Is “Set Up” Required for General Delivery?

[Damian Rolling]

Has anyone had to make advance arrangements with a post office before receiving General Delivery?

I just went to a post office to pick up General Delivery mail and was confused when the clerk asked if I had “set it up.” He found my mail, which had just arrived, and noted a question mark was on the envelope because it had not been “set up.” They were about to return it to sender. I explained that I was just passing through and this was a one time deal.

I have been getting General Delivery at post offices all over the U.S. without a problem. I always check the USPS website to be sure the post office I pick does handle general delivery. This is the first time I’ve been asked about “set up.”

Does anyone here know about this?


Damian

 

[rvwandering]

We haven't used General Delivery a lot, maybe ten times. We've never made advance arrangements just checked the website like you do to make sure they handle general delivery. Never heard about setting it up before hand. We've found that we get better service at small town post offices because they're not as busy. Sometimes in big cities they don't want to go search through the packages to find your mail.

 

[Vanholio]

I've had one post office ask me to call ahead and tell them it was coming so they'd know what to do with it. I think one told me something similar to the "set up." I think some post office staff just don't know what to do with it. Most of the time, I just pick up my mail, no questions asked (besides ID, of course.)

 

[TMG51]

I don't have experience with USPS, but I have a great deal of experience with retail and with people who deal with the public. From your story and from what I know of how general delivery works I am 98.63% certain that whomever used the phrase "set up" did so to hide his own incompetence because he didn't know what you were talking about.

 

[akrvbob]

Some post offices have a very negative attitude toward General Delivery, and simply want to hassle you. Others are great and make it a pleasant experience. The majority are just professional and polite and get the job done.
Bob

 

[cyndi]

USPS retired carrier and clerk

Some post offices will require you to fill out a form and limit the number of days you can use general delivery. for the most part these are small contract stations.

Your best bet to call and ask.

The powers that be, you know those guys in the ivory tower that make the rules but have never touched a piece of mail think that the less customer service they provide, the more money they're going to save. For all the business the post office has lost, they can't quite seem to understand the concept that customer service is an investment.

 

[MrNoodly]

The only time I've had a clerk do anything other than go in the back and retrieve my forwarded mail was at the Fortuna Hills branch in Yuma. The clerk had me fill out a form. I remember it included a question about WHY I wanted general delivery. "Because I'm traveling." After that, I switched to a different branch, where there was no such form to fill out.