Return To Sender

[Scarlett]

I had a letter returned to me today- the address was crossed out in biro, a big criss cross through it, plus a red stamp ‘RETURN TO SENDER’ and a date stamp. Does this mean that the person was no longer at that address? Return to sender was stamped by the post office rather than handwritten. I’m just trying to work out whether the sender returned it, or post office.

[bednobs]

it would be the person - how would the PO know?

[Tilly2]

How did the Post Office know that it was you that sent it?

[gingejbee]

My feeling is that the letter was "undeliverable" for some reason...perhaps the address no longer exists.

[bobbinwales]

Could be royal mail ( not PO) or addressee. Was it to person or buisness?

[cashier]

The person to whom it was addressed might be no longer there, and if someone else lives there now they could have arranged for it to be sent back.

[gingejbee]

...and, of course, it's nothing to do with the Post office. Royal Mail handles our postal system.

[Scarlett]

I put my address on the back.
What I mean is, if I get mail come to my address for someone who used to live here, I would hand write ‘return to sender’. But this was stamped officially.

[gingejbee]

^yes, quite. That's why i said that Royal mail couldn't deliver it.

[Maydup]

Its unusual to see it happen, but if the weather conditions were so bad that the item couldnt be delivered safely and x number of attempts were made it is returned to sender.

If the item needed a signature and the recipient was nit at home, they would be left a card. If they didnt ever go to collect it the item would be returned to sender.

If the house is boarded up, or the letterbox inaccessible the item would be returned, or if there's an entry system such as those found in a gated community or a block of flats, and nobody answered, the same would happen.

I'm not sure if any of these situations are relevant but they might help explain the type of circumstances that might have occured.

[Maydup]

Was your letter going to a private residence or a business address?

[Buenchico]

I'd guess that the person now at that address handed it back to the postie, telling him/her that the intended recipient no longer lives there. The postie then took it back to the sorting office and put it into the returns system. That would explain how it came to have an 'official' stamp on it but no handwritten return request from the person who received it.

[douglas9401]

Talk about drawing teeth.

[Scarlett]

Thanks for the ideas. It was going to a private residence. Yes, it was the ‘stamp’ that confused me!