AIBU to stop dealing with former owners mail?

[mistydaytoday]

We bought our house 18 months ago. The former owner has a range of different business activities that used this address - different company names etc. I also get his ton of junk mail.

For a couple of months after he moved out he'd pitch up at the house randomly to collect a pile of mail. He won't give us a forwarding address although we've asked a few times. Instead he has asked us to send him a text message, and he'll pop by and collect it, commenting once, 'This works quite well'. (We had the bailiffs pitch once looking for him so we think there might be some reason why he's not giving us his new address!)

It doesn't work for me: I don't like the former owner constantly at my house, commenting on changes I've made to the place etc. I don't want to have a discussion about it either.

Thing is, a flurry even more mail is coming now, including mail from HMRC and companies house and other important looking envelopes.

I've recently given his mail back to the Postie who is very apologetic by the amount and has said the mail will be returned to the senders address on the envelope. DH has even contacted a couple of companies by phone and asked them to remove our address from this guy's record.

But I know the former owner is probably waiting for us to text him that mail is waiting for him at our house again. And that he expects to pop by and have a nosey and get his mail.

I've really had enough, but AIBU?

Also, if I am NBU, what do I do with the mail that doesn't have a return address on it?

When we had the 'heavies' turn up, I just showed them my passport to prove who I was and told them they were not to come to the address again.

But it is legal, as it's not illegal. Its one of those myths that people just seem to refuse to be told on. Similar to when the police tell the public they can't film them, which is rubbish. I sometimes wish schools taught pupils their rights, as I'm sick of telling my wet friends that yes, they fucking well can take photos in the play park if they want to!

I disagree that it's legal, so what? It's not a myth, there is a clear law, with a part open to interpretation by a judge. That has nothing to do with the myth about photography (which I agree with btw).

mistydaytoday Isn't that what the chain on the door and the peephole are for?

18 months is rather cheeky! Tell him any more mail you will be returning to sender.
He could of paid for a Royal Mail postal redirection, how tight is he.

What specifically do you think is illegal?

Everything is legal unless there is a specific law against it, of course.

The OP was being advised to open the letters in order to find out where they're coming from, so they can contact the sender and get them to stop sending letters. I think you agreed this would be legal?

Others stated that they routinely open such letters and you said it's illegal.

The law says it's only illegal if you intend to act to the detriment of the addressee.

If you open a letter with no intention to take any action at all, then you can't have acted to the detriment of the addressee.

Are you saying that opening a letter is in itself detrimental? But if that were the case then the law wouldn't distinguish between the opening of the letter and any detrimental act. It's not reasonable to classify the opening of the letter as detrimental based on the contents of the letter, because the contents of the letter are not known until after it's opened.

No, I think the law is pretty clear. If you don't act on the contents of the letter, or if you act in a way that is not detrimental to the addressee, no law has been broken. So it's legal.

And even if I agreed that it was illegal, what then? I keep the unopened mail?? or am I compelled to destroy it unread or what?? It's absolutely not my job to fix a mailing error.

And if there was a way in which it was detrimental to the previous occupant, surely he could avoid that potential detriment by simply changing the address to the correct one?

It's not a mailing error, it's a deliberate decision by the previous occupant not to update the address.

Stick a note on your letterbox...

'mail for mistydaytoday-family only'.

If you see your regular postie, a polite mention that Mr Piss-taker has gone away helps too.

People moving house should set up redirections, not expect the new owners to deal with it. I moved last year and I got mail for the old owners for about 2 weeks... a friendly chat with my new postie and a sign on the door with my surname sorted it and I've not had any more through the door for the old owners for months.

Return the letters in the post with 'not at this address since XXX' written on them.

If you get any more contact companies house and the HMRC because if they have him at your address it could affect any benefits you may claim and probably means he is doing something illegal.

You don't need to open mail to find a return address either btw... even if it's from anywhere abroad.
Write 'gone away' on the outside and stick it in the postbox, Royal Mail will open it in one of the big centres that deals with undeliverable/returned stuff and send it on to where it needs to go.

Yes, and you'll continue to get mail for years from banks, debt collection agencies and the like who just keep using the last known address. The most effective way to stop it, I've found, is to email them using the customer reference.

www.citizensadvice.org.uk/consumer/post/post/problems-with-post/problems-with-post-delivery/you-re-receiving-someone-else-s-mail/