Now, you not only have to worry about Porch Pirates, you also have to worry about Mailbox Mauraders!

Recently, Pam and I were watching TV when our mailbox monitor chimed at 9pm.  We had already gotten the mail and put two checks in the mailbox for pick up, so we knew it wasn’t the postal service. It was one of two scenarios; someone stole our outgoing mail or put something in our mailbox.

Upon investigation, we found that somebody had stolen our outgoing mail; a federal offense!

We knew that this was serious and much more than simply putting a stop on two checks.  With those checks, the villains had all our banking information and could use it for identity theft or to initiate AHC fraud.

I called the bank as soon as they opened (They don’t have a 24-hour fraud department, which we found odd.)  They put a stop payment on the 2 checks and recommended that we change our accounts ASAP.

We authorized the bank to close the old account immediately and begin the process to open a new account. Sounds relatively simple??? It’s not…

To open a new account, I had to visit a local branch with adequate information showing I actually was who I said I was. My banking officer said these types of thefts are common, so common that they have developed a streamlined process for getting their part done very quickly.

Step 1: was completed after multiple documents were created, endorsed, and filed with the bank.

Step 2: We’ve had this account for many years and, over time, we have set up ACH (Automated Clearing House, a type of electronic bank-to-bank payment) transfers for many of the recurring bills we need to pay every month. In many cases, it was as simple as logging into the vendors’ website and updating the checking account number.

Step 3: We had to contact our credit card and check processing vendors to update them with the new checking account number. Here’s where it gets a little more interesting. Each processing company had a different process for making this change. They first asked for a “voided check” to verify the banking information. Obviously, I was not able to present them with a check from an account that was just set up, and “starter checks” were not acceptable. So, next, I had to reach back out to my banking officer to get a specific form showing the new account information, on bank letterhead and with the bank officer’s signature and phone number.

Now, after providing the requested information along with multiple forms and affidavits, one would think things would move forward expediently so the movement of funds would continue without a hitch. Not quite – 3 of these processing houses also required a personal phone call to me to confirm that we actually did request the change and another round of verifications ensued.

Finally, after almost a full week later, I believe we have everything in order and finished. Even though I had to jump through hoops, I felt that these steps were very good security measures and helped keep criminals from taking similar steps to take over my account.

For a little background information, I was told that this is a common occurrence these days with mailbox thieves simply grabbing people’s mail overnight. Most people would naturally assume that their outgoing mail was picked up by the local carrier the following day and never be the wiser. This COULD lead to identity theft or ACH thefts from their checking account long before they were alerted to the problem. Fortunately, we have an audible mailbox alert telling us when the mailbox door is opened.

To make matters worse, the local post offices have also noted that some thieves have gotten their hands on the “special key” used to open the blue mailboxes that are strategically placed around our communities. You might not get notified that your checks were stolen until you hear from a company complaining that your account is overdue even though you know you mailed the check.

This type of theft has been happening around the country for the past few years. The thieves use chemicals to wash off handwriting and then sell the checks online. The criminal buyers change the amounts and the pay to information on the check and cash them. They can also use the information on the checks to make ACH withdrawals from the account or use the checking information, to pay THEIR bills online.

Here’s the post office statement concerning crimes like this:
“Every day, the U.S. Postal Service safely, securely, and efficiently delivers mail to more than 150 million addresses, including millions of checks, money orders, credit cards, and parcels. Unfortunately, such items are also attractive to thieves. The U.S. Postal Inspection Service can confirm a recent increase in mail theft complaints and robberies of USPS employees. This increase is likely attributable to a variety of factors, including the COVID-19 pandemic and its detrimental impact on people’s lives, mental health, and financial stability; growth in USPS parcel volume as eCommerce business continues to rise; and the mailing of Economic Impact Payments (EIP) and Unemployment Insurance payments during the pandemic. The Postal Inspection Service is engaged on multiple fronts with various partners to combat mail theft and prosecute mail thieves”

Lesson learned – never put checks in your mailbox to pay bills and it’s not safe to use the post office’s blue mailboxes stationed around your community. Either bring your outgoing payments directly to the post office or convert all your bills to be paid online.