The Fucking Post Office....

[kingdumbass]

So, I moved to a new town in August, and I've been having trouble with mail delivery ever since getting here....
I've had two movies shipped to me by Netflix not show up in the last month alone, as well as two credit card bills, and a PAYCHECK that was mailed to me by a former employer. I've filed complaints both with the local post office location, and the national investigations/claims department of the US Postal Service in hopes of resolving this problem, and I intend to contact the police if it turns out that that damn check I never got was cashed by someone else. I live in an apartment, and my mailbox is only accessible with a key, which means that only someone working for the post office could be stealing my shit.

What a helpless feeling -- to not be able to count on my fucking mail being delivered. I may very well have to get a PO box in another town, just to be sure that my stuff isn't being processed locally. My big concern is the missing Netflix movies -- if you report too many of them missing, your account gets flagged, and it would be really upsetting if I got banned from Netflix, as one of the only things I do with my worthless time is watch movies...and Netflix offers all of the obscure shit I like to see. Blockbuster just wouldn't be as useful to me. Plus, the mere thought that it wasn't my fault would make the sting all the worse.

The other day, I was so pissed off about the situation that I launched into a tirade of profanities at some shmuck over the phone, something I have never done. And to make it worse, I was at work at the time, so my coworkers overheard me. Luckily, they all gathered around me afterwards with sympathetic words. "I don't blame you, dude", one guy said. "I've never heard of anyone having to put up with that kind of bullshit"....

Does anyone have any suggestions for what I could do about this problem? Can one man take on the fucking postal system, and expect to get results, or am I wasting my time? And is it so unreasonable for me to demand that my goddamn mail be delivered???

[Ranman]

Did you fill out a forwarding adress thingy? And if you just moved in I would definitely change the locks on mailbox and all doors.

[Jacoby]

Blockbuster just wouldn't be as useful to me.


This is obviously a personal attack and I won't stand for it.

[kingdumbass]

Did you fill out a forwarding adress thingy? And if you just moved in I would definitely change the locks on mailbox and all doors.

Yes, I've considered, and dealt with all of those issues....
The problem is clearly with the local post office. Someone is screwing something up.

On the plus side, I DID get a response today from my local post master. She actually called me at home, and promised that my address has been placed under some kind of a special accuracy program. Apparently, when you complain to the federal postal officials, they really DO get on the asses of the locals.

[Digital_Ice]

Apparently, when you complain to the federal postal officials, they really DO get on the asses of the locals.

or, they are fobbing you off with excuses like all other federal agencies.

[DanMan]

I remember reading a few years back about a postman that got
sent to prison for not delivering all his mail. He said he couldnt get it done in time so was saving it for when he could catch up. His garage was full of sacks of mail.
It might be a problem with the address being similar to another. Your mail
might be getting delivered to the wrong address. The recipient might not
be inclined to bring it to the post office. I get alot of mail from a block
away. They turned an old high school into apartments. Its on a corner
and I think the street address is supposed to be the cross street but
folks keep getting cornfused and telling corespondents they live at my house. Could there be something weird like that where your living?

[Richard]

A similar Netflix situation has happened to me twice since I subscribed to the service in 2004. It happened the last two years when a good number of my movies didn't show up. Once, I had to report five of my movies missing, as a result my account got locked. I still don't know what happened, but after a week everything went back to normal. I was told when I called customer service the second time that if it should happen again to not report the missing movies online, but instead on the telephone. That way they won't lock your account without at least you explaining to them what the problem is. I've never tried this yet, and hopefully never will, but I presume this will eliminate the chance of our accounts being put on hold for 24-48 hours. Each time this has happened Netflix offered to cut my bill in half, which I accepted.

I don't know why but I've always valued my mail as sacred, and when you think about it, why shouldn't I? When something doesn't show up when it is suppose to, I flip out. Especially if it is a package or a service for which I'm paying for.

I hope I helped you a little with your Netflix problem, but I'm afraid I can't offer any insight with the others.

[kingdumbass]

Yes, I always call the Netflix customer service line instead of just reporting stuff on the site....
Their service reps are actually pretty cool -- they'll converse with you, and always offer helpful information. They're not those crappy customer service people with thick accents who just read uniform troubleshooting steps off a script to you, and don't even seem to hear what you say. I appreciate that kind of thing.

[hasselbrad]

I've always found it interesting that postal workers are the ones who "go postal". I'm shocked that more customers don't "go postal" while trying to deal with their stupidity.
My ex-wife's father was a rural carrier, and his superiors used to drive him crazy with their inner (and outer) moron. Apparently, within the USPS, the more you fuck up, the more promotions you get. If you are a clusterfuck as an assistant postmaster at a large facility, they promote you to postmaster of a smaller facility.
Here in the business park, there is a slot marked "Outgoing Mail" on the large cluster of mailboxes outside each of the units. This is where you put the mail you want sent, right?
Wrong. Those slots are no longer checked because wasps frequently make their homes in these boxes. Okay...so how about taking the "Outgoing Mail" label off? The mailman said they put tape over them, but it came off. Once again, how about a more permanent solution, LIKE TAKING THE FUCKING LABEL OFF THE BOX?
Apparently, to the USPS, that sort of thinking is...well...outside the box.