Who owns your mailbox

It is not federal property. Full stop. However, Federal law protects your mailbox and its contents. Hi Steve, thanks for your comment.

If the residence has a newspaper holder, that might be an appropriate place to leave a flyer. Good luck! I recently became a board member of our HOA. We have an outdoor cluster mailbox kiosk with a concrete pad and a roof. Our HOA maintains the kiosk and recently re-roofed it. The county owns the land and maintains the road surface surrounding the kiosk. How should we, as directors list the mailbox kiosk in the insurance application?

I removed my two mailboxes. The mailman broke them by jamming tons of circulars and junk mail. Good riddance. Not all Federal laws make sense to the average citizen. Call congressman to ask this nonsense to be changed but that will prob go nowhere. They have bigger issues. All mailboxes on my street used to be located on my side. Most homeowners on the street have moved their mailboxes to their side of the street in front of each of their homes. The two neighbors across the street have not keeping them in my front yard.

One house sold and the new neighbor stated they were not getting mail and then allowed their young daughter to paint the box blue and the post bright yellow so people would be able to find it. Question, can they legally paint this on my property? What recourse do I have. Trying to understand so in my discussion with homeowner I can properly frame my positioning. Appreciate any thoughts. I live on a dead end road. The West part of the street the neighbors get to have their boxes on their property.

The East part half to have theirs on a clustered spot. Plus large bushes with over hangs in the back of boxes. Whose should be the ones that maintain the area around the boxes? Hi Samantha, thanks for your inquiry. I would try reaching out to your city and neighbors, and maybe try to find the property boundaries on that area? Best of luck! Can an HOA paint mailboxes any color of their liking? Hi Sarah, that is going to depend on whose mailboxes they are!

If you actually own the mailbox you are responsible for the maintenance and upkeep of that unit. I have a friend who has a shared mailbox. She and other residents all use one large community mailbox. No one has ever had any issues until this one lady moved in. Because it is used for servicing US mail the federal government regulates how it is used.

US code Title 18 Ch. The USPS has written its rules of the road that specifies how the box is used. For one, you cannot affix anything to the mailbox. You cannot use the mailbox for anything other than postage bearing mail… that rules out e. USPS is not a business, but a service, like the fire department. It is like saying the police department loses tax dollars every year. Marvin above is correct about why they are hurting now — they are the only department that has to pre-pay these benefits.

If there is a cylinder receptacle under a mail box generally used for newspapers can a person be charged with federal crime for putting campaign literature in that type of receptacle? I live in a non-HOA subdivision. Mail boxes are on a post with 4 mail boxes in our neighborhood. Mailboxes are really aging — 32 years old. I have read the posts on this site, but it is not going to be easy to replace my box. It has rivets and also not able to get to some rivets without damaging the neighboring box es.

Based on posts I have read here, the boxes are federally owned. Does anyone know if there is a way to get replacement boxes in my neighborhood as a community project.

Like for instance, getting locking boxes to replace the falling apart standard boxes? Anyone aware of any project funding requests that can be done? Hi Leigh, thanks for your inquiry. You are generally able to make changes to YOUR mailbox, as long as you own the property, etc. Your local post office might have resources for purchasing and installing boxes, however as long as you purchase and install a U.

All of our curbside boxes are USPS approved. My mail box was broken into. The lock was broken and the mail was stolen. My Home owners association said that it is the responsibility of me the owner to pay to fix the lock. Hi Angela, thank you for your comment. I highly recommend you check out our line of high-security curbside mailboxes. The lock on your traditional unit was likely popped with a basic hand tool or screwdriver. We are simply a mailbox manufacturer and have no affiliation with any government entity — other than that all of our curbside mailboxes have undergone the USPS approval process.

Let us know if you have any need for a secure, locking mailbox that will do a better job of thwarting mail thieves in your area. Today, , I checked with the post office to see if they did indeed own the boxes, as our mobile park owner refused to get us locking boxes, and mail is being stolen all of the time.

Residents want to purchase their own locking boxes to replace the landlords non locking boxes. WE would pay for this. I was told no, the land owner owns the box. Emails to the residents keep telling us not to let our dogs pee on the mailbox posts.

Can I be forced to walk my dog in the street? Hi Kay, thank you for your comment. Dog pee does indeed ruin finishes and can cause premature wear and tear on outdoor metal products. However, if it were my dog I would likely try to pull them away from the mailbox post if they tried to pee on it. My postman wrote my house number with a Shaprie permanent marker on the side of my white curbside mailbox. I do not believe the postman has a right to deface my box without my permission and would like to file a complaint but am unsure where to file such a complaint.

If you run a non-profit and the former board president changes the mail box with a mail box where only she has the key so that no one else can receive mail, is that illegal and what can be done about it? Is it the person who purchased the item that is being delivered? The sender can send it Registered Mail, which includes insurance in case of damage.

It is your responsibility to notify the carrier USPS in this case immediately if the item is damaged when delivered, which will enable the sender to collect on the insurance and refund your money or replace the object. This may not be the case if you have a different agreement with the sender, but the above is the way it is most often, for example with online purchases from Amazon and eBay.

Hi Rebeccah, thanks for your comment! It is important to let the sender know so that they may process a replacement item or letter to you, and if they file a claim it is likely that they will be reimbursed at least for the cost of the shipping. Pictures are always helpful in that scenario, of course! Can I remove my mailbox if I go on vacation? Many times I get tons of flyers and it overloads and falls on the ground. Hi Bobby, thanks for your comment. You can opt-out of most types of marketing mail by following the instructions on this website.

They will do this for free for up to at least a few weeks. Have a great day. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. Actual prices may vary based on inventory.

All items are priced as marked, no additional discounts may be applied. But, that is just the first half of the story. Posted in Consumer Information and tagged how it works , usps. Franchesca berrios on February 9, at am. Landlord refuses to fix broken mailboxes not receiving mail what do I do. CW on April 13, at pm. Dion Byrd on May 28, at pm. Is it illegal to tie a rope around a mail box to prevent access by postal carriers?

Wendy on July 14, at pm. Put up your own. SiloDaDingo on August 15, at pm. James C Deiman on July 26, at pm. Mike on April 25, at am. We manufacture and install upscale site amenities throughout the United States. Forsite can provide all of your signage needs for your Master Planned Community or Residential Development. We help our customers to create a uniform, upscale appearance and increase property values by "bundling" themed packages of decorative street signage , mailboxes , post and wall mounted lighting, and wayfinding signage.

You can count on the experts at Forsite to help improve the quality of your community today. Contact us today to get started by talking to one of our experienced team members at This site uses cookies to deliver a better experience. Are Mailboxes Considered Federal Property? Friday May 15, Mailboxes make it easy for consumers, as well as businesses, to send and receive tangible letters and small packages.

Share via email. Mailboxes - The Basics Managing mailboxes and general delivery services. Information Article Number. Customer Information. General Delivery A mail service for those without a permanent address, often used as a temporary mailing address. General Delivery is intended to be used for: Non-city delivery offices for those who prefer not to use Post Office Box service and for whom use of Post Office box, Caller Service, or delivery by letter carrier, would be an unreasonable inconvenience.

Any Post Office to serve transients people who travel extensively and those without a permanent address. Anyone who wants Post Office box service when Post Office boxes are unavailable. Who is Responsible for the Mailbox? Your Mailbox Needs Attention Prepared by the postmaster and delivered when there is a problem with your mailbox or receptacle. PS Form Action must be taken to correct the problems or risk having your mail service suspended until the problems are resolved.

Allowable if the receptacle: Does not touch the mailbox or use any part of the mailbox for support. These are used to train letter carriers in the practice of putting mail in the mailboxes of private homes.

I opened one of thes mail boxes the other day, to see what training materials might be in a practice mail box. A post office employee told me that I had just broken the law and coud be charged with an offence. I tried to mail letters and the mail boxes on 2 of my closest corners were almost closed.

If I put mail in them, will it be delivered? Is this purposely done for protection or is it due to vandalism? Buy Now. By James W. Subscribe to the OUPblog via email: Our Privacy Policy sets out how Oxford University Press handles your personal information, and your rights to object to your personal information being used for marketing to you or being processed as part of our business activities.

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