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Hi everyone, my dad moved into a nursing home and I forwarded my dad's mail from his address in MA to my address in CA back on February 27, by going into a local post office and showing my POA documents. It has been weeks and not one piece of mail has shown up of his. One thing DID show up here in CA about two weeks after doing so, which was from USPS, something that asked me to go down to my local post office and confirm on my end the change of address, which I did, after showing the POA documents AGAIN, and the clerk scanned the document and said I should be all set. That was two weeks ago. I'm literally tearing my hair out because I have someone checking the mail that I don't entirely trust, there's just no one else to do it. Thoughts??? Experiences with this??

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I'm in the same boat. My Aunt who lived in FL passed. I'm having all mail forwarded to my home in MN. Went it in to USPS in FL March 7th. Did everything they asked at my end in MN. Not 1 piece of mail yet.

USPS is the first thing that DOGE should clean up. It's absolutely shameful that it hasn't been profitable or efficient even when it had a 100% monopoly on mail and package delivery. Disgusting.
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Reply to Geaton777
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Best to get a prescription for Xanax. The USPS is a sad, sad institution. I know people who work there and it is a rotten environment with no accountability that creates problems if you are lucky, otherwise they can create chaos.

Forwarded mail can legit take 1 month, that is when everything is operating as it should. I would only be truly concerned after the 1 month mark. We had our mail forwarded and a 3 week lag was a good time frame.

I just want to say, make sure your address shows as MAILING ADDRESS ONLY, otherwise it could be a mess for her insurance and benefits. You may have to provide her physical address and you want to be sure this is where her body resides and that the company doesn't default to physical address. BTDT and it could have been avoided by double checking this.
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Reply to Isthisrealyreal
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Call the postal manager at the address in MA. I have changed addresses when my mom moved and as an executor for another family member. The change was within a couple of days. Ìf dad has bills and official mail, you will have to contact those important places to change the addresses. I alt put c/ o. (my name) on the second line
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Reply to MACinCT
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Overwhelmedd Mar 24, 2025
I called USPS and sat on hold for an hour and was given a case number to see about what happened with my forwarding request. I'm supposed to hear back in 2-3 business days. We'll see.

I'm a little bit afraid to go in and one by one, change the addresses of each entity, where I live in CA and that's where I need his mail to go, but he is physically residing in MA. I'm not worried about things like his cellphone bill, but I've heard horror stories about trying to update things like Medicare/SS. I cannot afford to make any mistakes right now with so much going on. Also, new administration has made changes to SS and stuff so I don't really want to mess around with that too much (but I know eventually I have to, especially if I have to sell his home). I have an email out to the social worker at the nursing home he's at, hopefully she can help me out.

When you say care of, you mean you went in and changed your loved one's address on each entity to read "Sally Smith, c/o Judy Smith, 1 Anytown Rd., Anytown USA?"

I'm assuming with things like banks, even though I'm on my dad's bank accounts, I will have to go into a physical branch (I don't have any out here, it will have to wait until I'm next in MA) and present my POA documents to make the change? Even though I'm on the accounts?

Any other issues you had with making your loved one's address your address?

Thanks for your help, I'm desperate and I'm on my own 100% on all of this
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As POA it is likely better you now do a complete change of address here. That will help. I personally had ZERO problems with the postal service, unlike everyone else, but I would say nothing is working as efficiently as it once was. Good luck!
Do know, once you get all these entities to recognize your POA and send all bills to you they will be most happy to. Unfortunately it was, for me, about a year of struggle in which it was all quite anxiety provoking. Now that everything is outsourced it is ever so much more difficult.
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Reply to AlvaDeer
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I may get chewed for this, but where I live the USPS is deplorable and complaining about service goes nowhere. I forwarded my dad's mail a few years ago, within a much shorter distance than you are and it was extremely slow to happen. I well recall the frustration and am sorry you’re dealing with it.
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Reply to Daughterof1930
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