America's Mailbox for mail forwarding?
- Thread starter VanForNow
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Headache
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I briefly had them and if you decide to use them I highly recommend you register your vehicles yourself. I had them register my motor home and they registered it as a truck. They repeatedly blamed me for that and for each session of fingerpointing I produced an email showing I had done everything exactly as they had asked of me.
The fiasco cost me the last camping and fishing trip with my dad before he died. They actually told me I could still drive it because it was still insured which was BS because it was insured as a motor home, not a truck!
It took me 3 years to fix their mistake, cost me about $60 in mailing expenses to the DMV in Pierre which AMB refused to reimburse, or refund the cost of the improper registration.
I'm probably an isolated incident but due to them blaming me every step of the way(And yes I still have ALL those emails!) I cannot recommend them. Customer service should mean something even after you've taken a customer's money.
Where do you think you'll be most of the time? I know I'll be in the southwest so I'm going to register in Nevada.
The fiasco cost me the last camping and fishing trip with my dad before he died. They actually told me I could still drive it because it was still insured which was BS because it was insured as a motor home, not a truck!
It took me 3 years to fix their mistake, cost me about $60 in mailing expenses to the DMV in Pierre which AMB refused to reimburse, or refund the cost of the improper registration.
I'm probably an isolated incident but due to them blaming me every step of the way(And yes I still have ALL those emails!) I cannot recommend them. Customer service should mean something even after you've taken a customer's money.
Where do you think you'll be most of the time? I know I'll be in the southwest so I'm going to register in Nevada.
Van-Tramp
Well-known member
Ah that sucks Headache.
My experiences with them have been great... so far. I haven't thrown any major twists at them, but they have done their job well. I had also used YourBestAddress in the past and they were great. Easy over-the-phone setup of residency and vehicle reg. They treated me well. The only downside for them is they are in the East side of the state.
@VanForNow - making the change to SD sounds like a ton of work, but it is actually quite painless. Either place will help walk you through the processes and get it done within a matter of hours. America's Mailbox has an RV park at their offices, so you can travel out there and have a place to stay while you sort out all the paperwork (you need to stay at least one night for license)
good luck!
My experiences with them have been great... so far. I haven't thrown any major twists at them, but they have done their job well. I had also used YourBestAddress in the past and they were great. Easy over-the-phone setup of residency and vehicle reg. They treated me well. The only downside for them is they are in the East side of the state.
@VanForNow - making the change to SD sounds like a ton of work, but it is actually quite painless. Either place will help walk you through the processes and get it done within a matter of hours. America's Mailbox has an RV park at their offices, so you can travel out there and have a place to stay while you sort out all the paperwork (you need to stay at least one night for license)
good luck!
MrNoodly
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I've stayed with Americas Mailbox because the annoyance of dealing with them hasn't yet exceeded the annoyance of changing to a different service.
I took care of all their paperwork and paid the fees while I was still living in NC. When I drove west and showed up at their office they acted like I had intruded and that they were doing me a huge favor doing what I'd signed up for.
A couple of years later, when it was time for annual renewal, I assessed my mail forwarding needs and decided I didn't need their top tier plan. I notified them I wanted to step down a level. Instead of, "Okay, we understand, thank you for your continued business," they ranted about how horrible my life would be with the lesser service. It was almost threatening. So I replied, fine, whatever, I'll keep the top plan if you're going to be that way about it.
The following isn't an Americas Mailbox issue, just something to consider in the equation. When it came time to renew my SD driver license I had the choice of either going to SD when it was still sub-freezing (plus I had no other reason to return to SD) or jumping through the state's hoops to renew by mail or online. Neither was appealing. So I switched my residency to AZ but kept Americas Mailbox for mail forwarding and as the address for my banking and federal government stuff.
SD's lack of income tax and vehicle inspection was a plus, but my income is so low the taxes don't matter. My SD driver license indicated my address was a postal box number. That tells people like rangers and cops it's not an actual residence. That was a problem when some Forest Service districts decided if you didn't have a stick & brick residence you weren't camping, you were squatting and they could fine you and kick you out. That's not a problem with my AZ license since it was acquired using an actual address.
I took care of all their paperwork and paid the fees while I was still living in NC. When I drove west and showed up at their office they acted like I had intruded and that they were doing me a huge favor doing what I'd signed up for.
A couple of years later, when it was time for annual renewal, I assessed my mail forwarding needs and decided I didn't need their top tier plan. I notified them I wanted to step down a level. Instead of, "Okay, we understand, thank you for your continued business," they ranted about how horrible my life would be with the lesser service. It was almost threatening. So I replied, fine, whatever, I'll keep the top plan if you're going to be that way about it.
The following isn't an Americas Mailbox issue, just something to consider in the equation. When it came time to renew my SD driver license I had the choice of either going to SD when it was still sub-freezing (plus I had no other reason to return to SD) or jumping through the state's hoops to renew by mail or online. Neither was appealing. So I switched my residency to AZ but kept Americas Mailbox for mail forwarding and as the address for my banking and federal government stuff.
SD's lack of income tax and vehicle inspection was a plus, but my income is so low the taxes don't matter. My SD driver license indicated my address was a postal box number. That tells people like rangers and cops it's not an actual residence. That was a problem when some Forest Service districts decided if you didn't have a stick & brick residence you weren't camping, you were squatting and they could fine you and kick you out. That's not a problem with my AZ license since it was acquired using an actual address.
I've used Americas Mailbox the last two year (and still using them). I've not had any problems yet. The plus to using them is that you get a legal address. Which can make a big difference over a P.O. Box lots of times.
I probably wouldn't bother using them to register my vehicle either. It's actually pretty easy to do and you can do it over the phone with the Pennington County Treasurers office. But if you want to use them they are just doing the same thing you could do on your own.
It was fairly easy to get my SD drivers license. I think I was in and out in about 15 min. Just make sure to bring what they ask for and it will be super simple.
I had my license before I bought my van. I ordered a new Ford Transit from a dealer in Phoenix. When I showed them my SD license and said I would be registering it there they collected the SD tax which is 3% which was a huge savings over the almost 7% that AZ would have collected. Plus it was only $110 to register it for the year.
So having a SD address has already saved me a ton of money. I have only good things to say about my experience using Americas Mailbox.
I probably wouldn't bother using them to register my vehicle either. It's actually pretty easy to do and you can do it over the phone with the Pennington County Treasurers office. But if you want to use them they are just doing the same thing you could do on your own.
It was fairly easy to get my SD drivers license. I think I was in and out in about 15 min. Just make sure to bring what they ask for and it will be super simple.
I had my license before I bought my van. I ordered a new Ford Transit from a dealer in Phoenix. When I showed them my SD license and said I would be registering it there they collected the SD tax which is 3% which was a huge savings over the almost 7% that AZ would have collected. Plus it was only $110 to register it for the year.
So having a SD address has already saved me a ton of money. I have only good things to say about my experience using Americas Mailbox.
Magicwolf
Well-known member
I have their Silver plan.
My experience with America's Mailbox and annoyance has been due to fees. They do not disclose exact criteria to trigger them in regards to packages specifically and I called them out on it. I don't mind something if I feel it's done above board and upfront.
The advertise they'll accept packages as a service to you. What they don't say upfront in their advertising is that there is a fee involved. If they accept a small package for you, one that doesn't fit into the mailbox that they don't provide dimensions for according to them, it's $1. If it's a larger package (dimensions again not specified anywhere in the 'fine print') it's $2. You'll discover this when they pull it from your postage account. I've had the smallest padded mailer trigger this fee.
There's $1 fee if you don't call or schedule ahead and tell them ahead of time that you're coming in person to get your mail. If you don't or can't show up the day specified, it's….$1. They claim it's work for them for you to come get your mail.
There's $1 "handling fee" tacked on when they send your mail to you. And $1 fee to send a postcard if you have no mail and you've requested your mail be sent to you.
They're not huge fees, it's just their attitude, which comes across like you're a problem and 'work', and the principal involved I don't personally agree with. They've (the lady owner) has been somewhat condescending in communications with box-holders. "We just feel all our customers are big people now…" Read all their fine print and don't only go by their advertising/sales schtick. They've recently raised their rates by about $20 annually.
If you want a lesser plan that suits your needs, get it and don't be intimidated by high-pressure on their part. If you get a small amount of 'junk mail', most Priority Mail is sent in a flat-rate envelope or box and is comparable to having it sent first-class (weight-based) in some cases.
Be aware their 'campground' is amenity-light and charges high rates comparatively for the lack of such in the area. You don't have to stay in their campground to qualify for residency, an overnight receipt from any will do the trick.
They now also sell used vehicles and other stuff.
They will check on things, if you need something important and request that they look, within reasonable parameters, and let you know if it's there. I've not been charged for that.
Most of the front-desk staff are nice. They do send mail promptly when requested, you can do so online.
For commercial drivers, they do have a non-PMB address you can use for the physical portion of that driver's license application.
They've never bought me lunch when coming in person, as they advertise they'll do, but one of the gentlemen did allow me to dry-camp in the dirt portion of the lot once and I think they normally charge for that. You could maybe do that, and get a receipt. If you don't need that receipt, whistle down the road to Cabela's, or the Flying J is right next door.
They're the only game in town, as far as Rapid City, SD goes, so far as I know.
Also, in SD, you can renew your driver's license up to 6 months ahead of expiration. Once that's done, you can renew it by mail 5 years later when it expires again, then I believe you need to visit in person again. I've not used them for any vehicle registrations.
My experience with America's Mailbox and annoyance has been due to fees. They do not disclose exact criteria to trigger them in regards to packages specifically and I called them out on it. I don't mind something if I feel it's done above board and upfront.
The advertise they'll accept packages as a service to you. What they don't say upfront in their advertising is that there is a fee involved. If they accept a small package for you, one that doesn't fit into the mailbox that they don't provide dimensions for according to them, it's $1. If it's a larger package (dimensions again not specified anywhere in the 'fine print') it's $2. You'll discover this when they pull it from your postage account. I've had the smallest padded mailer trigger this fee.
There's $1 fee if you don't call or schedule ahead and tell them ahead of time that you're coming in person to get your mail. If you don't or can't show up the day specified, it's….$1. They claim it's work for them for you to come get your mail.
There's $1 "handling fee" tacked on when they send your mail to you. And $1 fee to send a postcard if you have no mail and you've requested your mail be sent to you.
They're not huge fees, it's just their attitude, which comes across like you're a problem and 'work', and the principal involved I don't personally agree with. They've (the lady owner) has been somewhat condescending in communications with box-holders. "We just feel all our customers are big people now…" Read all their fine print and don't only go by their advertising/sales schtick. They've recently raised their rates by about $20 annually.
If you want a lesser plan that suits your needs, get it and don't be intimidated by high-pressure on their part. If you get a small amount of 'junk mail', most Priority Mail is sent in a flat-rate envelope or box and is comparable to having it sent first-class (weight-based) in some cases.
Be aware their 'campground' is amenity-light and charges high rates comparatively for the lack of such in the area. You don't have to stay in their campground to qualify for residency, an overnight receipt from any will do the trick.
They now also sell used vehicles and other stuff.
They will check on things, if you need something important and request that they look, within reasonable parameters, and let you know if it's there. I've not been charged for that.
Most of the front-desk staff are nice. They do send mail promptly when requested, you can do so online.
For commercial drivers, they do have a non-PMB address you can use for the physical portion of that driver's license application.
They've never bought me lunch when coming in person, as they advertise they'll do, but one of the gentlemen did allow me to dry-camp in the dirt portion of the lot once and I think they normally charge for that. You could maybe do that, and get a receipt. If you don't need that receipt, whistle down the road to Cabela's, or the Flying J is right next door.
They're the only game in town, as far as Rapid City, SD goes, so far as I know.
Also, in SD, you can renew your driver's license up to 6 months ahead of expiration. Once that's done, you can renew it by mail 5 years later when it expires again, then I believe you need to visit in person again. I've not used them for any vehicle registrations.
rm.w/aview
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Magicwolf said:
Escapees RV Club has a branch in Box Elder which is down the road from and uses Rapid City, Pennington County for its services. Even with the annual cost of membership added to the mail service cost, its less expensive than Americas Mailbox.
VanForNow said:
They are terrible! Nothing but problems. I had UPS Store mailboxes for years with no difficulties at all. I would stay away from Americas Mailbox, however. When I have some time I can provide all the details if you like. Bottom line: terrible service, unbelievable rigamarole just to pick up your mail, ridiculous fees for everything, and you can never get them on the phone. A bureaucracy worthy of an organization 10 times its size.
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