notice

Asked by jennifer about 11 years ago

I don't know the policy on this as I've never thought to put someone's mail on hold without their authorization. I suppose this could come about if their mailbox was full and the carrier couldn't deliver any more mail to that address. In that case maybe a letter carrier would hold any future mail at the PO for a certain amount of time and then possibly return that mail to the sender with the endorsements "mailbox full". A letter carrier can also hold the mail at the PO if your mailbox is inaccessible due to snow. They will usually deliver all of the accumulated mail within a couple of days of the mailbox becoming accessible. We had that situation occur at our PO this past winter when snow prevented some of the driving (mounted) route carriers from being able to drive up to a mailbox without getting out of their LLV.

584 Votes

I return harrassing mail and postal worker sends it back to me asking. Is this legal? My mail is mine and can return any mail i believe is hsrrasment from some esp if i hae already dealt withnthat company. Do o have to explain this?

Asked by donna faulknrr almost 11 years ago

I must first start with my disclaimer that we are poorly trained in what the regulations or SOP are when it comes to certain situations that come up. I can't say what is legal or not regarding your question. I do think it is inappropriate for the postal worker to ask you anything about returning mail.

You don't need to explain to any USPS employee why you are returning the mail. It is none of our business. As long as it is an unopened, first-class letter, you should be able to just write "refused" on it and have it returned. Personally I would just discard any unwanted mail. I've received debt collection letters in the past and have just ignored them and not returned them. There are certain classes of mail where we won't return to the sender because the sender has paid a pre-sorted standard rate (which is lower than the first-class rate). In that case, we just recycle any unwanted mail.

583 Votes

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Mailman (City Letter Carrier)

Ask me anything!

What do YOU do?

I had my bank mail a check to someone but it was sent to an incorrect address. The check was cashed/stolen. Would the carrier leave it at an address even though the name was not someone who lived there? Should it have been returned to the sender?

My sister was recently in jail. Our mail carrier saw letters from us going to her at the jail and has been telling a lot of people about her being in jail. Is this legal for him to do?

Is it against the law to mail a letter from a business outgoing box? I went on a run thinking that I would find a Blue box and all I found was an outgoing business gray box. I put it in there not thinking anything of it, now I'm worried.

Are mail carriers allowed to have tattoos and/or piercings?

Also on Jobstr...

Can you leave a street you are delivering mail on to use the restroom in a emergency and then return to that street and continue where you left off....?

when can a mail carrier place your mail on hold without giving you notice

I return harrassing mail and postal worker sends it back to me asking. Is this legal? My mail is mine and can return any mail i believe is hsrrasment from some esp if i hae already dealt withnthat company. Do o have to explain this?

Mailman (City Letter Carrier)

Ask me anything!

What do YOU do?

I had my bank mail a check to someone but it was sent to an incorrect address. The check was cashed/stolen. Would the carrier leave it at an address even though the name was not someone who lived there? Should it have been returned to the sender?

My sister was recently in jail. Our mail carrier saw letters from us going to her at the jail and has been telling a lot of people about her being in jail. Is this legal for him to do?

Is it against the law to mail a letter from a business outgoing box? I went on a run thinking that I would find a Blue box and all I found was an outgoing business gray box. I put it in there not thinking anything of it, now I'm worried.

Are mail carriers allowed to have tattoos and/or piercings?

Also on Jobstr...

Can you leave a street you are delivering mail on to use the restroom in a emergency and then return to that street and continue where you left off....?

when can a mail carrier place your mail on hold without giving you notice

I return harrassing mail and postal worker sends it back to me asking. Is this legal? My mail is mine and can return any mail i believe is hsrrasment from some esp if i hae already dealt withnthat company. Do o have to explain this?

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