Is a locking mailbox necessary or helpful, or more hassle than it's worth?

eye.surgeon · Post by **eye.surgeon** » Mon May 04, 2020 10:23 am

I've lived in the same house in a quiet suburban middle class neighborhood for 18 years and never had mail or a package stolen. Recently I've seen my neighbors replacing their traditional mailboxes with locking ones. I understand mail theft and associated identity theft is a real issue and a problem in many areas, however I also read that these locking mailboxes can be a minor pain in that they are harder to insert mail and don't allow small packages to be deposited which happens a lot for us. Bigger packages are brought to the door.

I'm wondering if a locking mailbox is really worth it. I realize mail theft can happen to anyone but I have an 18 year streak which seems to me to be statistically significant in suggesting there isn't a problem in my area. Experiences?

mervinj7 · Post by **mervinj7** » Mon May 04, 2020 10:28 am

eye.surgeon wrote: ↑Mon May 04, 2020 10:23 am I've lived in the same house in a quiet suburban middle class neighborhood for 18 years and never had mail or a package stolen. Recently I've seen my neighbors replacing their traditional mailboxes with locking ones. I understand mail theft and associated identity theft is a real issue and a problem in many areas, however I also read that these locking mailboxes can be a minor pain in that they are harder to insert mail and don't allow small packages to be deposited which happens a lot for us. Bigger packages are brought to the door.

I'm wondering if a locking mailbox is really worth it. I realize mail theft can happen to anyone but I have an 18 year streak which seems to me to be statistically significant in suggesting there isn't a problem in my area. Experiences?

Our neighbors got their mail stolen this week in our suburban neighborhood. Most likely, the thieves were looking for stimulus checks. We have a locking mailbox and we like it. Small packages can fit through the opening.

BroIceCream · Post by **BroIceCream** » Mon May 04, 2020 10:33 am

We've found the locking boxes helpful during short vacations/travels. No need to notify the post office to hold the mail, if you are gone for a short time (short = not long enough for the box to fill up)
Sometimes the outgoing slot can be too narrow for larger greeting cards. Our locking box has 2 large locking bins for incoming packages. If you get a package, the postman will put the key to the large box for me to retrieve my pkg.

runner3081 · Post by **runner3081** » Mon May 04, 2020 10:33 am

I would not go without one. Fortunately, we have the cluster boxes for our neighborhood that all lock.,=

Jake-R · Post by **Jake-R** » Mon May 04, 2020 10:44 am

My mailbox locks. But I live in an area with a cluster of mailboxes. Due to the way the mailboxes are arranged, it is easy for the delivery person to be "off-by-one" when putting the mail in the boxes and everyone gets their next door neighbor's mail. I frequently get my neighbor's mail and they get mine.

shell921 · Post by **shell921** » Mon May 04, 2020 10:46 am

I have had the Armadillo locking mailbox since 2009 and I love it. Small packages fit.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ib6eVciCTS8

https://www.jaycomailboxes.com/resident ... enclosures

Ruger · Post by **Ruger** » Mon May 04, 2020 10:50 am

I have one. The only issue with it was when someone stole the whole mail box instead of just the mail. Fortunately nothing of value was in it and it was replaced without further incident.

xb7 · Post by **xb7** » Mon May 04, 2020 10:59 am

18 years without an issue is impressive, but things can change, and thieves can easily drive into your neighborhood as well as any other, unless you're in a gated community. For travel or just in general it's comforting to know that if we miss a day or two or even a week (it's a big box) we'll be okay. And I do get small "packages" in the mailbox, and even before the locking box I got a lot of packages to the door anyway.

One thing perhaps in favor of your argument is that these days I get less mail in general and a lot less "important" mail. But it always seems like there's that occasional item still that is going to come by U.S. mail, or at least, that it's a PITA to try to get some other way. We talked our neighbors into getting locking boxes, got them to agree to a particular model, they all bought them and then I installed them. A bit of effort, not least the coordination, but everyone was happy with the result.

climber2020 · Post by **climber2020** » Mon May 04, 2020 11:14 am

Anything worth stealing, have it sent to the office. All my packages get received by our receptionist.

Based on your username, I assume you work in an office.

tibbitts · Post by **tibbitts** » Mon May 04, 2020 11:15 am

Jake-R wrote: ↑Mon May 04, 2020 10:44 am My mailbox locks. But I live in an area with a cluster of mailboxes. Due to the way the mailboxes are arranged, it is easy for the delivery person to be "off-by-one" when putting the mail in the boxes and everyone gets their next door neighbor's mail. I frequently get my neighbor's mail and they get mine.

Very true, I have to re-mail quite a few items every year.

tibbitts · Post by **tibbitts** » Mon May 04, 2020 11:18 am

eye.surgeon wrote: ↑Mon May 04, 2020 10:23 am I've lived in the same house in a quiet suburban middle class neighborhood for 18 years and never had mail or a package stolen. Recently I've seen my neighbors replacing their traditional mailboxes with locking ones. I understand mail theft and associated identity theft is a real issue and a problem in many areas, however I also read that these locking mailboxes can be a minor pain in that they are harder to insert mail and don't allow small packages to be deposited which happens a lot for us. Bigger packages are brought to the door.

I'm wondering if a locking mailbox is really worth it. I realize mail theft can happen to anyone but I have an 18 year streak which seems to me to be statistically significant in suggesting there isn't a problem in my area. Experiences?

You failed to explain where your mailbox is now and what options the postal service offers for your address.

sport · Post by **sport** » Mon May 04, 2020 11:21 am

I once added a locking compartment to a standard curb-side mailbox. It had a slot for envelopes. Larger items would be placed on top of the locked compartment. So, it only protected envelopes.

5th_Dimension · Post by **5th_Dimension** » Mon May 04, 2020 12:02 pm

My father had a locking mailbox. As it became harder for him to get around the mailbox really came in handy as he didn't need to go out and get his mail every day. When I would come visit sometimes there would be a weeks worth of mail in there safely locked away.

lazydavid · Post by **lazydavid** » Mon May 04, 2020 12:29 pm

This is really a question that only you can answer for yourself. Where I live, I would never even consider it. Like you, I've never (to my knowledge) had a piece of mail stolen, and there are numerous retirees on my quiet street (including one in my home). That's better than a neighborhood watch IMO.

But that's me, and my situation. There are absolutely situations other than mine where it would be warranted.

SRenaeP · Post by **SRenaeP** » Mon May 04, 2020 12:32 pm

The issues I've had with mail being stolen happened at the post office. I haven't had an instance of mail being stolen after it was delivered. Given that, I haven't bothered with a locking mailbox.

lthenderson · Post by **lthenderson** » Mon May 04, 2020 12:43 pm

I never knew there was such a thing as a locking mailbox outside of a large apartment complex or those clusters you sometimes see. Heck, about 50% of the mailboxes in our neighborhood don't even have doors on them. Another example of life being different out here in rural America. If I wasn't getting mail stolen, I wouldn't bother with a locking box. Seems like it would just make your life and possibly your mailperson's life more complicated.

sandramjet · Post by **sandramjet** » Mon May 04, 2020 12:55 pm

We were like you ... 20+ years with no problems. Until it happened ... and mail in our area started getting stolen. As luck would have it, we had a letter stolen from our mailbox that had one of our house keys in it (a friend had taken it home after house sitting for us, and mailed it back to us). So that cost us new locks all the way around. Decided to go for a locking mailbox now.

mak1277 · Post by **mak1277** » Mon May 04, 2020 12:58 pm

I once had my entire mailbox stolen, so investing in a locking mailbox seems pretty much a waste. If somebody wants your stuff badly enough they'll get it.

Edit to add: my wife and I probably only get our mail 2-3 days a week (due to laziness), so I have no idea if I've ever had mail stolen.

fareastwarriors · Post by **fareastwarriors** » Mon May 04, 2020 1:19 pm

shell921 wrote: ↑Mon May 04, 2020 10:46 am I have had the Armadillo locking mailbox since 2009 and I love it. Small packages fit.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ib6eVciCTS8

https://www.jaycomailboxes.com/resident ... enclosures

What I don't get is why are mailboxes so darn expensive.

seawolf21 · Post by **seawolf21** » Mon May 04, 2020 1:23 pm

Really depends on your neighborhood and what mail you still get.

Only thing I get these days in snail mail is junk mail.

CAsage · Post by **CAsage** » Mon May 04, 2020 1:25 pm

Possibly useful if a) it's not hard to break into, and b) both the mail slot and the box are big enough to hold enough mail/magazines. I took a different approach, installed a good sized mail slot into my garage wall, and put a big recycling bin right below. Precious little physical mail is actually worth getting IMO as everything is online or automatic. Now I check it twice a week, or whenever I'm expecting something. Practically nothing of any real value comes via USPS letter, and packages are the big porch pirate issue in my 'hood.

Mudpuppy · Post by **Mudpuppy** » Mon May 04, 2020 1:31 pm

Shortly after moving in, I replaced my mail box with a locking box. Small packages fit through the slot (e.g. thickness of a hardback book or a padded envelope), although my carrier always brings the small packages to the door anyways. There have been several times where the neighbors without a locking box have reported mail theft, but I've had my mail. Someone with small hands could probably still reach through the slot and get the mail, but that seems to be too much of a hassle for any thieves so far.

I did make sure to get a box that was approved by the postal service. It's also a model that's pretty common in the neighborhood. At least one house per block uses the same model. The only complaints I've had from the carrier was when the neighbors' kids blocked the box with their basketball hoop, and the neighbor's kids damaged the box with said basketballs and made it hard for the front cover to snap open. After the carrier and I both spoke to the neighbors, the basketball hoop was permanently moved to a less damaging location.

jlawrence01 · Post by **jlawrence01** » Mon May 04, 2020 1:57 pm

Two major disadvantages of the locking mailboxes as provided by USPS:

1) The slot used by the postman is often larger than the slot on the user's side. That means that they can place something like a CD in your mailbox that you will NOT be able to get out.

2) When we had a major snow storm, water would get into the lock making it nearly impossible to get your mail for DAYS. On more than one occasion, I had to take a pastry torch to the mailbox.

We received permission from the USPS to remove those mail boxes in favor of your standard rural mail delivery mailboxes.

LilyFleur · Post by **LilyFleur** » Mon May 04, 2020 2:09 pm

Never had a problem when living in a house in a middle-class neighborhood. A retired policeman on our street spent all day in his garage with the door open with a fairly clear line of sight to my mailbox.

Now I live in a gated condo development. About two years ago, someone broke into the locked mailroom and got into the locked mailboxes. I got a call from one of my neighbors who found one of my mail-order prescriptions in the trashcan. The police said there was a lot of mail theft in our city, both in regular mailboxes in single family homes and in more secure situations at that time. Our mail room was broken into twice. Our property management company re-keyed the mail room, and we haven't had any problems since.

oldfort · Post by **oldfort** » Mon May 04, 2020 2:13 pm

Probably more hassle than it's worth. What do you get in the mail, which would be worth stealing?

eye.surgeon · Post by **eye.surgeon** » Mon May 04, 2020 2:17 pm

oldfort wrote: ↑Mon May 04, 2020 2:13 pm Probably more hassle than it's worth. What do you get in the mail, which would be worth stealing?

Prescription meds. Occasional letters with Account numbers and other personal information. Small packages from online shopping.

Normchad · Post by **Normchad** » Mon May 04, 2020 2:19 pm

So here is something really cool, it's called "Informed delivery" and it's free from the post office.

https://informeddelivery.usps.com/box/p ... lsrc=aw.ds

They will send you an email every single day, with an image of every piece of mail they will deliver to you that day. It won't stop people from stealing your mail, but if they do, you will know what they stole.

iamlucky13 · Post by **iamlucky13** » Mon May 04, 2020 2:20 pm

It's a deterrent, but only a moderately effective one.

Ours is at the end of our driveway, with poor visibility from the house. It's a definite target and easy to pry open, which has happened once.

Small hands can also fit in, which appears to have also happened once - a neighbor found a pile of mail dumped several blocks away, but our mailbox was still locked. Our election ballots should have come that day, but were not in the pile of mail that was found, so we contacted the auditor to cancel the existing ballots and send new ones.

We responded by being more diligent about checking the mailbox each day, and signing up for USPS informed delivery.

Most locking boxes that I see are a little more difficult to get a prybar into than ours, but not radically better. I'm keeping an eye out for a locking design I can't figure out how to force open in a few seconds, and that isn't hundreds of dollars.

oldfort · Post by **oldfort** » Mon May 04, 2020 2:33 pm

eye.surgeon wrote: ↑Mon May 04, 2020 2:17 pm
oldfort wrote: ↑Mon May 04, 2020 2:13 pm Probably more hassle than it's worth. What do you get in the mail, which would be worth stealing?
Prescription meds. Occasional letters with Account numbers and other personal information. Small packages from online shopping.

You might think about how much these small packages are worth? If a $100 package from Amazon was stolen once every five years, would it make any meaningful difference to your life. I wouldn't worry too much about account numbers being stolen. Identity theft is typically enabled through large data breaches, not physically breaking into individual mailboxes.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2014_JPMo ... ata_breach
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Office_of ... ata_breach

GerryL · Post by **GerryL** » Mon May 04, 2020 2:52 pm

Jake-R wrote: ↑Mon May 04, 2020 10:44 am My mailbox locks. But I live in an area with a cluster of mailboxes. Due to the way the mailboxes are arranged, it is easy for the delivery person to be "off-by-one" when putting the mail in the boxes and everyone gets their next door neighbor's mail. I frequently get my neighbor's mail and they get mine.

I too have had a locked cluster box for the past 30 years. If I didn't, I'd probably go with a locked box.
As far as mis-delivery, I do occasionally get pieces that are supposed to go to neighbors sharing the same cluster, but just as often I get pieces that are for people who are not even in the neighborhood.

Shackleton · Post by **Shackleton** » Mon May 04, 2020 4:22 pm

lthenderson wrote: ↑Mon May 04, 2020 12:43 pm I never knew there was such a thing as a locking mailbox outside of a large apartment complex or those clusters you sometimes see. Heck, about 50% of the mailboxes in our neighborhood don't even have doors on them. Another example of life being different out here in rural America. If I wasn't getting mail stolen, I wouldn't bother with a locking box. Seems like it would just make your life and possibly your mailperson's life more complicated.

I’m so rural, we don’t even have home mail delivery! So I have to have a PO Box.

Back when I lived in town, I really liked the clustered locking boxes. But I didn’t trust people much back then.

MarkBarb · Post by **MarkBarb** » Mon May 04, 2020 4:27 pm

I strongly recommend signing up for Informed Delivery. It tells you what the postal service plans to put in your mailbox that day. I only check my mail about once every week or two, so it is important to know when something important is in there.

GerryL · Post by **GerryL** » Mon May 04, 2020 4:38 pm

MarkBarb wrote: ↑Mon May 04, 2020 4:27 pm I strongly recommend signing up for Informed Delivery. It tells you what the postal service plans to put in your mailbox that day. I only check my mail about once every week or two, so it is important to know when something important is in there.

I just recently signed up for Informed Delivery. It has been handy on rainy days when I don't need to out to the corner just to pick up political flyers and asks for donations. But the very first day on the service I awoke to find a message that I had a letter coming from an old friend in another state. Someone I had not seen in 30 years and only exchange letters with at the end of the year. Great. But wait. Why is he writing now? Has something happened in his family as a result of the coronavirus? Oh, dear. So I worried (needlessly) for several hours until the mail was actually delivered.

Jake-R · Post by **Jake-R** » Mon May 04, 2020 5:12 pm

Normchad wrote: ↑Mon May 04, 2020 2:19 pm So here is something really cool, it's called "Informed delivery" and it's free from the post office.

https://informeddelivery.usps.com/box/p ... lsrc=aw.ds

They will send you an email every single day, with an image of every piece of mail they will deliver to you that day. It won't stop people from stealing your mail, but if they do, you will know what they stole.

This is an absolutely fantastic service the USPS offers.

MarkBarb · Post by **MarkBarb** » Mon May 04, 2020 5:31 pm

GerryL wrote: ↑Mon May 04, 2020 4:38 pm
MarkBarb wrote: ↑Mon May 04, 2020 4:27 pm I strongly recommend signing up for Informed Delivery. It tells you what the postal service plans to put in your mailbox that day. I only check my mail about once every week or two, so it is important to know when something important is in there.
I just recently signed up for Informed Delivery. It has been handy on rainy days when I don't need to out to the corner just to pick up political flyers and asks for donations. But the very first day on the service I awoke to find a message that I had a letter coming from an old friend in another state. Someone I had not seen in 30 years and only exchange letters with at the end of the year. Great. But wait. Why is he writing now? Has something happened in his family as a result of the coronavirus? Oh, dear. So I worried (needlessly) for several hours until the mail was actually delivered.

Wait until you get an unexpected letter from the IRS. That was a long wait for the mail.

Our local version has been spotty. It stopped working for months after the post office flooded. It has slowly gotten better, but there are still days when it doesn't work.

One interesting thing about it is that it has helped me see that a noticeable amount of my mail never shows up. I'm guessing that it is something on the order of 1-2% of stuff that they say I'll get that I never do get. I'm not sure what happens to it. Does the mail carrier take it? Does it go to a neighbor that doesn't pass it along? It has taught me not to rely on the mail more than I have to.

BobTexas · Post by **BobTexas** » Mon May 04, 2020 5:46 pm

Jake-R wrote: ↑Mon May 04, 2020 5:12 pm
Normchad wrote: ↑Mon May 04, 2020 2:19 pm So here is something really cool, it's called "Informed delivery" and it's free from the post office.

https://informeddelivery.usps.com/box/p ... lsrc=aw.ds

They will send you an email every single day, with an image of every piece of mail they will deliver to you that day. It won't stop people from stealing your mail, but if they do, you will know what they stole.
This is an absolutely fantastic service the USPS offers.

+1 on a great service. Sometimes it will say something is coming that shows up a day later, but it’s still great

Also, you can go online at usps.com and set up a mail hold for when you are on vacation. Once you set up your account it’s easy and just takes a min. You can tell Them when you will be back and they will deliver it

Given how little mail I get that really matters, it isn’t worth a locking mailbox to me.

boomer_techie · Post by **boomer_techie** » Mon May 04, 2020 10:38 pm

eye.surgeon wrote: ↑Mon May 04, 2020 10:23 am I understand mail theft and associated identity theft is a real issue and a problem in many areas, however I also read that these locking mailboxes can be a minor pain in that they are harder to insert mail and don't allow small packages to be deposited which happens a lot for us. Bigger packages are brought to the door.

I installed a Fort Knox Locking Mailbox which is made of 1/4 inch thick steel. The opening is 11 1/2 inches wide - so it fits any Priority Mail envelope. The mail carrier loves it because it is possible to insert mail without fully stopping the mail "jeep". If you are thinking of buying one, they are heavy and expensive.

I'm wondering if a locking mailbox is really worth it. I realize mail theft can happen to anyone but I have an 18 year streak which seems to me to be statistically significant in suggesting there isn't a problem in my area. Experiences?

Every now and then in my area a pile of mail is found on the ground. Thieves apparently raid several boxes, then sort the take as they drive off, and finally throw the rejects out the window.

The locking box has given me piece of mind. It also allows me to skip daily trips to fetch the mail when the USPS's email doesn't show anything urgent arriving. I can also go on short trips without stopping mail delivery.

SRenaeP · Post by **SRenaeP** » Tue May 05, 2020 7:25 am

Normchad wrote: ↑Mon May 04, 2020 2:19 pm So here is something really cool, it's called "Informed delivery" and it's free from the post office.

https://informeddelivery.usps.com/box/p ... lsrc=aw.ds

They will send you an email every single day, with an image of every piece of mail they will deliver to you that day. It won't stop people from stealing your mail, but if they do, you will know what they stole.

+1

That's how I determined my mail theft was occurring at the post office and an investigation was launched. I never got any information about the outcome but the thefts have stopped.

Summit111 · Post by **Summit111** » Tue May 05, 2020 7:33 am

We live in a rural area and replaced our roadside mailbox with a locking one. No inconvenience at all as we don’t have to check for mail every day. It’s bolted down to an imbedded post per USPS guidelines. The opening is large enough for most regular mail but cannot be accessed by reaching in. Amazon packages via mail delivery that are too large to fit in the slot are placed on our porch.

Let the mail thieves steal from the numerous unlocked boxes....

Summit

quantAndHold · Post by **quantAndHold** » Tue May 05, 2020 9:28 am

It’s been awhile since I got any mail that I would have cared about enough to buy a locking mailbox. Everything important is electronic now. Except the packages, which don’t fit in the mailbox anyway.

mouses · Post by **mouses** » Tue May 05, 2020 9:39 am

With Informed Delivery, I know when something important is arriving. I maybe go get my mail from the box once or twice a week. I can't imagine having a locked mailbox. The only mailbox problems we have here are snow plows taking them out.

UPS, however, is another problem. It seems like they leave packages at any random house in the block. That's far more of a nuisance than if someone ripped off a letter. The packages always make it home, but it's a darned nuisance for everyone.

telemark · Post by **telemark** » Thu May 07, 2020 1:07 pm

Jake-R wrote: ↑Mon May 04, 2020 10:44 am My mailbox locks. But I live in an area with a cluster of mailboxes. Due to the way the mailboxes are arranged, it is easy for the delivery person to be "off-by-one" when putting the mail in the boxes and everyone gets their next door neighbor's mail. I frequently get my neighbor's mail and they get mine.

I have a label inside my box, on the bottom near the front where it's easy to see, with my box number and last name. Very few misdeliveries, except the occasional post card falling through in the back from the box above mine.

Church Lady · Post by **Church Lady** » Thu May 07, 2020 2:50 pm

When I lived in the big city, I had a P.O. box. Prescriptions would stay chilled in A/C or heated in Winter instead of braving the elements in my box. The P.O. holds packages safely for you. I could leave town for a week, and it was no big deal. The P.O. is required by law to hold your mail for 30 days, so you are OK with any shorter trip. I and others would sort our junk mail out and dispose of it right in the P.O.

For what you get, I think P.O. boxes are a good deal. If I felt the need for a locking mailbox, I'd just get another P.O. box, or maybe a mail drop service if I wanted a street address.

I still got mail at my home. You' can try to eliminate junk mail, but some will slip through.

Church Lady · Post by **Church Lady** » Thu May 07, 2020 3:49 pm

Church Lady wrote: ↑Thu May 07, 2020 2:50 pm When I lived in the big city, I had a P.O. box. Prescriptions would stay chilled in A/C or heated in Winter instead of braving the elements in my box. The P.O. holds packages safely for you. I could leave town for a week, and it was no big deal. The P.O. is required by law to hold your mail for 30 days, so you are OK with any shorter trip. I and others would sort our junk mail out and dispose of it right in the P.O.

For what you get, I think P.O. boxes are a good deal. If I felt the need for a locking mailbox, I'd just get another P.O. box, or maybe a mail drop service if I wanted a street address.

I still got mail at my home. You can try to eliminate junk mail, but some will slip through.