Mailbox pulled out

[rcaretti]

Until today, we had our mailbox placed across from our driveway. It's a very typical location for many people in our area. This hasn't been an issue until this afternoon.

My wife called me at work to tell me that our mailbox had been removed and placed in our yard. Basically someone dug it up and drove it 700 feet up our driveway and dropped it off. We live off of a lightly traveled dirt road.

I couldn't think of why someone would do it. One of my thoughts is that maybe the adjacent landowner did it. I suppose technically my mailbox is on their property? There is no house across from us (the property is undeveloped), and now I'll have to go and pull the plat to figure out who owns the property.

Has anyone ever read anything concerning mailbox placement? Normally, the post office prefers the mailbox be on the right side of the carriers route of travel. Is it considered OK to place the mailbox within a foot or so of the road, when it's someone elses property across from yours. My builder placed it there, and I didn't think much about, since that's what you see pretty much all over.

I'll be calling the post office tomorrow, as well as the county. For a second I thought maybe they had removed it, but it's Veteran's Day, and you would think you'd get a notice from the county if there was a problem.

 

[DocHeb]

Zoning in Michigan typically gives the road plus an easement for ditches and maiboxes and such. Our two lane dirt road is only 20 feet wide, but the total easement is 66 feet. Your mortgage survey would probably show the easement width. If not, the county office could answer your question.

If yours and others are pulled out - its kids.

If only yours is pulled out - its a neighbor problem.

Either way, I'd put it back in place, along with a note attached to the outside warning that destruction of mailboxes happens to be a USPS offense, and I think may even be a felony.

 

[dieselsmoke1]

The USPS on mailbox location:

2.7Location

Subject to state laws and regulations, a curbside mailbox must be placed to allow safe and convenient delivery by carriers without leaving their vehicles. The box must be on the right-hand side of the road in the direction of travel of the carriers on any new rural route or highway contract route, in all cases where traffic conditions are dangerous for the carriers to drive to the left to reach the box, or where their doing so would violate traffic laws and regulations.

 

[Hoosier_Daddy]

Call the COPS. Let them sort it out. You did nothing wrong.

Tom

 

[Docsknotinn]

The main rd easements on my propetrty are 66' wide. 33' to each land owner with the true property line in the middle of the rd. In many places the mail boxes are across the street Due to the mail person only going one way in rural areas, even a lot of subs are that way now with all the boxes on one side of the street. Dave

 

[MossRoad]

In our area, all the mailboxes use to be at the end of the driveway at all houses. This meant the carrier had to drive the entire route twice to get to all the houses. So, a long time ago on many of the routes, they moved all the mailboxes to the same side of the roads. That eliminated the double driving of the route. If you want a mailbox placed, you call the Post Office and ask them where it should go(fairly obvious if you have other mailboxes near you... just do like they did). At our property, which is on a state highway, the state told me exactly where our driveway had to be. Couldn't be anywhere else, period. Wouldn't you know it, the people that live across the street had their mailbox right in the middle of where I had to put my drive. I told them about the situation, that my hands were tied, and they still asked me to move my driveway, rather than relocating the box 10 feet to the west. I offered to move it for them, but they refused. So I cut in the driveway around their mailbox. Laid down gravel and had slag delivered, too. It looked pretty goofy with this mailbox planted right in the middle of my driveway. It stayed like that for about 2 years. Then one winter the snowplows knocked it down. He finally gave in and put it back up over to the side of the driveway.

Where we live now, our mailbox is at the end of our driveway, which runs down the side of our property. The people that live across the street from us had to put their mailbox in our front yard, directly across from their driveway. That is fine, except it also happens to be directly in line with our front door. He has a home business with a big sign on the front of his house and huge address numbers. He also has arrows on his mailbox pointing across the street, yet several times a week we would get people knocking on our door looking for him. Oh well, part of rural living. We all have a good laugh about it. /forums/images/graemlins/laugh.gif

 

[fivestring]

"Call the COPS. Let them sort it out. You did nothing wrong. "

NOT!

Nothing the Cops can do.
It is a US Postal Inspector's jurisdiction. Federal. And I do believe it is a felony to remove mail from or damage a mailbox.

 

[fivestring]

<font color="red">"He also has arrows on his mailbox pointing across the street, yet several times a week we would get people knocking on our door looking for him." </font>

Comes back to my saying:

<font color="blue">Stupid people shouldn't breed! </font>

 

[fishman]

Is it possible somebody accidentally knocked it down and came up your driveway looking for you? If you weren't home, they may have just dropped it off where it wouldn't be damaged further.

Just a thought and maybe the circumstance doesn't support this theory. /forums/images/graemlins/confused.gif

 

[rcaretti]

Thanks everyone for the information.

I called the Post office. They told me what others are saying, meaning the mailbox should be replaced to its previous location. I was hoping to move it onto my property and end this with the least effort, but I was told I can't do that.

They also told me not to bother to call the county, as I'll be referred back to the Post office. They had mentioned something about an easement exists for mailboxes and it is a felony to remove a mailbox or mail.

I'll be picking up one of those big stakes this evening to use in place of the cement that was anchoring the box. I can't rule out that the box was pushed over and some good samaritan dropped it off for me. Although the post doesn't have a scratch, so I have my doubts.