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The Bill Is In The Mail? USPS Returns Mail To Sender Six Years Later
August 3, 2021
An employee at Century Water Works received a few unexpected surprises in the mail.
Central Water Works mailed the pictured water bill to a local address on September 16, 2015.
Monday, almost six years later, the bill arrived back at the water company on Byrneville Road with a yellow U.S. Postal Service “Return to sender” sticker dated July 31, 2021.
It was one six pieces of mail addressed by Central Water Works to the same person over a three-month period in 2015 that were all just returned by the post office.
We’ve reached out to the U. S. Postal Service (by email, not postal mail) for any possible explanation, and we’ll let you know what they say.
Photos for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Comments
22 Responses to “The Bill Is In The Mail? USPS Returns Mail To Sender Six Years Later”
Dee, it may be insane to you that 3-day delivery isn’t guaranteed, but it likely wouldn’t be insane if you read the posted information the USPS provides to the public. Per the USPS:
“In most cases, the expected delivery date printed on your receipt or provided at checkout will reflect a delivery time of 1, 2, or 3 business days and is based on origin, destination, and drop-off time. The expected delivery date does not come with a money-back guarantee.”
The ONLY money-back guaranteed mail delivery is Priority Express Mail, which is a 1-2 day delivery time. It’s unfortunate you were uneducated about the rules, but now that you are better informed of the services provided, you can make a better decision.
It’s hard to blame the postmaster for finally having to end the conversation with you, which as you wrote, “When I protested and demanded my refund…”, you were demanding something you weren’t entitled to, a refund on a non-guaranteed service. Next time choose the money-refunded delivery date Priority Mail.
Arleen, you’re so mistaken. It’s not a crime to admit when you’re wrong!
Arleen, you wrote: “ David Vance. The post office is tax payer funded. Do some research. Stamps have never paid for the cost of running the US post office”.
Why are you saying that? It’s completely untrue. The Postal Service is not part of the budget. Goods(like stamps for instance), and services support the Postal Services. Your taxes do not. It’s not a crime to admit you’re wrong, Arleen. We all make mistakes….
https://www.brookings.edu/blog/up-front/2020/08/26/how-is-the-u-s-postal-service-governed-and-funded/
Last November I mailed a package with 3 day delivery. 2 weeks later it still wasn’t there. I went to get my money back bc it didn’t arrive within 3 days and I was informed that 3 day delivery doesn’t actually mean 3 day delivery, which is insane to me. To be certain its going to be delivered in 3 days you have to pay for GUARANTEED 3 day delivery. When I protested and demanded my refund the Cantonment post master slammed the door in my face. I haven’t sent anything USPS since.
A few years ago, I had a woman hand me a brown paper grocery bag full of mail up to 10 years old that was addressed to the resident who lived at her house prior to her moving in. When she got the mail addressed to the prior resident, she tossed it in the bag. When the bag was full, she gave it to me. I returned the mail to the sender, in a manner consistent with the above mail issue. It makes it appear the USPS did something untimely, but that was not the case.
Check again and see how much cares act funding another funding from the government they have received, and oh by the way the tax payers fund the government.
@ Arleen
You are 100% WRONG.
A simple Google search will show that as of July 1, 1971 the USPS is not a federal funded agency.
THE POST OFFICE IS NOT A TAXPAYER-FUNDED AGENCY. IT IS A PRIVATE CORPORATION OWNED BY THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT.
The post office has not been a government agency since the 1960s; I know, it is all very confusing since the employees are technically federal government employees. Stamps and packages are the only way the post office turns a profit as well as retail services and PO box fees. Congress controls how these prices are set since the government owns the corporation.
It is true that forever stamps are valid forever but that has nothing to do with a dead letter. Once a letter has postage affixed to it the post office is responsible to deliver it in perpetuity until it reaches its final destination.
There is a dead letter’s bin in every office which never gets purged, sometimes letters sit around for decades before finally being sorted manually by a person.
To the trolls above please do your research before belittling someone, you’re making yourself out to be a fool. It’s okay not to know an answer.
David Vance. The post office is tax payer funded. Do some research. Stamps have never paid for the cost of running the US post office.
Years ago the Century post office had two mail slots…..one for metered and one regular mail. I accidentally dropped my rent check in the metered but didn’t think there would be a problem since it was going to a century address but it took months to get to the landlord. Of course the landlord didn’t believe I had mailed it at all until he received it months later.
Also, to the people making tax comments, the post office isn’t funded by taxpayer dollars. It’s funded by stamp purchases.
With comments being made that several businesses have the exact same returned mail it appears that the post office found a mail bag with undelivered mail.
The USPS SUX’s! I put a check in the mail to pay on some property we are buying. They FINALLY received it just over a month later. Good thing we are a month ahead on the billing or this could have worked out real bad for us. Could have lost the property. Also, the past 3 days I am getting everyone else’s mail on our street but ours.
The USPS keeps raising the cost of stamps when the service keeps go to hell!
Typical of USPS & its service. Not putting addressed mail in correct mail box. Not putting addressed mail in correct mail box because the mail person thinks the person is not living at that address. Yes, this happened with a tax refund. Took a year to get back from IRS.
So thats what ” FOREVER ” means on the stamp?
Makes me wounded if someone passed away or moved and this was left in a house/apartment ect. They more then likely just put handfuls of mail in the mailbox.
Our business received 10 pieces dated 2015 as well.
Our company received 12 pieces dated back to the same date!?!?
Not suprised! I go into Cantonment to mail my stuff due to several extremely late mails! About time things got exposed. McDavid and Century post offices are the same about this!
EREC received several pieces of returned bills from several years ago as well.
Another local business received some mail as well, dated from 2015! As the saying goes, snail mail!
Just give them more tax payer dollars. I’m sure that will help.