How Long?

[sunny-dave]

I've been in my new house for a few months now & suddenly (as from a couple of weeks ago) post has started arriving for the previous owners.

I assume they had paid for 're-direction', but suppose that it has now finished.

I wouldn't mind the odd letter, but over the last week or so I've had much more post for them than for me.

I've re-addressed and forwarded everything so far - with notes scribbled on the back of a couple of the envelopes asking them to sort it out.

It's a bit of a faff (no post box anywhere near me) and getting irritating.

How long would you go on for?

[pixie374]

I'd keep it for them to collect now...

[SirOracle]

After this time I would mark the letters as " Not Known at his Address" and return to Post Office via postbox or by handing to postman.

[SirOracle]

^^^^
This not his address

[237SJ]

My Mum had some post from the previous owners of her house from when she moved in (2007) until she died (this year) One thing I learned was that if you put "No longer at this address, please amend your records" on the envelope, it doesn`t work. The mail arrives back at it`s original place, someone opens it and throws the envelope in the bin and the message doesn`t get through. When I had a rental property and I received mail for previous tennants, I used to open it and phone the companies concerned. I`m sure there will be people on here who say I shouldn`t have done that but the companies were quite happy about it and it did the trick.

[SirOracle]

237 ... I think it is illegal to open mail not addressed to you.

[pixie374]

That isn't very good security either if anyone can ring a company and change the address. If anything, not known at this address will stop it being sent to you. Works for.junk mail too.

[237SJ]

Sir O. Probably is but as I said, that didn`t seem to be a problem.

[jourdain2]

This is happening to us. I write 'Moved, please return to sender' on the envelopes. It's all I can think of - quite a few keep on sending things.

[Baldric]

I'd be binning it by now I suspect.

[DTCwordfan]

didn't they leave some forwarding address.....

if so, a wee print into labels with their address and a message on it to the likes of "1m, and yr mail gets binned."

[Captain2]

We had one today for previous occupant.... after 3 years 5 months. So grit your teeth S-D ;))
(I do still forward to the address she gave us but for all I know she could have moved again)

[tonyav]

The same thing was happening with us when we first moved into our house, Dave. After a few months of it we just wrote not known at this address and put them back into a post box. Eventually we stopped getting any of the previous owners mail.

[SIRandyraven]

I'm having my post redirected from uk to Switzerland (we have house sitters in the uk currently). Royam Mail only supposed to forward mail in our surname , but a few weeks ago we got a letter forwarded to Switzerland addressed to previous owners of our uk home and they moved out in feb 2003 !
Lol

[naomi24]

Same here. I just write their new address on the envelope and leave it until I need to go to the post box for myself. I don't make a special effort - it gets there when it gets there. Not a problem.

[Peter Pedant]

// 237 ... I think it is illegal to open mail not addressed to you.//
Sit Orac

umm - ish - when an emplooyer opened union mail - I couldnt get anyone interested.

for absconding tenants - if you dont - the CCJs by default mount up and it is a pain to have the bailiffs come around every few days. - this is not the case here
Sunny Dave - I suppose you stop when you get tired.

I have had issues with undirected mail but nothing serious - they didnt try to shoot me or anything but it did get me thinking - none of this would have happened if someone had put an address on a letter .... ho hum there is no law that says you have to redirect

You could try asking the post man not to deliver anyting not addressed to Sunny Dave

[Peter Pedant]

I had one from 15 y ago

she had been paying interest via a pay in slip on a loan for fifteen years ( !!) and the useless Tesco Bank were immune to my suggestions that when the capital sum came up for repayment they would come around to my house and I would say I am sorry I can show I have lived here for twenty years

[zebo]

In our last house, for the first ten years or so, we got a Christmas card to the previous occupants "with love for Mum" every year. They tended to get opened with all the others before we looked at the name on the envelope. I got quite worried when they stopped.

[janbee]

I always just return it marked "gone away, return to sender" and stick it back in the post box.

[sunny-dave]

Thanks everyone - at least I'm not alone in this.

[Peter Pedant]

Each firm is meanat to have a policy for dealing with returned mail

I was assured by one hello-girl:
You write RTS on it and it comes back
The RTS department then record that it is a non corresponding address and then try to trace the new one and they dont write again !

I just roared with laughter at that one and the hello-girl got offended ....