Does USPS Confirm Identities of these Agents?
Priority Mail® is our bestselling mail service. Domestic deliveries arrive in 1-3 business days3 depending on where your package starts and where it’s going.
Tracking and insurance are included, shipping boxes and envelopes are free, and with Priority Mail Flat Rate®, you don’t need to weigh shipments 70 lbs and under.
Does USPS Confirm Identities of these Agents?
One of the drawbacks of this process from the USPS is that they do not have the resources or the ability to confirm the identity of every individual that they count as agents able to accept packages for you.
Most of the time that’s not going to be a huge problem, as it’s not like the USPS mail carriers are going to be handing boxes from Amazon over to just anyone and everyone walking by your street – assuming that they are your neighbors and that they have a good relationship with you.
No, the overwhelming majority of the time that you find this message pop up in your tracking information it means that someone at your home (likely someone in your family) or someone at your office (likely a coworker) has received a package on your behalf.
Just know that the USPS does not (and cannot, really) take any extra steps whatsoever to confirm the identity of the individuals that they and these packages over too.
When it comes to USPS final delivery, it’s not like mail carriers are asking for any ID, asking for proof of a relationship, or otherwise looking for ways to confirm that the agent is a legitimate agent and fully eligible (and responsible enough) to accept your package for you.
That can be trouble, for obvious reasons!
Like we talked about a second ago, though, the USPS definitely trains their mail carriers to only ever hand packages over to authorized agents if they have a reason to expect that they are actual agents of the individual named on the mail or package directly.
The bulk of USPS mail carriers aren’t just going to be handing things over to anyone and everyone.
They will either deliver packages to you, drop them off at your home for your personal pickup, give them to people they feel are actual authorized agents on your behalf, or simply not complete the delivery process and instead leave a note for you to expect delivery attempts again the next day – or for you to come down to the post office and pick up the package yourself.
