Hi all – I recently bought a Christmas gift for someone that was to be delivered to my apartment. It was shipped via insured mail with tracking. I was not at home at the time the mail arrived, so someone in my apartment’s leasing office signed for it. However, when I showed up at the leasing office, they claimed they did not have the package. When I obtained the receipt from the USPS and showed it to the leasing office, the leasing office admitted that someone on staff did sign for it, but essentially gave me the cold shoulder and said something to the effect of, “We’re sorry we can’t find your package. We’re happy to accept packages on behalf of residents, but we will not be held responsible for the package in the event of theft or damage.” Has anyone else run into a situation like this where someone in your building signed for your package, but then it went missing or stolen? What recourse is there for this, if any? I’m annoyed by the “tough luck” response that they gave me. I don’t know who’s supposed to be on the hook for this – the USPS since they didn’t drop the package off with me personally, or the leasing office, since they accepted the package and then made it disappear. I’d like to think this type of thing never happens, but I’m sure mail theft probably happens more often than I’d like to believe. I’d appreciate any advice, especially from anyone who’s run into a similar situation before. Thanks in advance.
Numi, I have been a victim of mail theft. The first thing you need to do is file a police report. While the police will not do anything to help you, you will need a copy of the report to take to a USPS location. Next you need to get the tracking number and insurance claim form. The individual who sent you the package should have this. I would imagine scanned/faxed copies are acceptable. Go to the post office with these items and present them to an agent. If the agent starts giving you a runaround, demand a manager. The fact of the matter is the package was insured, signed for by someone other than the intended recipient, and ‘lost’ in the meantime. The matter should be resolved at this point. If that does not work, then claim you sent a check for your rent to your leasing office. If they don’t have it, give them the tough luck attitude that they are giving you ;-). In any case being stolen from sucks, and in my case since the package was not insured, I did not have any recourse.
USPS considers it delivered if anyone is willing to sign for it so it’s not USPS.
On another note, a good friend of mine is very active with Ebay. Due to a few issues with the USPS, he now uses a P.O. Box for all of his mail. Depending how bitter you are, this may not be a bad idea to ensure this does not happen again.
I’m assuming the statement, “Someone signed for it” refers to an actual signature. This person is responsible for getting the package to you and thereby the theft. File a report on them after the police report indicating that this person stole an item from you and the signature proves their assuming of responsibility for the item. Whether its insured or not is not the question. This is tort law and you’d have to go to civil court to settle the matter. In that case, the leasing office may then take the responsibility of the employee and pay out the amount owed to you. Thats the jist I got from the application of my A in business law.
That has happened to me before, but they are right they only do package acceptance as a courtesy and almost all leasing offices state that they are not responsible for it if its lost or stolen. However, I would threaten legal action. Get the exact name of the person who signed for the package and threaten to file a police report if they do not further investigate the issue.
They may say they cannot be held responsible but you not agreeing to such ‘power of signature attorney’ to put it one way, negates their policy. Thats like me saying I’m not responsible for punching people who enter my workplace. Thats my policy.
USPS are a bunch of douchebags. I shipped out a laptop that I initially purchased through E-bay which was D.O.A. I informed the seller, and he agreed to a full refund. So I shipped it back to him. Canada Post - as usual - did a decent job of getting it across the border. USPS - as always - attempted delivery (the seller wasn’t home), and when the seller went to pick it up, claimed that the item was lost. It was just a bloody ridiculous answer! But yea…hopefully you manage to get your item back.
Isn’t mail theft in the US a federal offense? I am thinking that a reminder of this fact at an opportune moment could provide the motivation that might be required by some parties to assist you.
MattLikesAnalysis Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > They may say they cannot be held responsible but > you not agreeing to such ‘power of signature > attorney’ to put it one way, negates their policy. > Thats like me saying I’m not responsible for > punching people who enter my workplace. Thats my > policy. Too good!
You won’t win the USPS. A poster hit it on the head saying that the USPS will claim delivery. Go after the leasing office by taking them to small claims court. Name the person who signed it and the leasing office in general. Hopefully, they won’t want to pay for lawyer fees etc and somehow compensate you for losing your package. I would have packages sent to the office or a PO Box like someone suggested. I probably would go with MailBox etc instead of the USPS if you do.
Wow – thank you for all the replies. I can summarize my responses to everyone’s inquiries as follows: - I agree that the USPS probably won’t be accountable for it, because they can claim delivery. - What I do have is the receipt proving that someone in the leasing office signed for the package, and that itself is not debatable. The USPS, leasing office, and I all agree that the package was signed for, and we know the person that signed for it. - What I don’t have is proof of who made the package “disappear.” There are multiple people that work in that office, and unfortunately, any number of things could have happened to it. I still think it was stolen (as opposed to missing), but who knows. - At the end of the day, the leasing office still signed for my package, but never turned it over to me. If I decide to take this up with any authorities, it would be by myself, along with the help of the USPS (who has been very helpful and responsive so far…must be a Texas thing). I wouldn’t want to hire an attorney for this because the value of the gift was not high enough that it would justify the costs. Small claims court would seem to be the best route to go, but I don’t know how practical that is since I haven’t been in a situation like this. Perhaps others of you have? Please advise if so.
Have someone ship you a box of oreos, replacing the filling with lard (or strychnine, depending on your mood). Then the thief will get their just desserts (no pun intended). I’ve seen this trick in enough sitcoms to know it must work!
Do you mind sharing what the contents of the package was? Or at least the value?
The value of the gift was several hundred dollars, and the gift was for my family.
I think you need to go scorched earth with the leasing office.
If your leasing office is anything like mine (a revolving door of idiots who cannot find a real job and feel like a subsidized studio is a great form or payment) I wouldn’t be surprised at all if someone just decided to steal it. Some things to keep in mind… Does your lease inherently state the lame “tough luck” policy? Since the only signature options are as “agent” or “addressee” , I’d venture to say they would have a fiduciary duty to ensure delivery. So unless they previously disclosed that they deny that responsibility- they should have just not accepted delivery. I’ve been to small claims before, but I bet that a well drafter letter to management (corporate office) might get you a easier resolution. Did request USPS to leave it at the office??
The fact is you did not recieve the item you paid for. It’s not your responsibility to track it down (although, it’s a nice good faith effort.) Here’s what I’d do…call the business from which I purchased the good and claim that I did not accept delivery of the package and that I demand they either send a new item, or refund the payment. If they do neither, I’d dispute the transaction with the credit card company.
Sorry to hear about your mail issues though it sounds like you received some good advice. I too have a postal issue. This past weekend a car took out my mailbox snapping the post like a twig and spintering the rest. Fortunately, despite living in a large city, the driver stopped, knocked on my door to notify me, then later in the week swung by to pay the $85 required to replace and install it. The only problem is the newly installed speed bump was the cause and I expect to go through numerous mailboxes this winter. I have entered into a battle with the neighborhood association concerning said speed bump. Speed Bump - 1 Holden1176 - 0
A couple things guys – (1) The seller made their best effort to ship the package. It was from a private merchant so I don’t want them to be accountable for it. I have to either go after USPS for reimbursement, or go straight to the management of my apartment complex (since the leasing office is so utterly incompetent). I’m thinking that with enough persuasion, the corporate management of the apartment complex will give in. Plus, a girl in the leasing office sent a rather foul e-mail – one that was intended to be sent to a colleague of hers regarding my situation, but instead went to me because she hit the “reply” button – and something like that can’t possibly be good for the apartment complex’s public relations. (2) The policy on the lease states, “As a convenience, we will accept mail/UPS/Fedex packages on behalf of the resident, however, we will not be held responsible for the package in the event of theft or damage.” How enforceable is this statement? Just because the leasing office put it in a contract and I signed it, does that override the fact that potential mail theft is a criminal offense? For what it’s worth, I never asked the leasing office to sign for the package, and if they did, I think they should give it to me (it’s called “theft” if they don’t, I would think). Again, anyone with experience or thoughts, please feel free to opine. At this point, I’ve already called American Express and PayPal to explain the situation, and since I don’t plan to go to the lawyers about it, the next step would just be to go to the apartment management and explain the situation. I’m thinking that some way or somehow, I’ll eventually get recompensed for the lost parcel, but who knows when that will happen…