Mail for the previous tenant

reap-a-rat · 12-09-2013 9:46pm #1

Does anyone here who lives in rented accommodation (or I suppose even a previously owned property) receive mail for the folks who used to live there? What do you do with it?

I've got many letters for old tenants of places I've stayed. I usually throw them in a corner and throw em out when clear up is going on. I don't look at it as my responsibility to get their new address and send it to them. Maybe I would if the stuff looked really important.

Got another today. Looks like one of those Revenue letters. Has the "If not delivered, please return to..." on it. Got a pang of guilt for all the ones I never dealt with and am half thinking of redirecting it back to the sender address.

What would you do? How do you deal with the accumulation of strangers' post?

smileyj1987 · 12-09-2013 9:49pm

I would say open the letters and see if there is any money in them if not bin them .

Vojera · 12-09-2013 9:50pm

I write "not at this address" on them and pop them back in the post. I thought everyone did the same.

mikemac1 · 12-09-2013 9:51pm

Evenings are getting darker

Free fuel for the fire

MurdyWurdy · 12-09-2013 9:51pm

I always write "return to sender, not known at this address" and put them in the post box.

Apparently An Post don't return to sender though (there's a thread on it in the consumer issues forum) so it would be probably easier for me to just feck it in the bin.

eireannBEAR · 12-09-2013 9:52pm

Open them,they might contain money.

spurious · 12-09-2013 9:53pm

Write 'not known at this address' on the Revenue one and put it in a postbox.

The Backwards Man · 12-09-2013 9:53pm

Return to sender
Address unknown
No such number
No such zone.

Artful_Badger · 12-09-2013 9:53pm

If they wanted their post they would change their address on all their business and call around to see it there was anything there after they left.

Keep it for a few weeks then bin it. Or stick in the post with "not known at this address" so An Post can bin it for ya.

Turtyturd · 12-09-2013 9:54pm

We are always getting post for people that used to live here....I just stick it back in the post box....problem solved.

mattjack · 12-09-2013 9:55pm

Seal up your letter box , no more letters.

Femme_Fatale · 12-09-2013 9:56pm

Send to forwarding address if I have one or contact the person (if I know them) for an address, or return to sender, or leave for a while in case they contact me for it... after a few months throw out.

I know it's their responsibility and stuff but we can all forget to do things like provide a forwarding address.

It's obviously taking the piss though after months.

Sleepy · 12-09-2013 9:58pm

I had a flatmate once who used those names on parcels he sent himself back from Amsterdam

shopaholic01 · 12-09-2013 10:00pm

This happened me before. I used to just write 'not known at this address' and put them in the post box.

I asked the postman and he said that after 12 months (allows for annual correspondance like insurance renewal etc) you can legally throw them out. It's the previous tenant's responsibility to notify others of their change of address.

genericguy · 12-09-2013 10:02pm

Sleepy wrote: »

I had a flatmate once who used those names on parcels he sent himself back from Amsterdam

I've done this, it works! I once had a bag of weed in one hand and a letter from customs saying "please come and collect a package we are holding for you" in the other. The LOLZ I got from that compensated for the lost bag.

Pingi · 12-09-2013 10:03pm

For my first few months here I wrote not at this address and threw them into a post box down the street, it didn't work and 1 year later and same companies are sending letters to people at this address.

Now I just bin them and use their club card vouchers...

IM0 · 12-09-2013 10:04pm

haha my head is wrecked with this lately, if you wanted your post u should have updated your address,

good job my bins are free otherwise there might be war on the horizons

Chattastrophe! · 12-09-2013 10:05pm

MurdyWurdy wrote: »

I always write "return to sender, not known at this address" and put them in the post box.

Apparently An Post don't return to sender though (there's a thread on it in the consumer issues forum) so it would be probably easier for me to just feck it in the bin.

I know we've gotten letters returned to us at work, with 'not known at this address' etc written on them. So at least some letters do actually get returned!

Our post would be franked when sent out, probably makes it easier to return it.

Duvetdays · 12-09-2013 10:14pm

2.5yrs later and not a week goes by where we don't get post for the previous owners. We've even had the credit union manager come knocking on the door when we first moved in looking for money they owed.

I open all their post and its never anything but final demands for credit cards and catalogues and debt collection letters saying they've bought the debt. I just throw them in the recycle bin don't even bother shredding them cos I couldn't give two fcuks if somebody steals they're scabby indentities.

jokettle · 12-09-2013 10:22pm

I've been getting letters from UPC for a previous tenant for the last 2 years. I called them about a boring contract thing and told them the previous tenant isn't here any more, so stop sending him letters. That was maybe 2 months ago, and I've gotten 3 UPC letters for him since. Turns out he owes them a few hundred.

Maybe they don't understand that letters to an old address won't magically get them their money back....

paddy147 · 12-09-2013 10:26pm

eireannBEAR wrote: »

Open them,they might contain money.

or anthrax....:pac:

QuiteInterestin · 12-09-2013 10:36pm

Write return to sender and put it into a post box. If there is a return address or if the letter has been franked instead of a normal stamp, An Post can use this to identify who sent the letter and it will be returned to them. For other letters, as far as I know they will open them to identify the sender and return it to them if possible (had this happen to me with a letter with insufficient postage, letter was returned a few days later with a large label stating it had been opened under secure conditions to obtain a return address).

Mickey H · 12-09-2013 10:46pm

jokettle wrote: »

I've been getting letters from UPC for a previous tenant for the last 2 years. I called them about a boring contract thing and told them the previous tenant isn't here any more, so stop sending him letters. That was maybe 2 months ago, and I've gotten 3 UPC letters for him since. Turns out he owes them a few hundred.

Maybe they don't understand that letters to an old address won't magically get them their money back....

Simple to sort this one. Take a dump in a box and post it back to them with a little note saying: "I've had enough of your sh!t, now you can have some of mine."

You're welcome.

L1011 · 12-09-2013 10:50pm

An Post do return mail that's correctly marked with a return address or was franked or printed with a stamp printer (as they can identify the sender from that); we get a few bits back a week in work generally from mailshots to all former customers where some have closed down (or died).

Just make sure to block out the incorrect address or else there's a damn good chance it'll come straight back.

Mint Sauce · 12-09-2013 10:51pm

Cross out the address and write return to sender, or their address if I have it. Pop it in the letter box and forget about it.

hfallada · 12-09-2013 10:54pm

When we moved house we paid for our mail to to be redirected for 3 months while we switched everything over. Even dispite that, the new owners had 2 shoe boxes full of letters for us within the 3 months.

L1011 · 12-09-2013 10:57pm

Mint Sauce wrote: »

Cross out the address and write return to sender, or their address if I have it. Pop it in the letter box and forget about it.

An Post won't redirect to a new address for free - that's where the confusion about returning comes from. If they leave you a forwarding address, they should also leave you some stamps.

remsburgsgirl · 12-09-2013 10:59pm

Moved into a house, there was about two months of post sitting in the letterbox when we moved in (house was vacant for two months before us) & for two months after post still came for this one guy....they were the monthly receipts you get from the rent allowance...this really pissed me off, so I took them to the P.O. & said it to the woman there & she got all pissed off too that someone was screwing the social, so she stuck them all in an envelope with a note & posted them back to the return address

As far as other post goes I give it to the landlord, he can deal with it

danniemcq · 12-09-2013 11:06pm

Return them to sender with a note on the envelope saying deceased.

all types of hilarity will ensue.

Mickey H · 12-09-2013 11:07pm

danniemcq wrote: »

Return them to sender with a note on the envelope saying deceased.

all types of hilarity will ensue.

That's genius!!

Mint Sauce · 12-09-2013 11:11pm

MYOB wrote: »

An Post won't redirect to a new address for free - that's where the confusion about returning comes from. If they leave you a forwarding address, they should also leave you some stamps.

Never been a problem for me that I have been aware of. Have redirected mail to former house mates who have confirmed received, and have had the odd bit redirected to me.

Mail for the previous tenant

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