Mail Theft: What are we supposed to do?

A Homeowner has provided a link from The Press Enterprise with ways to prevent  Mail Theft in our community. Take a look at the information below to prevent your mail from being stolen. You can also read the complete article by clicking the link below.

Preventing Mail Theft

• Remove mail from your box every day, leaving nothing to steal.
• Don’t leave outgoing mail, even in a locked box, overnight. Instead, drive mail to the post office and drop it inside. If you have to leave outgoing mail in your box, do it just before the letter carrier arrives.
• If you don’t have a locking mailbox, buy one.
• Ask for a vacation mail hold when you will be gone for even a weekend.
• If you notice a sticky substance on a mailbox, don’t deposit your mail there. Thieves use sticky rat traps connected to hangers to fish for mail.
• If you spot a mail theft in progress be a good witness and get descriptions of suspects and any cars and license plate numbers. Don’t try to intervene.
• Report past mail thefts. This helps police and postal authorities build a database of thefts and detect crime patterns.

RESOURCES

• When expecting packages, monitor tracking at usps.com. A new U.S. Postal Service feature provides email and text alerts to notify customers of package delivery. Sign up at my.usps.com
• To reach the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, call 877-876-2455.
• To reach the U.S. Postal Service Customer Care Center, call 800-275-8777.
• To report crimes involving the U.S. mail, visit the Inspection Service website at postalinspectors.uspis.gov. Select Contact Us and then File a Complaint.

Source: The Press Enterprise