Category: News&Update

The BoxPal App, can be used to help safeguard against package theft.  According to data from the BoxPal App, more than 36% of Americans have experienced package theft more than once during their lifetime, and that happens to be more people in California, Texas, New York, and Florida combined.  From within the BoxPal App, you can see which one of your neighbors in your neighborhood is available to pickup your package, when you’re not at home within a 15 minute time frame from when your package is dropped off, and they will hold your package until the designated time until you get home from work.  One of the keys to using the BoxPal App, is making sure that you’ll be at home at the designated time, because your neighbor might have plans for the evening, so it’s important not to inconvenience them, because if you need your packages picked up on another day, they could possibly decline picking up your package for you.  If you have an iPhone, or an Android device you can go into the Google Play store to download the BoxPal App.  One of the great things about the BoxPal App is that once you’re registered, and you fulfill your commitment as far as delivering your neighbors package to their residence, then you will receive a payment from within the BoxPal App for your services.  Like anything else it’s important to know your neighbors, and during the times that we’re living in now, it would really be great if the BoxPal App could show the neighbor who will be delivering the package to the recipient of the package, because if a neighbor doesn’t recognize you, chances are they’re not going to open up their door.  If the neighbor doesn’t want to physically see you in person, and you’re bringing the package to their house, it’s important to make sure that they leave the package at the right address, because if food can get misdelivered, a package can be misdelivered as well.  The 15 minute time limit that the BoxPal App allows you to pickup your neighbors package probably wouldn’t be hurt to be changed to 5 minutes, because a porch pirate really needs less than 30 seconds to jump out of their car to run up to a residence to steal a package.  What can help aid the BoxPal App?  A Ring, Google, ADT doorbell camera, and etc., can all help because they help to create integrity amongst neighbors who will be picking up packages using the BoxPal App, because once you’re on camera, you can’t say that you didn’t pickup the package.  The BoxPal App is a great help to aid in the prevention of porch piracy.  Their app can be found on Twitter  @ BoxPal LLC, or online at www.boxpal-app.com as well as the Google Play Store.  www.iwantmymail.com  More than just a blog!

Communication is important when dealing with moving, mail, and packages.  How important, you might ask, it can determine if you receive that important stimulus check that you, and your family have been patiently waiting on, but you, and your family sold your house, and moved out of state more than one month ago, and no one never took out the time to file a change of address.  What are some of the most important things that a family must communicate to a letter carrier?

1. We need a change of address form for two people.  If you don’t want to fill out a change of address form online, you can ask your carrier for the paper version of the change of address.

2.  Some people marry, but the spouse might decide to keep their maiden name, if this is your situation, a change of address must be filled out in both the spouse’s maiden name, as well as the husband’s name so that all mail will be forwarded to the new address.

3.  If you sell your house, and you plan on staying in your house after the real estate sell for 2 more months, it would be nice to communicate with your letter carrier to let them know, so that they will not start forwarding, or sending your mail back, because normally when the real estate sold sign is put in a yard, normally the new resident, or family is moving into your former residence.

4.  Drop shipments, if you don’t update your address when you sell your home, the drop shipment that you receive every two weeks from Amazon, Target, Wal-Mart, and etc., will continue to be delivered to your former address, until you go online to update your address credentials.

5.  If your name isn’t spelled correctly on a credit card bill, or a package, and you never correct the error, it could have an impact on when you move if you don’t fix the error.  Take out the time to call your credit card company to fix the error, for example, your last name is Whyte, but the credit card company continues sending your billing statements with the last name of White, and you’re taking a business trip in two days, and the credit card comes with your name spelled incorrectly, it could have a direct impact on your trip, communicate, and fix the problem, before it becomes an even bigger problem.

Communication is important when dealing with moving, mail, and packages.  www.iwantmymail.com  More than just a blog!

The art of hiding packages from porch pirates.  It’s a shame that it has come down to this, but porch pirates are getting bolder everyday stealing packages from homes, and apartments at an alarming rate.  What can be done to combat porch piracy?  Here are some tips that can help you, and your family in combatting against porch pirates who park in front of your property to steal your package, or packages, once the delivery driver leaves the package at your residence..

1. If you have a barrier, where your package can be hidden, leave a note for the delivery driver, or post a sign that says, hide all packages behind barriers, so that the package can’t be seen from the street.

2.  Buy, or invest in a security camera, if a porch pirate sees a security doorbell sign, then more than likely they don’t want to be filmed, or caught on camera, a small investment can save you a lot of heartache, over a stolen package.

3.  If you don’t want to invest in a security camera, buy a flowerpot, they’re great barriers if they’re big enough to hide your packages from the street.

4.  Use the comments section on the delivery merchant, so that you can leave a note, such as don’t leave my package out in the open, because if it’s visible it has a greater chance of being stolen.

5.  Communicate with your neighbors, if your neighbor is a retiree, and if they’re at home a lot, ask them to retrieve your package if you’re at work, and have them to hold the item, until you return home from work.

6.  Invest in a parcel locker box, there are several options, but the delivery personnel will need the code to securely place the package into your parcel locker box, that is located at your residence.

There are several other options, but these are a few that could assist you in preventing porch pirates from stealing your packages.   www.iwantmymail.com  More than just a blog!

Ordering a package online, and disputing a credit card charge.  I’m sure that if anyone has ever ordered an item online, every shipment hasn’t been perfect, and you have possibly had to call your credit card company to dispute a charge for an item that you were billed for, but you didn’t receive the package, or merchandise that you ordered.  Here are steps that can aid you in preventing the credit card company, or merchant from billing, or charging you for an item that you didn’t receive.

1. Does the item require a signature?  If you didn’t sign for the item, then how can you be billed, the delivery company can’t forge your signature, or sign for you unless the package has a waiver listed on the box, or there is paperwork that says, waiver of signature.  If the package doesn’t say signature waiver, then someone at your household must be present to sign for the package.

2.  When you receive the credit card bill, and you see the charge, dispute the charge, because you didn’t receive the item that you ordered.  Normally the credit card company will send out a form for you to fill out, and you must explain why you’re disputing the charge, and provide any additional details, such as emails, or the name of the person at the company where the package was stored at for you to pickup the item.

3.  If there was a notice left, and the notice says specifically that you must be present in order to receive the item, hold onto the notice, and provide your credit card company with the number so that the credit card company will see that you never signed for the item, and the third party vendor, must return a refund to your credit card company, who will then credit your account, and send a refund check to your account for the package that you never received.

4.  Open up your mail, especially if it’s from your credit card company who is assisting you in your disputed charge, because you only have 30 days to provide, and respond to your credit card company, or the credit card company will hold you liable for the charges.  If you have paperless billing, be sure to open up, and check your email, because you don’t want to miss the 30 day deadline.

Ordering a package online, and disputing a credit card charge, remember documentation is key, have a wonderful week!  www.iwantmymail.com  More than just a blog!

Rolling the dice on vacation, packages, credit cards, and COVID-19 test!  Sounds like something out of a movie, but this is the world that we live in now.  The Doe family, has decided to take a vacation out of the country, they purchase their tickets off the American Airlines website, and receive their e-tickets via their respective email accounts.  The trip is less than 45 days, and upon investigation, there is aren’t any  COVID-19 tests required when leaving the United States to visit Colombia.  So the 45 days goes by rapidly, and the Doe family is prepared to take their 7 day trip to Bogota, Colombia, once they settle into their hotel, and take a trip for site seeing, and visiting various tourists activities, they find out from one of the tourist, who is about to check out that a COVID-19 test is required within 72 hours of departure, and it has to be from an approved American Airlines testing facility.  So the family finds a testing center 15 minutes away from their hotel, and all 5 family members are tested, and one of the family members has a positive test result from the testing facility, so now the family is in panic mood, because all three children start school less than 96 hours from the departure date.  The Doe family decides that, Mrs. Doe will stay back in the hotel in quarantine with their 8 year old son.  What could have been done to prevent this from happening?

1. Find out if the country that you’re visiting requires a COVID-19 test.

2.  Have a credit card with a large enough credit limit so that you can cover your meals, room and any other type of expenses, while you, and your family might be in quarantined in a hotel.

3.  Call 1-800-275-8777 (800-ASK-USPS), if you will be gone for an significant amount of weeks, place your mail on hold, because who wants a porch pirate to steal all of your packages while you, and your family are out of town.

4.  Call your neighbor, and tell them to pick up all of your packages, while you’re out of town, and if you never submitted a hold mail form to take all of your mail that has been sitting in your mailbox, and could attract thieves when they see packages stacked on top of one another.

5.  Have your email readily available, because the testing center will normally send your results to your email, so make sure that your phone is charged, and ready for any type of emergency in the event that your phone  is required.

6.  Notify your job, that you will be in quarantine for the next two weeks, so that when you return, your money will not be compromised.

7.  Stay in touch with your immediate family, and friends.

These are just a few tips that can assist you while your on vacation  with your family, rolling the dice on vacation, packages, credit cards, and COVID-19 test!  www.iwantmymail.com  More than just a blog!

The baby is sleeping, the package, and the doorbell.  Most couples, when a child is born, will have an indication such as a yard sign with the peacock indicating the child’s name, weight, and date of birth, so when delivery personnel walk up to deliver your package, there is normally a note above the doorbell that says, don’t ring the doorbell, baby sleeping!  If the note isn’t visible, or put on the mailbox, next to the doorbell, don’t be surprised if your doorbell is rung, to indicate  that there is a package at your door that has been left for you.  If you have a newer doorbell, and you don’t want to deal with a loud bell waking up your child, you can adjust the volume of the doorbell, so that your child isn’t awakened, or you can turn off the doorbell, and have the option where you can view the delivery personnel walking up to deliver your package, so that when the driver walks off, you can easily retrieve the package.  Reasons why a driver will not leave a package at your home, the package requires a signature, or it requires that you have to pay cash on delivery, the item contains something valuable, and the shipper requires that you sign for the package to indicate that you have received the item.  What can be done so that your baby can sleep, and not have to worry about being awakened by a loud doorbell, leave a note above the doorbell that says, knock lightly, baby sleeping, if the package requires a signature, leave a notice, and someone from our home will pick up the package.  If a package is left at your residence, and you see the delivery driver outside, and you can meet them before they walk up to your residence, you can save the doorbell from being rang at your home, and your baby can continue sleeping.  If you have dogs, that live inside your home, and they bark when they see the delivery driver walking up to deliver your packages, you might consider putting them in a separate part of your house when the delivery driver walks up to deliver your package, because it’s natural for dogs to bark, they’re warning you that someone is walking up to your home, and if they don’t recognize you, they will bark, so now your baby can’t sleep, but you have your package.  The baby is sleeping, the package, and the doorbell.  www.iwantmymail.com  More than just a blog!

Google Maps, and updating your business address.  This might not initially make sense to the reader, but hopefully by the end of the article, both the reader, and business owner will have an understanding of the process.  Apple & Orange, LLC  has been in business practicing law for over 50 years, their landlord decided to almost triple their rent so the law firm decided that it was time to move to a new location, so after having one month to move out to their new location they decided to finally submit a change of address for their new location, but they never submitted change of address forms for their individual names, and every week almost all of employees at the office received packages from Amazon, Target, and various other shipper’s because they felt that their office was safe for delivery, and if the office was closed on the weekend, deliveries would be made on the following business day.  Apple & Orange, LLC decide to move about 15 minutes from their old location, in a new building that has just been completed for new tenants to move into.  The old building where they previously resided 2525 Blackcherry Blvd., has now been leased out to a plumbing office, Big Dream Plumbing, who have painted the building, and gave their new location a new look.  Almost one year after moving, a client stops into Big Dream Plumbing to meet with what they think is still the law firm of Apple & Orange, LLC, only to find out that the former law office is now a plumbing office, with less than two days before their traffic ticket becoming a warrant the client sees the mailman, who happens to know where the location of the Apple & Orange, LLC , is located, and the client is able to get their traffic ticket resolved.  What could have been done to make this process easier for the law firm of Apple & Orange, LLC?  First they should have filled out their change of address at least two weeks before their departure date, and all employees should have filled out individual change of address forms, because if you continue to order packages, and you don’t update your address credentials online with the merchant that you order from, guess where your package is going to continue to go to, until you fix your address?  The packages will continue to be delivered to your companies old business address, and the new tenant in some cases will write return to sender, or set your package outside, where now you will have to worry about theft, and potential porch pirates.  If you registered your business on Google Maps, your business needs to update their new location, or things like this will continue to happen, old clients might show up at what they think is a law firm, which is now a plumbing office.  Business cards, change them before you move, or clients will still think that your office is still located at 2525 Blackcherry Blvd., and change your business letter head, because the old address where mail is returned to the sender will cause future problems if the court still thinks that the law office hasn’t moved, and could potentially cause issues with court dates, and your clients showing up to important court dates, on time.  Google Maps, and updating your business address.  www.iwantmymail.com  More than just a blog!

The package, the doorbell, and your baby, sounds like something out of a movie, but it’s sometimes the choice that we make that makes a difference.  It’s quite understandable, when a couple has their first child, that they don’t want their doorbell being rung, but with porch piracy at an all time high, maybe turning your doorbell down, so that it doesn’t ring as loud, versus leaving a note that tells the delivery driver to not ring your doorbell can make the difference with a porch pirate walking up to your porch, and running off to a waiting car to steal your package, or packages.  A light ring of your doorbell can make the difference if you open up your door in a timely manner, because normally a porch pirate will wait for the delivery driver to walk back to their vehicle, before they make a move to approach your front door to steal your package.  What are ways that you can help to assist the delivery driver to stop porch piracy?  Leave a sign that says, packages are to be left in this corner, so that the delivery driver will know to leave the packages out of the view of an individual who might be walking down the street, who might be looking for packages that are visible from the street, so remember where you leave the package, can make a difference of  the customer receiving the package that they ordered versus a porch pirate walking off from your house with the gift that you ordered from Amazon.  If you’re expecting a package that is going to arrive at night, make sure that your porch is well lit, because porch pirates, would rather target a house that doesn’t have lights, versus one that has a security camera that could possibly record them in the act of stealing your package.  If you have a neighbor that is trustworthy, and your expecting a package, let them know if you’re at work, or attending a doctor’s appointment for your baby, because with porch pirates roaming the streets, it’s better to have a trustworthy neighbor, who could hold your package, until you make it home, versus a porch pirate, who is waiting to steal your package, if they think that the coast is clear, and they see you depart your residence, and five minutes later, a delivery driver is pulling in front of your house to deliver a package that you ordered three day ago.  The package, the doorbell, and your baby.  www.iwantmymail.com  More than just a blog!

Risking it all to steal a package.  Sounds like a dangerous thing to say, but porch pirates are stealing packages at an all-time high, so much that it seems that security cameras are being ignored, because porch pirates seem to think that they’re off of the grid, or that they can’t be identified.  One of the most dangerous things that can happen is that the owner is at home, and comes outside with a gun to encounter the porch pirate, and the porch pirate ends up getting shot, and the homeowner is later charged with assault with a deadly weapon.  What can be done to cut down on package theft?  If your home has barriers that a package can be hid behind, have a sign that isn’t visible from the street that says, leave all packages behind the barrier.  Although, this will help, delivery drivers have to be onboard with your request, and sometimes a phone call, or meeting the delivery personnel when they walk up to deliver your package can help, when you ask them nicely about where you would like your package left at in the event that you might not be at home.  If your home doesn’t have any barriers to hide a package, buy a plant, or something that can obstruct a porch pirate from being able to see that a package has been left at your residence.  What to look for if you suspect a porch pirate could be in your neighborhood, they’re following the delivery drivers, when they make a stop in an automobile, and once the package is left at your residence, they wait, and if  the resident doesn’t come outside immediately they will grab the package, and go to the next house where a delivery is being made, sometimes they work in teams, there is a driver, a lookout, and the porch pirate who runs, or walks up to the residence to steal the package.  Some porch pirates ride bicycles, so they normally will have a backpack on so that they can steal smaller packages, and most will ride up to your residence, and will drop their bicycle to steal your package, and will place the stolen package into their backpack, and will be on their way like they never stole anything.  A lot of residents post videos on the Nextdoor app that shows the porch piracy taking place so this helps to identify who the porch pirate could be, or sometimes a license plate number can help police assist in catching the porch pirate.  Now that restrictions have been lifted in some parts of the country due to COVID-19 numbers dropping porch piracy will continue to rise, and it will take a collaborative effort of everyone to defend against it.  Risking it all to steal a package.  www.iwantmymail.com  More than just a blog!

Auto-shipment of packages, and moving at the same time.  Before COVID-19 took the world by storm in 2020, people were already shopping more from the comfort of their homes, rather than going into a brick and mortar to shop, the benefits of this included, not having to wait in traffic, finding what you want, and clicking on the item that you want to order from the comfort of your home, and deciding how fast did you want the item to arrive at your home, once you have confirmed that you want to order the item.  Over time, jobs transfer, or maybe you have outgrown your home, and you decide to move from Dallas, Texas to Los Angeles, California.  So you submit a change of address through the United States Postal Service, and after two weeks your mail begins to arrive at your new apartment that you, and your family are currently residing in, because you haven’t found a home in Los Angeles that is in your price range that you, and your spouse want to buy.  Every two weeks, you have an auto-shipment package that arrives at your residence every two weeks, but you haven’t received it yet, so you decide to call Amazon customer support to find out where is your package.  They look at their system, and tell you that your current address is the address that you previously listed in Dallas, Texas, but you moved to Los Angeles one month ago.  What do you need to do to fix the problem?  You need to go on Amazon.com and update your address credentials to show that you, and your family are now living in Los Angeles, and don’t forget to add your apartment number when you complete the address credentials, because an insufficient address could delay Amazon from delivering your item in a timely manner.  If you have anything that you order auto-shipment it would benefit you to change everything over to your new address, because this is something that the Postal Service can’t fix for your family, you have to update your information online so that you can get your items delivered to the correct address.  Auto-shipment of packages, and moving at the same time.  www.iwantmymail.com  More than just a blog!