Landlords sometimes find that they keep getting post for their tenants long after they have left.
Sometimes they will have been given a forwarding address but will tire of forwarding post for a tenant who has long gone. Do they have to do this forever?
Other times they will not know where the tenant has gone. Can they throw the post away?
Postal re-direct service
As we have a postal re-direct service in this country, ideally if they want their post sent on to them tenants should sign up for this (and pay the fee). Rather than expect their landlords to act as a free service.
However, the post office service, as I have reason who know, does not always work and even if your tenant signs up for it and pays the fee, post may still continue to arrive for him from time to time.
Stickyback addressed labels
One good way of dealing with this is to get your tenants when they leave to provide some sticky backed labels with their new address for forwarding purposes.
These can be given to your new tenants for them to use to forward any post that may arrive.
Return to sender
However after a time the labels will all be used up. Also I don’t think it fair for a tenant to expect landlords (or their new tenants) to act as a free forwarding service forever.
So I think you should make it clear to tenants that after a time, perhaps after the labels have been used up, you will be returning post to the Post Office.
What you do is just write ‘Return to Sender” across the envelope and re-post it. Or you can put “gone away” if you prefer. But let the mail service deal with it.
What you shouldn’t do is open it – leave that to the postal authorities. They have the authority to open post – you don’t. Likewise you should not destroy it – the post does not belong to you.
After senders have had their post returned to them they will hopefully change their records, so after a while the post should stop coming.
I agree entirely with your blog Tessa, but I understand the issue of opening ‘Her Majesties Mail’ does not apply once the PO has delivered it to the specified address.
That may be, but I don’t think it entitles someone to open mail which is clearly addressed to someone else, and does not belong to them.
Return to sender is the proper thing to do.
If you do use labels no not cover the old name and address with them or the post office may put a card through your door saying there is unpaid postage. It happened to me and I was charged about a pound for each item.
Cross out the original address, but not the name. Put the label (which should say “Please forward”) in a place that does not cover the original address.
Many thanks @Daveg for the benefit of your experience!
Unfortunately it doesn’t stop coming, ever, and it can actually border on harassment in my opinion.
I got fed up after ‘returning to sender’ for about 3 years. I opened some ‘by accident’ and it was mainly creditors and bailiff letters. I even tried calling the companies concerned but of course they wouldn’t acknowledge me as I wasn’t the addressee.
No one had a forwarding address and why should I have to put up with lazy companies who can’t be bothered to employ a tracing agent?
In the end I just started shredding it and I don’t feel the least bit guilty about doing. I doubt that I’m likely to be prosecuted any time soon.