Mail Thefts

[bricker]

It seems as though some folks in the neighborhood have been having their mail taken from their mailboxes recently. I would like to get a locking mailbox so it doesn't happen to me. Does anyone here have experience with such a thing? I would like it to be a standard size rural mailbox, but my google-fu is sadly lacking. Just wondering if someone has seen such a thing. The local post office is no help, which is no surprise.

 

[Chuck24]

Locking mailboxes are not approved for rural delivery though most rural carriers don't worry about it. Problem is small packages such as checks often don't fit, so may be making trips to P.O. To pick up. Try to talk to your carrier.
From a retired rural carrier.

 

[Big Cholla]

Lowe's has a stand on a pedestal large box that is very nice. But, it comes with the world's cheapest key lock. That can be fixed by most any Locksmith. ...........

BTW, when I lived in in Georgia, I had to resort to building a steel pipe barrier anchored in concrete to prevent loosing anymore mailboxes to the local teenage boys and their weekend games of 'mailbox baseball'. I used 4" dia. steel pipe welded into an inverted "V". The box was inside the V with protective steel plates on both sides. The legs were buried in 12" of concrete footings. I never lost or had damaged another mailbox. .....

 

[HOUSTON RICK]

My suburban neighborhood has a central locking USPS mail station with large lockboxes along the bottom for packages. If you get a parcel that does not fit in your box the Postman locks your parcel in a large lockbox and the key automatically locks in the door for the postman to retrieve later. Point being, the post office (not necessarily the mail clerks) are likely the experts and know who has what.

 

[chaparrito]

All I get is junk mail. I wish to heck somebody'd steal it, DAILY.

 

[Kanewpadle]

I've replaced several commercial mail box units that cost well over $1000. You wouldn't think locksmith do but for some reason we do.

Problem is, there aren't too many mail boxes made that can withstand a big screw driver or pry bar.

This is one of the better boxes I've seen because the door is recessed and the lock is pretty strong.
Locking Mailbox with Combination Lock Option - Curbside Secure Locking Mailboxes

This one isn't bad but I don't care for the tubular key. They don't hold up with prolonged use.

 

[olcop]

mailbox

Lowe's has a stand on a pedestal large box that is very nice. But, it comes with the world's cheapest key lock. That can be fixed by most any Locksmith. ...........

BTW, when I lived in in Georgia, I had to resort to building a steel pipe barrier anchored in concrete to prevent loosing anymore mailboxes to the local teenage boys and their weekend games of 'mailbox baseball'. I used 4" dia. steel pipe welded into an inverted "V". The box was inside the V with protective steel plates on both sides. The legs were buried in 12" of concrete footings. I never lost or had damaged another mailbox. .....

When I lived in Columbus it was routine to wake up on Sunday morning with a smashed mailbox-----but, not me--The gentleman who owned the house before me had one made that greatly resembeled a standard mailbox but he had it built from1/4" steel, rolled and welded, it even had a standard door and really looked a standard box at a glance---all my neighbors would wake up to a smashed box, and mine would have a smudge on it, I'd occasionlly find a piece of broken bat lying nearby, but I always got a chuckle from thinking some teenager had hit it with a metal bat----I'll bet his arm ached for a week.
olcop

 

[BUFF]

Early in my career I had a fellow whose mailbox was being targeted for destruction by some of his daughter's classmates. He built a stronger one and they pulled it out of the ground with a 4WD pickup. He built another, much stronger, and set it in a couple cubic yards of concrete.

I get a call that Saturday night, I respond and there on the ground next to the mailbox is the rear bumper of a 3/4 ton Chevy pickup with it's license plate and a few feet of chain.

I got to the registered owner's address before Junior came home. I believe Dad took care of justice with an old fashioned butt kicking and Junior mowed the victim's grass for the summer.

Mail theft is a real problem. I caught a mail thief/meth user once who had mail from 200 different addresses in his car. Mail theft often leads to identity theft and causes a lot of people a lot of trouble.

 

[DWalt]

Locally, it's very unwise to put anything in your home mailbox for pickup. Various undesirables cruise the neighborhood looking for raised flags, hoping to find outgoing mail including checks. Anything going out, I always drop into one of the outside USPS boxes. And even that is not always safe. One of the local PO branch stations had one of their large outside drive-up boxes broken into a month or so ago, so I have started putting my mail into one of the boxes inside the post office which is probably more secure. I had a delivered box left on my front porch with about $70 worth of stuff stolen several months ago.

 

[Evil Dog]

I had a delivered box left on my front porch with about $70 worth of stuff stolen several months ago.

Fortunately I am usually home when UPS just dumps stuff on my porch.

 

[Tom S.]

Maybe put a sign in front of the mail box "Smile for the surveillance camera".

We had some 'undesirables' living across the street for a while, and I happened across my neighbors mail lying up the street, a bunch of pictures they had sent in for processing (remember those days?) lying in mud puddles. As a photographer/developer, I knew the prints could be washed and dried, which I did, and returned them. One day I saw the mother of the undesirables outside and mentioned to her that someone had been getting into our mailbox and I had notified the Postmaster and they were watching the box and would arrest whoever it was. The problem stopped, and completely resolved itself when they moved a few months later.

 

[the ringo kid]

Post a sign that says: If you see a red dot? then your NOT welcome. ))

 

[Doug M.]

We have not gotten mail at a street address in so long I truly can't remember. I don't like giving a physical address to anyone, and see no reason to. While a true threat can find out what they want if they are motivated, I see no reason to make it easy. Likewise, a PO Box cuts the risk of mail theft by a lot.

 

[Tom S.]

We have not gotten mail at a street address in so long I truly can't remember. I don't like giving a physical address to anyone, and see no reason to. While a true threat can find out what they want if they are motivated, I see no reason to make it easy. Likewise, a PO Box cuts the risk of mail theft by a lot.

When I was in a certain line of work I used a PO Box to prevent repercussions or possible retributions. As soon as that threat went away, I dropped it as it was a pita to go to the post office, even just twice a week, due to parking, or lack there of.