the mail must go through

Herodutus' words from almost 2,500 years ago may sound familiar: ""Neither snow, nor rain, nor heat, nor gloom of night, stays these couriers from the swift completion of their appointed rounds." And, our postal service has a proud tradition of carrying the mail. Perhaps the most amazing tales of mail delivery come from the time of the pony express. Even those folks must have made mistakes sometimes, and misdelivered the mail.

When a letter carrier brings mail to the wrong address, who is responsible? Some serious problems could result from letters and packages going to the wrong places. What should you do when you receive mail that is addressed wrong? What about mail that is delivered to the wrong address? An article called What Happens When The Mail Is Misdelivered? takes a look at those problems, and what to do when you get mail that you weren't supposed to receive. They also link to the US Postal Service's page on the potential liability of the USPS for misdeliveries, and a military justice case, U.S. v. Fox, which looks at laws concerning mail ending up in the wrong hands.

Sometimes, though, misdelivered mail can result in a happy ending.