Prime example of CFery from previous home owner... Aibu?

[mummabubs]

Two years I've been on MN and this is both my first AIBU and my first CF post! So...

We bought our house 5 years ago. It was previously owned jointly by three male colleagues (let's call them Tom, Dick and Harry). To give a bit of background context there were lots of small niggles shortly after we exchanged- when we moved in it turned out the 3 guys had left a crap load of furniture/broken equipment in the house that they no longer wanted and the garden was littered with hundreds of cigarette ends (no exaggeration). The loft was even left full of their stuff. "Tom" hasn't been any bother to us to give him an iota of credit. For the first 2 years "Dick" caused us no end of trouble as we had weekly letters and calls from debt collection agencies threatening to send bailiffs as he owed a lot of people a lot of money and naturally hadn't left any forwarding addresses. Knew my rights re:bailiffs so wasn't worried but it was frankly a pain in the arse to deal with. Damn you Dick.

The AIBU relates to what I think is cheeky fuckery on Harry's part. Harry randomly turned up on our doorstep three months after we'd moved in to say he'd come to collect his stuff from the loft. My inclination was to tell him we'd got rid of it all to teach a valuable lesson but my DH instantly said "no worries" and went and got the stuff for him from the loft. (He's a good egg). In year two of living here we got a lot of clearly NHS mail for Harry from our local hospital marked Private and Urgent. I didn't open any of the mail but could see the department number from the envelope window so called the hospital just to let them know Harry doesn't live here anymore so they might need to call him instead. Problem solved.

Fast forward 3 years and tonight my DH and I got home from a long trip to find a note put through our door "Hi, it's Harry here. I used to own your house. I'm expecting an important appointment letter from my GP and they have my registered address as here so can you let me know when it arrives. My number is XXXX. Thanks, Harry". I sent a reply saying that I'd look out for it but it was probably wise to check as I'd told the hospital before he didn't live here so it might not be sent here. Also said it might be a good idea to update his GP surgery with his new address. Got a reply a few minutes later saying "no it'll definitely come to you. I haven't told them I've moved as I can get appointments really quickly in that surgery and you can let me know when letters arrive".

So- basically he's refusing to register with a surgery in his own area so he can keep using up appointments here... and also expects me to look out for his mail and act as his secretary. I'm sorry but what the actual fuck?! It's been 5 years, just change your sodding GP surgery!! I've a good mind to get the letter and then tell him it's here but also call the surgery that stamps the envelope to tell them he's not living here anymore. AIBU to do that? Or should I just message him to say I'll let him know this once but I'm not doing it again? Or is that fact I've just endured a 3 hour car trip with a screaming toddler meaning I'm being overly harsh?

For heaven's sake OP, stop worrying about being kind or unhelpful! He's been neither to you, so just stop it.

The surgery don't need YOU to find out his address. Just give them his phone number that he's been using to contact you, and they can get in touch with him. If you do it today, they can contact him sooner than if you wait for this letter, so if you're so worried about his health, ring them today.

The replies have been pretty unanimous to not do this. Do you think we're all unkind, and unhelpful people? Of course we're not. We just have sensible boundaries.

People are odd.
I moved to another house within a small village. A few days later I answered the door to cleaner who had been employed to clean our old house before the new owner moved in asking how the hot water worked. The new owner had told them to just come and knock on my door if they had any problems!

He's taking the piss. Don't let him have the letter. Take it to the surgery and tell them exactly what he's told you. If he doesn't like it, tough shit.

RTS is all very well, but when companies that you return mail to marked
NLATA, do nothing to their records the stuff keeps coming...
Students I’m looking at you...

"Harry, I'm afraid I'm not your PA. You'll need to let the surgery know you don't live here."

I open the post the old owners of our house get sent here, then burn it. No way am I going to all the effort of redirecting the post of lazy, cheeky fuckers!

Return to sender, block his number. I'd be tempted to let surgery know separately that he doesn't live there anymore.

Let him man up and deal with his own shit.

He may be preventing someone who lives in the actual catchment for the surgery from accessing local health care.
Return all post to sender marked "not known at this address".
He can call in to the surgery to collect his letter.

Wow - is Harry a bit dim? That's bonkers - especially after 5 years. I'd be telling him that it wasn't happening - just as *Waspnest" suggested. Return everything with a label (print yourself out a load!) saying "Return to sender, not at this address".

He might not be forced to move surgery even if he changes his address with them.

I'm still registered at the surgery at my old address. They know I've moved and have my new address. Originally when I moved 20 years ago now, the closest surgery was not taking new clients so I stayed where I was. My children born since then and Dh are also registered at the surgery about three miles away.
Never been a problem. I've never been asked to move.

Block him and return all mail to sender. Don't involve yourself anymore.

I really wouldn’t do this.

There’s no reason for him to have done this.

I would text back and say you’re not going to be able to pass things on so he needs to sort it with the surgery.

Send the GP letter back to the surgery clearly marked Not at this address since 2012

you’re not his secretary as you rightly say.

He might not be forced to move surgery even if he changes his address with them

Well as none of us know this exact surgery no one can say what their policy is. But I’m sure they’ll soon tell the cf when he registers his new address.

If he doesn’t need to that’s great - he can get his important mail sent to his own address. You know like everyone else does instead of treating a complete stranger like their PA

And just for the few people saying he's had 5 years to sort this out- as far as I can tell it's not that he's forgotten to change his details but that he's deliberately staying registered with our local GP as he knows he can easily get appointments so doesn't want to register anywhere else. 

We know alright. But if he's that keen to actually have a GP he could have moved back into the catchment within the last five years, found another surgery which met his current needs and been proactive when he needed an appointment or even used a private GP. None of these solutions involve asking the new inhabitants of the address you left five years ago to act as your personal sorting office.

to the pp who said he might ruin your credit history, no, he won't. Debt is tied to the person, not the address.
Try telling that to the credit agencies and bailiffs who do will come to that address and wont accept a simple "he doesn't live here".

Plus now the op is allowing it to happen on this occasion she has become complicit in the fraud.

www.citizensadvice.org.uk/consumer/post/stop-getting-junk-mail/

Try telling that to the credit agencies and bailiffs who do will come to that address and wont accept a simple "he doesn't live here".

But it won't affect OP's credit history! If she applied for a credit card, her history will be searched, and nobody else's debt from that address will show up.
Bailiffs turning up, is nothing to do with her credit history. They will be looking for Harry. Debt is tied to the person who took it out, not the address.

I'd just reply "sorry that arrangement isn't going to work for us, please let the surgery know you have moved", and then ignore any follow up messages or calls

This ^^
But I'd say, "sorry you cannot use our address,..."

In our area, GP surgeries are by catchment, with some overlap. Funding costs for treatments/investigations are related to his GP surgery. It's really not fair to use your address for his GP surgery 5 years later, instead of his legitimate address.
I understand patience for first few months but no way 5 years later.
I'd literally stop this now or there'll be constant reasons why he doesn't correct his address.

If he's midst urgent treatment his GP will arrange a handover to new surgery.

Appologies, tired, meant *referrals not treatments/ investigations

Why "sorry you can't use our address". What is there to be sorry about... he's been a chancer doing this and the OP shouldn't be apologising!

Roussette, I was just coming on to say that very thing! Do not apologise to Harry. Just text him and say 'do not use our address. You do not live here.' Return any letter to sender. His appointments etc are nothing to do with you. Our next door neighbours have had years of hassle from the former owners, because they left various things registered to that address, including car finance agreements (which were reneged upon) and even tax! They had bailiffs and sheriff's officers showing up all the time. I think it is sorted out now, but you do not want this situation with Harry to escalate. You don't know what kind of trouble you might find yourself in, OP.

*TheGrey1houndSpeaks

Start taking this seriously, op hmm. Some complete stranger is about to get a letter providing him with proof of (your!) address and you’re calmly allowing him to do it. Wake up*

^This.

Next time he contacts you, say everything had been RTS, you are not his PA and then block.

You would have to deal with his letters for the whole time you live at your house if you don't put your foot down now.