You spent months planning the perfect vacation and the time has finally come. The bags are packed, the car is loaded, and the dog's in the kennel. At the last minute you remember you haven't asked the Post Office to hold your mail while you're away. The Postal Service now offers customers the option of requesting that their mail be held from 3 to 30 days quickly and easily online, at www.usps.com.
"When you go on vacation, the last thing you need is to be concerned about the safety of your mail while you're away -- our Hold Mail Service addresses this issue almost effortlessly," said Francia G. Smith, vice president and Consumer Advocate. "This service represents our continued commitment to increasing customer access -- making it easier and more convenient for customers to use the Postal Service when and where they need to."
Once online, customers click on "Receive Mail & Packages" from the blue bar on top of the page, then under "Delivery Services," click on "Put Your Mail on Hold" and enter your ZIP Code at the prompt. Customers are then requested to enter their address information and the dates they want their mail to be held. At the end of the process, customers are given a confirmation number to modify the request if they come back early or if they decide they want to stay on vacation a little bit longer.
The online service electronically notifies the local Post Office and all mail is held for the time specified and delivery is resumed on the requested date.
Nearly 650,000 customers have taken advantage of this convenient service since its 2003 launch, and an additional 700,000 customers have used the Postal Service's toll-free number, 1-800-ASK-USPS, to have their mail held. /
