We have an issue with the U.S. Postal Service. Recently, our mail carrier started leaving packages at our apartment manager’s office, instead of delivering it to our front door. Is that something they are allowed to do? Do we have any say in the matter?
— Royce Brown and Kim Cordwell, Harney Heights
Delivering packages to a manager’s office is an acceptable and common practice, according to Ron Anderson, customer relations coordinator for USPS in Northern Oregon and Southwest Washington. That isn’t a blanket statement though; there are several variables to the equation.
Before USPS can leave a package with a manager, there needs to be an agreement between letter carrier, manager and tenants.
“A lot of times it is kind of an unspoken understanding,” Anderson said. The key is the carrier must leave a notification slip in your mailbox or front door any time they leave your package with a manager, he said.
Some apartment complexes don’t have on-site managers, and some managers choose not to receive parcels on behalf of their tenants, Anderson said. In those cases, the carrier wont leave packages at the office.
If a resident prefers their mail not be left with management, they can talk to a carrier or staff at the local post office, Anderson said. “In that case, the carrier will leave a notice in their box saying they (the resident) can pick it up at the post office or request redelivery.”
Other delivery services have similar stances.
UPS drivers will respect policies of building management at apartments, UPS spokeswoman Susan Rosenberg said. Sometimes that means they will drop off packages at a manager’s office first. Other times it means they will leave it with a manager when the addressee isn’t at home at the time of delivery.
If residents would prefer to keep management’s mitts off their packages, they can call 800-PICK-UPS to request pickup. Your address can then be flagged so your packages will always be held at the nearest UPS facility, Rosenberg said.
Anderson suggests anyone that has questions about the United States Postal Service dial 800-ASK-USPS. They call center is pretty good at answering general questions and can transfer you to the local post office to answer more specific questions, he said.
— Paul Suarez
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