US Postal Service

Consumers have a lot of problems with USPS, as the complaints in this section attest.  What's perhaps most unfortunate about this is the hostility displayed by too many postal employees who could care less whether their efforts to serve taxpayers are successful.

USPS • Damaged Mail • Lost Mail • No Mail Delivery • Stolen Mail • Wrong Mail --- • Address Disputes • Change of Address • Dangerous Drivers • Hostility • Prescriptions Mishandled • Privacy Violations • Restricted Substances --- • Priority Mail • Express Mail • Military Mail --- News • Postal Service May Seek Service Cut • Movie Fans Suspect Foul Play at the Post Office

By the way, many consumers routinely leave their outgoing mail in the lobbies of apartment buildings. Not a good idea, as Christopher of Seattle now knows.

Then there's the question of whether the Postal Service is meeting the letter and spirit of the Americans With Disabilities Act. Oh, and some of those postal workers don't drive too well either.

A few of the more recent complaints ...

Carlina of PATERSON, NJ November 8, 2009

I put a business size vanilla envelope in my mailbox to be mailed out. (Very important mail) it was returned postage due___return to sender 512 postage need .95 cents. So in return I wrote on the package, satisfy is it enough now! Rip off ( )circle around it. Your postal worker then wrote on my personal mail, mail it yourself. (How nice) I will take photo the item and mail it to the complaint dept. Thank you.

Jenny of Smithsburg, MD November 4, 2009

I purchased something off of ebay that had to be signed for. When my husband went to pick the package up at the Post Office in Smithsburg MD on 10/7/09 he was told that the safe was broken. A few days later he went back again and was told the same thing. It is now 11/4/09 and for the numerous time have been told that the safe is still broken. This is not right. The one time my husband questioned why it was taking so long he was told a maintenance man was working on the problem with the safe. No one can seem to answer my question of why isn't a locksmith working on the safe. I threatened legal action today and was told to do what I felt I had to do but the safe is still broken.

Kathy of Janesville, WI November 4, 2009

In 2007 I had a problem with a carrier who said my dog jumped up on her and was threatening, after talking to her she said she did not know what she would do about it, that I had caused her problems in the past and she did not know what she was going to do. My mail was delivered the next 2 days no problem. My husband told me to contact the post office and tell them what happened before she could lie about it. After I talked to them the mail was suspended. After much arguing we agreed to keep the dog in from 12-3 everyday and mail would resume.

Now on Oct. 28, 2009, the mail was delivered early at 10:30am my dog was outside and she barked at the carrier, I came out he said that dog is going to bite someone someday I told him there was a agreement and there should be a card in the mail, well there was not card to alert him. I got my mail the 29th and on the 30th the carrier did not pick up my mail. I waited for him to come back down the street and asked him why, he said my mail had been suspended because of my dog.

I had no notice from the post office had I not seen him on the street I would not have known. They stated they were going to send me a letter, dah mail suspended, how can I get a letter. I talked to Sue at Consumer Affairs, whom I worked with on the prior incident she said she just cannot believe they are doing this over an incident that was not my fault to begin with and that since my last incident in 2007 I had not had any other problems until this on Oct. 29th.

I am also totally disabled and they want me to put my box on a fence on the sidewalk instead of delivering to my house. I cannot get out in the winter. I have had 3 back surgeries, 1 neck surgery, I have nerve damage on my left side and right side and numerous other physical problems. I should have some rights. How can they lie about what happened and get away with it.

Pasquale of Miami, FL November 3, 2009

Item N. EH297602514US (Express Mail) was mailed October 28, 2009 and was supposed to be delivered by 3:00 PM next day if placed in the box before 5:45 PM, it was put in the box at 04.06 PM and according to the record was processed at 4:28 PM October 28, 2009. Today when I went to claim the Manager of the Station Ms. Maribel C. told me that they cannot guarantee if the item is not processed through the counter.

The receipt I hold from the machine says"Guaranteed delivery tomorrow by 3:00PM if you mail it here before 5:45PM today. I am wondering why Ms. C. is in contraddiction with the pledge of USPS on the receipt, and this is the reason why I am bringing this matter your attention. Requesting refund of the postal fees!

Billy of Las Vegas, NV October 28, 2009

We had a problem with the relief postal worker assaulting tenants and management at our apartment complex and made complaints but nothing was done so we had to bar that particular mailman from the property and the post office (sabrina-supervisor) refuses to give us the identiy of this mailman so we can file a verbal assault complaint against him..in return (sabrina) has stopped all mail service to all of our 52 tenants at this location of our apartment complex and wont let our regular mailman deliver mail and he happens to be a nice guy. We have complained constantly about this and our mail has not been delivered in almost a week and wont give us any other options but to let this relief mailman onto our property who is assaulting us and our tenants. We have not been offered any kind of apology, even when we pointed this out, none was given. We ask the United States Post office to deliver our mail and we ask that our tenants nor management to be not assaulted, intimidated or harrassed by your agency. We have asked for the name of this mailman so we could press criminal charges but again, (Sabrina, even when we came to the office refused to give us this name for us to press charges).

James of Lexington, KY October 27, 2009

This is the second time that I have used the automatic machine to mail a package in the Post Office atrium and had it returned becuase of improper postage. The machine wieghed the package and told me how much postage I needed to send it. If the machine is wrong, then fix it please.

Linda of Brooklyn, NY October 27, 2009

I filled out a change of address form in May, 2009 when I moved from manhattan to brooklyn. The above station is not forwarding all of my mail to me. They are supposed to do it for 12 months. Time Warner has put me in Collections because the notices they were sending to my previous manhattan address never got forwarded to my current brooklyn address and all the while I was not aware of the problem until I got a phone call from the collection agency last friday Oct. 22,2009.

When I spoke to the collections representative she told me that the mail kept coming back to Time Warner marked return to sender in August and September. This is odd because I did get a forwarded piece of mail from The harry fox agency in sept so why didn't they forward Time Warner's mail? What other mail am I not receiving at my current residence? This has me quite worried and concerned.

After this shocking news, I went to the colonial park station Oct. 25, 2009 and spoke to one of their supervisors by the name of Mike Adams who said the problem was not from their location, but from the main post office on 33rd street in manhattan because they have to approve everything that goes out. Well when I went to that location this morning, Oct. 26, 2009 the supervisor there told me the problem is not on their end, but on the Colonial Park Station.

So the supervisor there (at the main post office) told me to contact consumer affairs and file a complaint and that it would be dealt with through your agency. I also went to my dentist office here in brooklyn because I noticed I had not received invoices for payments I was making since I moved to brooklyn in May, 2009 as I had been accustomed to receiving at my previous address and I thought that was odd. Well sure encough, the receptionist at Dr. M.'s office located at Brooklyn told me the invoices she was sending out to me kept coming back return to sender and she was wondering why this was happening. This was the set up for a potential second case of my name being sent to a collections agency due to post office negligence!

Apparently-Some of my mail gets forwarded and some does not. I need some answers and some help and I need my mail to be consistently forwarded to my new address. I have been at my current address only 5 months. I can only imagine how much of my mail has been destroyed or tampered with or ignored due to the negligence on the part of the Colonial Park Station post office who apparently does not want to take responsibility for their actions because I was misinformed by Mike A. so it seems.

Was this intentional because no one wants to take the time to be professional and solve this problem? Someone at this post office has got to be held accountable for making my live miserable. I have never had to deal with collections before in my life. This is not by fault.

Yes, I did notify as many people as I could on my own and I continue to do so, of my new address because this is what I am supposed to do. But lastly in addition to the post office issue, I do not understand why Time Warner, whom I closed my manhattan account with after 12 years with them at my old residence in manhattan and opened a new account with here in brooklyn, did not realize through their records that my name and social security number were the same in brooklyn as in manhattan and the fact that I called them before I relocated to let them know to disconnect my service that I am one in the same person. I did ask them this after getting the call from collections, and once again, the answer was vague and not clear or even logical to me. Their answer was one account had nothing to do with the other. But I say Time Warner is the same company whether in manhattan or brooklyn.

Now I have a blemish on my credit report due to the colonial park station post office and I am extremely outraged, frustrated and disappointed in the lack of accountablilty, honesty and responsibility on the part of this post office. Please help me. My name is in collections over this Time Warner Cable mail which never got forwarded to my new address even after I took the steps and the time to fill out the change of address form on line . Now my credit rating is all messed up!

Jerenia of Columbus, GA October 26, 2009

The lazy idiots employed by the USPS to deliver mail, keep returning my mail! This isn't the first time either! I've contacted these people too many times to count! The mail carrier is taking it upon himself to determine who does and doesn't live in my home, and I have no idea why. This isn't rocket science! The mail has an address on it, the box has an address on it. Put the mail in the box that matches the addressed mail! A monkey can do that! I've missed a VERY important appointment, that cost ME! I'm beyond sick and tired of the stupidty of these people. My next step will be a lawsuit!

Holly of Alpharetta, GA October 20, 2009

I would like to complain about misdelivered mail, in which case I receive mail in my mail box that has the name and address of another person. I have been at my current address for two and a half years, and this is almost a weekly occurrence. On October 6, I again received mail addressed to another person and for a different address. I also know that my mail is being misdelivered as well. Over the years I have had to have mail re-sent to me because I never received it (even though it was mailed to me). As a taxpayer, it is my right to receive the mail that is being sent to me and receive it in a in a timely fashion.

Julie of Sacramento, CA October 20, 2009

At approximately 5:35pm I looked out my window and saw the postal worker peeing on my neighbors house. I opened the door and yelled at him to which he responded he had to go and didn't have anywhere else to go. I said he could have knocked on anyones door, not to mention there is SEVERAL gas stations around. This is indecent exposure. Of course there is no easy way to file a complaint with the post office. I've searched their site and am unable to find one. I'm sure my mail will be messed up now or my house will be the next to be peed on.

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