Ask a Mailman (City Letter Carrier) anything

1237 Questions

Last Answer on February 18, 2022

What should I do if I am out on a route and have a question?

Asked by Dee almost 10 years ago

Dee, that just happened to me today. I was given part of another route to deliver, but along with the mail on the other route which I was suposed to deliver was additional mail that wasn't part of my extra assignment. Not knowing if I was approved to deliver that additional mail, I called the delivery supervisor at the Post Office and asked for further guidance. She said to go ahead and deliver it and that wouldn't be an issue with me taking longer than I was supposed to. Basically, just call the post office and ask for the delivery supervisor. When they send you out to deliver mail, your supervisor should give you the office phone number to call if there are any questions. It's pretty common for me to call the PO and vice versa if we have questions. I would hope your supervisors are just as receptive as it is part of their job to assist you with anything you may not be sure of. I also have the cell #'s of some of my co-workers who I'll call/text if I have a question they might know the answer to.

641 Votes

Have you ever had to sign someone's name for them on a package because they weren't home? and also is there any way that doing this can screw over the customer?

Asked by Fern almost 11 years ago

I sign customer's names on accountable mail or packages that need a signature if I know them and they'd likely want that done. I frequently do this but technically it's not allowed unless the recipient has given previous written authorization to do this. So far, it's never been a problem in my career that I've signed for an item, but I don't expect others to do the same. As far as if this can screw over a customer, I don't know. I suppose if you signed for a package for a customer and then never delivered it to them it could be a problem. I think in that case the letter carrier would be questioned because the intended recipient never received the item and will say it's not their signature on the PS 3849 or electronic signature record.

639 Votes

If a package was inadvertently RTS on a Saturday. Can it be picked up that same day once the mail carrier brings it back at the end of his shift?

Asked by Victoria almost 11 years ago

I am not sure how to answer this correctly. If you can find the letter carrier who inadvertently RTS the package and positively ID that the package belongs to you, I don't see why not. I just don't have a lot of faith in some of my co-workers how helpful they would be if asked to find a package that they hadn't been in possession of. Actually it would be more of a supervisor issue to try and find the package. Either way I hope it worked out for you or whomever you wrote this for. We probably shouldn't have made the mistake in the first place unless the package was addressed improperly.

638 Votes

i just got a job as a cca in the ny triboro area and want to know what the most comfortable sneaker is to wear

Asked by steve over 10 years ago

Congratulations on being hired as a CCA. I wear black shoes that have the SR/USA tag required by the USPS. These can be purchased using your uniform allowance which you may not receive for several months after being hired and passing probation. The brands I use are New Balance and Rocky. I've never had a problem with their comfort, just that I usually have to replace them every 6 months or so due to the amount of walking I do daily. If you don't have a uniform allowance I'd say to wear whatever is comfortable to you like an athletic shoe. Don't wear anything fancy because it will inevitably get dirty in no time.

638 Votes

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Can the mailman return my mail because I don't pick it up everyday as he says?

Asked by Nat about 10 years ago

Your mail shouldn't be returned because you don't pick it up daily. I've never heard of any obligation one has to pick up their mail at any specific interval. If the mailbox fills up, I know mail can be returned but I'm not sure if that means the overflow mail or the mail in the box already. In my experience it's very common for mail to be left in the mailbox for days. It doesn't bother me one bit and it's rare that the mailbox gets so full that action must be taken. Without knowing any further details, it sounds like your letter carrier is being a jerk and looking for conflict rather than providing quality service.

638 Votes

If i put a mail such as a letter in the mailbox will the mail carrier get it make sure it sent to the person . We they even get the letter out the mailbox . Do i have to write return to sender even though its a letter that i wrote for someone .

Asked by temorrow almost 11 years ago

As long as you addressed the letter properly and affixed the correct postage the letter should make it to its destination correctly. When letter carriers pick up outgoing mail we generally just put it in a basket with all of the other outgoing mail and a processing facility sorts the mail based on where it is going to. It's recommended that you put a return address in the upper left hand corner of the letter just in case it doesn't reach the intended recipient. This way the letter would be returned to you, the sender. A return address isn't mandatory.

638 Votes

Thank you so much for a speedy answer. Thank you for answering all these questions! One other question I would have is, what do you do when a house does not have a mailbox?

Asked by Dee almost 10 years ago

My pleasure to answer yours and others questions, Dee! It's easy to respond quickly as I don't get an overwhelming number of questions. I also don't like to have a backlog of emails either. Anyhow, to answer your question the correct thing to do is to not deliver the mail and have it returned to the sender with the endorsement "No Mail Receptacle". I don't come across this situation very often. I sometimes fill in on another route and there is one house with no mailbox. I just rubber band the mail and leave it on their bench by a front door. I think if it was on my postal route I'd request the customer install a mailbox to have mail delivery service.

638 Votes

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Mailman (City Letter Carrier)

Ask me anything!

What do YOU do?

What should I do if I am out on a route and have a question?

Have you ever had to sign someone's name for them on a package because they weren't home? and also is there any way that doing this can screw over the customer?

If a package was inadvertently RTS on a Saturday. Can it be picked up that same day once the mail carrier brings it back at the end of his shift?

i just got a job as a cca in the ny triboro area and want to know what the most comfortable sneaker is to wear

Also on Jobstr...

Can the mailman return my mail because I don't pick it up everyday as he says?

If i put a mail such as a letter in the mailbox will the mail carrier get it make sure it sent to the person . We they even get the letter out the mailbox . Do i have to write return to sender even though its a letter that i wrote for someone .

Thank you so much for a speedy answer. Thank you for answering all these questions! One other question I would have is, what do you do when a house does not have a mailbox?

Mailman (City Letter Carrier)

Ask me anything!

What do YOU do?

What should I do if I am out on a route and have a question?

Have you ever had to sign someone's name for them on a package because they weren't home? and also is there any way that doing this can screw over the customer?

If a package was inadvertently RTS on a Saturday. Can it be picked up that same day once the mail carrier brings it back at the end of his shift?

i just got a job as a cca in the ny triboro area and want to know what the most comfortable sneaker is to wear

Also on Jobstr...

Can the mailman return my mail because I don't pick it up everyday as he says?

If i put a mail such as a letter in the mailbox will the mail carrier get it make sure it sent to the person . We they even get the letter out the mailbox . Do i have to write return to sender even though its a letter that i wrote for someone .

Thank you so much for a speedy answer. Thank you for answering all these questions! One other question I would have is, what do you do when a house does not have a mailbox?

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