we've all gotten that message you just want $1000 click here to claim and we know it's spam. But what if you got *** text from the United States Postal Service saying your package couldn't be delivered? Would you click on it? That's what this Gloucester woman did when her phone chimed and she saw the text from USPS. She clicked, I opened it up and it says we need your address. Normally I wouldn't but I put the address in when I did that it said there's *** $3 charge to re deliver and at that point yeah I knew there was *** problem. Th Evelyn says once the website asked for credit card information, she pumped the brakes. You just don't know what they can do with that information. We checked the real USPS site. They don't charge *** re delivery fee. Trevelyan has this advice to anyone else who may have received the same message. Don't open anything as soon as you see where it's suppose ingley coming from whether it's *** text email call the company directly and verify it. Um Don't even go as far as I did

Text scam circulating about USPS package redelivery fees

Updated: 9:46 PM EST Nov 7, 2022

We've all gotten that message, 'you just won $1000, click here to claim!' and we know it's spam. But what if it was a text from the United States Postal Service saying your package couldn't be delivered? Would you click on it?That's what a Virginia woman did. She saw the text from USPS. She clicked. But once the website asked for credit card information, she pumped the brakes. A quick check of the real USPS site revealed they don't charge a redelivery fee.If you are a victim of the scam, you can report it on the Better Business Bureau website.Watch the video above for the full story.

We've all gotten that message, 'you just won $1000, click here to claim!' and we know it's spam. But what if it was a text from the United States Postal Service saying your package couldn't be delivered? Would you click on it?

That's what a Virginia woman did.

She saw the text from USPS. She clicked. But once the website asked for credit card information, she pumped the brakes.

A quick check of the real USPS site revealed they don't charge a redelivery fee.

If you are a victim of the scam, you can report it on the Better Business Bureau website.

Watch the video above for the full story.

Friday evening, Milwaukee police said someone shot and killed a United States Postal Service carrier while he was delivering mail. The United States Postal Inspection Service identified the victim as Aundre Cross. Police said he was in his 40s.For over 18 years, Cross delivered the mail and smiles. "Aundre came to work every day with a smile on his face. If you was sad, he was going to make sure gonna get a smile. He's going to make you laugh every day," said Melissa Carter, a friend and coworker to Cross.Video shared with sister station WISN 12 News by Elaxex Trammel, a resident on his route, showed him laughing and smiling while delivering her mail just hours before he was killed. "If you had a bad morning, he could come in loud, joyful, change your whole mood. Forget what you were even upset about," said Cross' friend and coworker, Jyfena Brown, "He was a good person. Had three beautiful kids, a wife. Imagine how they feel, two weeks before Christmas."Surveillance video obtained by sister stationWISN 12 News captured the gunfire and a subject running to a car. The car appears to resemble the same car on the U.S. Postal Inspection Service's wanted poster. The wanted poster says the suspect vehicle is a silver Audi Q5 SUV with tinted windows."Being a carrier in Milwaukee is very scary now. And you are alone on the route. It's just literally you and the mail," Brown said.The U.S. Postal Inspection Service is offering a reward of up to $50,000 for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the suspect(s) involved in the homicide.Postal workers gathered Saturday evening, where Cross spent the last moments of his life, to mourn the loss of one of their own. "It's sad to see someone good like him. It just hurts because he didn't deserve this at all," Brown said.Milwaukee police ask anyone with information to contact them at 414-935-7272 or to remain anonymous, contact Crime Stoppers at 414-224-Tips or P3 Tips App.Watch the video above for the full story.

California and Texas ranked highest on the United States Postal Service’s annual list of states with the most dog bites against its employees, the USPS announced.Related video above: USPS rolling out new measures to crack down on mail theftThe report calls attention to the aggressive dog behavior mail carriers often face as the USPS kicks off National Dog Bite Awareness Week.In 2022, California had the highest number of dog bites with 675. Texas and New York were not far behind with 404 and 321 bites, respectively, the Postal Service reported.“When our mail carriers are bitten, it is usually a ‘good dog’ that had not previously behaved in a menacing way,” USPS Occupational Safety and Health Senior Director Linda DeCarlo said in a news release.Houston, Los Angeles and Dallas ranked highest among US cities with the most dog attacks against USPS workers last year, according to the USPS.More than 5,300 USPS employees were attacked by dogs during mail deliveries last year, according to the Postal Service. The annual public service awareness campaign, accompanied by the hashtag #dogbiteawareness, runs through next week. “When letter carriers deliver mail in our communities, dogs that are not secured or leashed can become a nemesis and unpredictable and attack,” Leeann Theriault, USPS employee safety and health awareness manager, said in the release. Keeping Postal Service workers safeThe USPS trains its mail carriers not to startle dogs, to avoid petting or feeding them and to place something between themselves and the animal – like their mail satchel – if a dog does attack, the postal said in a news release.Since most people know the general time their mail arrives each day, the USPS advised keeping dogs secure before Postal Service employees stop by.Other advice for dog owners, according to the USPS: Place pets on a leash, keep them in the house or behind a fence and make sure they’re away from the door.The Postal Service also advises parents to not allow children to take mail directly from mail carriers, as the dog may view it as a threat to the child’s safety.

A sweeping bill that would overhaul the U.S. Postal Service's finances and allow the agency to modernize its service is riding a wave of rare bipartisan support.After clearing the House 342-92 last week, the legislation is headed to the Senate, where Majority Leader Chuck Schumer has vowed to push for a vote this week.House Oversight and Reform Chair Carolyn Maloney, a New York Democrat who sponsored the legislation in the House, said in a statement that the "historic bipartisan vote brings us one step closer to finally putting the Postal Service on a sound financial footing so it can continue serving all Americans for years to come."But what exactly is in the bill, and how will it affect most Americans? Here's what you need to know:What's in the bill?The Postal Service Reform Act would require retired postal employees to enroll in Medicare when eligible, while dropping a previous mandate that forced the agency to cover its health care costs years in advance.Those two measures would save the USPS nearly $50 billion over the next decade, according to the House Oversight Committee.The legislation would also require the USPS to create an online dashboard with local and national delivery time data.Why are the USPS' finances so dire?Established in 1775 to promote the free exchange of ideas across the colonies, the Postal Service is among the country's oldest government institutions — yet it operates with few of the financial benefits of being a federal agency while still bearing many of the costs.Unlike other government agencies, the USPS generally does not receive taxpayer funding, and instead must rely on revenue from stamps and package deliveries to support itself.And unlike private courier services such as UPS and FedEx, the USPS does not get to set its own prices or excise unprofitable routes. Instead, Congress sets the postage rate and stipulates that the Postal Service delivers to all homes in America — including a remote community in the Grand Canyon, where the mail is delivered by mule.How has low funding hampered the USPS?Most recently, Postmaster General Louis DeJoy said that USPS' "dire financial condition" has inhibited the service from modernizing, including from replacing the vast majority of its aging vehicle fleet with electric trucks.DeJoy said last year that longer first-class mail delivery times and cuts to post office hours across the country are among the changes in his 10-year plan for the agency.Does the bill go far enough to address the USPS' challenges?While lawmakers from both parties have hailed the legislation as an important step for the USPS, Paul Steidler, a postal service expert at the Lexington Institute, told CNN it doesn't go nearly far enough."The bill is woefully insufficient because it does nothing to improve mail service. It takes the pressure off of the Postal Service to better understand and to reduce its costs. And it doesn't sufficiently empower the Postal Regulatory Commission, which right now is very small and has very tiny resources compared to the Postal Service."What does this bill mean for mail-in ballots in future elections?"This legislation is not going to affect that in any way, positively or negatively," Steidler told CNN.Millions of Americans voted by mail in 2020, despite then-President Donald Trump's constant attacks on the process. Comprehensive studies of billions of ballots cast over many years indicate that the rate of voter fraud is less than 0.0001%, and Americans are likely to continue voting by mail in future elections."They did a great job in the 2020 election in terms of getting things delivered on time. And so there's every reason to expect that that's going to continue this year in 2022," Steidler said, noting that election mail "is a very small fraction of the total amount of mail that the postal service handles." Why do we even need an efficient USPS?"Because almost all Americans still rely on it at different times for important business correspondence, legal correspondence, notices from government, including the IRS, Department of Motor Vehicles," Steidler said. "The U.S. Postal Service is the only organization that can deliver the mail.""Mail remains very important. It is especially important for those in rural communities, for the poor, for those who are disabled, and the numbers speak for themselves."

A LIFESAVING RESECU FROM THE COLD AND IT WAS CAUGHT ON CAMERA. STAC:EYN AAMAZING STORY. A MAIL CARRIER FOUND A WOMAN THAT HAD FALLEN ON THE SNOW AND ICE WHO COULD NOT GET BACK OUT. ANDREW MOLLENBECK SPOKE WITH THE MAN THAT CAME TO HER RESCUE. ANDREW: THIS WAS NOT EVEN HIS NORMAL ROUTE. HE FOUND THE WOMAN CAUGHT OUT IN THE COLD. THE WIND CHILL WAS ABOUT FIVE BELOW WHEN LINDA AND OUT TO GET THE MAIL WEESDNDAY. A SURVEILLANCE CAMERA MOUNTED ON THE GARAGE SHOWS THE MOMENT SHE SLIPPED AND FELL. AT WAS PAINFUL ENOUGH BUT THEN, SHE COULD NOT GET BACK OUT. >> I HAD MY RUBBER BOOTS, SNOW BOOTS, AND I COULD NOT GET THEM UNDERNEATH ME TO GET UP AGAIN. ANDREW: TEIM PASSED AND SO DID THE CARS ON INDIANOLA AVENUE. 19 MINUTES AND NO LPHE UNTIL CHRIS MEYER EVENTUALLY ARRIVED ON THE MAIL ROUTE. >> IT GOTOT THE POINT THAT I COULD NOT CRY, I WAS SO COLD. HETO SPPED AND PICKED ME UP. EVEN GETTING ME OMYN FEET, I WAS STILL WOBBLY FROM BEING COLD. ANDREW: THE VIDEO SHOWSIM H HELPING HER ALL THE WAY INTO THE HOUSE. NATURALLY HE EVEN BROUGHT IN THE MAIL THAT SHE DROPPED. >> IF IT WAS MY MOTHER OR MY GRANDMA, I WOULD WANT SOMEONE TO HELP HER OUT AND THERE WAS NO ONE THERE TO HELP HER. ANDREW: DRIVING THROUGH THE NEIGHBORHOODS HE SEES A LOT BUT THE EVENTS WEDNESDAY AFTERNOON STICK OUT TO HIM. >> I HAVE NEVER WITNESSED ANYTHING LIKE THAT BEFORE WHILE I WAS AT WORK. BUT I AM GLAD I WAS ABLE TO HELP HER OUT AND THAT SHE IS .OK ANDREW: WEN BOATWRIGHT ONLY FO UND OUT WHAT HAPPENED TO HIS MOTHER-IN-LAW AFTER HE SAW THE SURVEILLANCE VIDEO. >> A GOOD SAMARITAN STOPPED AND HELPED MY MOM AND SAVED HER LIFE. WE NEED MORE PEOPLE LIKE HIM. ANEW:DR THE FAMILY WOULD LIKE TO SEE CHRIS MEYER GET RECOGNITION BUT FOR NOW, JUST A LOT OF THANKFULNESS. >> THANK YOU, THANK YOU, YOU ARE A GOOD SAMARITAN. ANDR:EW SHE SAYS SHE HAS NO

WATCH: Mail carrier rescues woman who had fallen in sub-zero temperatures

The woman struggled for 19 minutes to try to get up before a mail carrier helped carry her into the house.

Updated: 11:20 AM EST Jan 8, 2022

The wind chill was 5 degrees below zero when Linda Houlton fell trying to get her mail, and for the next 19 minutes, she struggled to get back on her feet and out of the cold.Though the home sits along her busy street in Des Moines, Iowa, no one stopped to help until Chris Meyer pulled up in a mail truck. It was not his normal route. "We had a carrier that was gone that day, so I had a part of his route that I don't normally do," Meyer said.It turned out to be a serendipitous assignment. Security video from the home shows he lifted Houlton off the ground, carried her to the house and, on brand, retrieved the mail she had dropped in the fall. "If it was my mother or my grandma, I'd want someone to help her out, and there was no one there to help her," Meyer said. Houlton said she didn't know exactly how long she had been struggling alone until Meyer gave her the time. A timestamp on the security camera confirmed it was 19 minutes. "It got to a point, I couldn't cry," she said. "It was so cold that he stopped and picked me up, even to get me on my feet. And I was still wobbly from being cold."Despite the fall and time spent in the cold, Houlton has no lingering injuries. "I'm not going to go out and check mail in the wintertime anymore," she said with a chuckle. The family turns serious when recognizing Meyer's action. Wen Boatwright, Houlton's son-in-law, found out what happened by watching the security video. "Tears in the eyes. It was relief," he said. "A good Samaritan stopped and helped my mom. Saved her life. We need more people like him out there."The family hopes Meyer will get some kind of national recognition for the rescue. But until such a time, they're letting him know how they feel. "Thank you, thank you, thank you," Houlton said. "You're a very good Samaritan."

The wind chill was 5 degrees below zero when Linda Houlton fell trying to get her mail, and for the next 19 minutes, she struggled to get back on her feet and out of the cold.

Though the home sits along her busy street in Des Moines, Iowa, no one stopped to help until Chris Meyer pulled up in a mail truck. It was not his normal route.

"We had a carrier that was gone that day, so I had a part of his route that I don't normally do," Meyer said.

It turned out to be a serendipitous assignment.

Security video from the home shows he lifted Houlton off the ground, carried her to the house and, on brand, retrieved the mail she had dropped in the fall.

"If it was my mother or my grandma, I'd want someone to help her out, and there was no one there to help her," Meyer said.

Houlton said she didn't know exactly how long she had been struggling alone until Meyer gave her the time. A timestamp on the security camera confirmed it was 19 minutes.

"It got to a point, I couldn't cry," she said. "It was so cold that he stopped and picked me up, even to get me on my feet. And I was still wobbly from being cold."

Despite the fall and time spent in the cold, Houlton has no lingering injuries.

"I'm not going to go out and check mail in the wintertime anymore," she said with a chuckle.

The family turns serious when recognizing Meyer's action.

Wen Boatwright, Houlton's son-in-law, found out what happened by watching the security video.

"Tears in the eyes. It was relief," he said. "A good Samaritan stopped and helped my mom. Saved her life. We need more people like him out there."

The family hopes Meyer will get some kind of national recognition for the rescue. But until such a time, they're letting him know how they feel.

"Thank you, thank you, thank you," Houlton said. "You're a very good Samaritan."

The last holiday season was far from the most wonderful time of the year for the U.S. Postal Service: Sick and quarantined workers, a flood of packages from shoppers loathe to set foot in stores and a last-minute dump of packages from overwhelmed private shippers.Postal workers who recall packages and letters piled up in distribution hubs are better prepared this time as they gear up for another pandemic crunch. But low product inventories and port and supply chain disruptions are creating new uncertainty about getting gifts delivered.Already, workers are seeing a surge in holiday packages that began several weeks ago.“A lot of the workers are saying, ‘Oh no. Here we go again,’” said Scott Adams, local president of the American Postal Workers Union in Portland.The U.S. Postal Service and private shippers UPS and FedEx are bolstering their hiring — bringing in about 230,000 temporary workers — and taking other steps to ensure they don’t become overwhelmed by packages.Nearly 3.4 billion parcels are expected to crisscross the country this holiday season, representing an estimated increase of about 400 million compared to last year, said Satish Jindel, from Pennsylvania-based ShipMatrix, which analyzes shipping package data.When cards and letters are included, the U.S. Postal Service said it'll be delivering more than 12 billion items.“The pandemic is still here. The supply chain is a challenge that’s going to impact how people shop and how products move,” said Mark Dimondstein, president of the American Postal Workers Union, which represents more than 200,000 postal workers.Despite the precarious situation, the Postal Service, UPS and FedEx are in better shape to handle the peak volume, and several trends could work in their favor, Jindel said.More people are shopping in stores compared to last year, and people have been placing online orders earlier because they’re keenly aware of supply chain problems, Jindel said. Also, with workers returning to offices, there are fewer office supply shipments being made to homes, he said.Most importantly, the shippers are adapting after their rough-and-tumble experience last year, he said.U.S. Postmaster General Louis DeJoy, who faced withering criticism last year but reported on-time improvements and reduced operating losses this month, says the service is ready for the crunch.“We are ready, so send us your packages and your mail,” he said.A year ago, more than a third of Postal Service first-class mail was late by the time Christmas arrived.Tractor-trailers stuffed with mail were left idling outside some postal-sorting facilities. Packages and letters piled up in distribution hubs. Delays grew by days, and then weeks, in many instances.Two things were painfully obvious. More workers and more space were needed — and both are being addressed.To get a handle of the volume, the Postal Service is transitioning more than 30,000 non-career employees to the ranks of career employees by peak season, hiring 40,000 seasonal employees, and leasing extra space at more than 100 locations to ensure there’s room for parcels.The Postal Service installed more than 100 new package sorting machines as of early November, part of $40 billion of planned investment over 10 years. Also, more than 50 package systems capable of sorting large packages are expected to be deployed before December. Combined, these expand capacity by an additional 4.5 million packages per day, officials said.UPS, for its part, is hiring more than 100,000 seasonal employees across the country and continues to add aircraft and automation. It expects nearly 90% of its packages to flow through automated facilities by year’s end.FedEx, meanwhile, is in the process of boosting its nationwide workforce by 90,000 across its operating companies. Most of those new workers are expected to remain after the holidays, the company said.Despite all those extra workers, the shippers agree that this is not the year for shoppers to procrastinate.“Complete your holiday shopping as soon as possible,” said Jim Mayer, spokesperson for UPS.

The last holiday season was far from the most wonderful time of the year for the U.S. Postal Service: Sick and quarantined workers, a flood of packages from shoppers loathe to set foot in stores and a last-minute dump of packages from overwhelmed private shippers.

Postal workers who recall packages and letters piled up in distribution hubs are better prepared this time as they gear up for another pandemic crunch. But low product inventories and port and supply chain disruptions are creating new uncertainty about getting gifts delivered.

Already, workers are seeing a surge in holiday packages that began several weeks ago.

“A lot of the workers are saying, ‘Oh no. Here we go again,’” said Scott Adams, local president of the American Postal Workers Union in Portland.

The U.S. Postal Service and private shippers UPS and FedEx are bolstering their hiring — bringing in about 230,000 temporary workers — and taking other steps to ensure they don’t become overwhelmed by packages.

Nearly 3.4 billion parcels are expected to crisscross the country this holiday season, representing an estimated increase of about 400 million compared to last year, said Satish Jindel, from Pennsylvania-based ShipMatrix, which analyzes shipping package data.

When cards and letters are included, the U.S. Postal Service said it'll be delivering more than 12 billion items.

“The pandemic is still here. The supply chain is a challenge that’s going to impact how people shop and how products move,” said Mark Dimondstein, president of the American Postal Workers Union, which represents more than 200,000 postal workers.

Despite the precarious situation, the Postal Service, UPS and FedEx are in better shape to handle the peak volume, and several trends could work in their favor, Jindel said.

More people are shopping in stores compared to last year, and people have been placing online orders earlier because they’re keenly aware of supply chain problems, Jindel said. Also, with workers returning to offices, there are fewer office supply shipments being made to homes, he said.

Most importantly, the shippers are adapting after their rough-and-tumble experience last year, he said.

U.S. Postmaster General Louis DeJoy, who faced withering criticism last year but reported on-time improvements and reduced operating losses this month, says the service is ready for the crunch.

“We are ready, so send us your packages and your mail,” he said.

Charles Krupa

A year ago, more than a third of Postal Service first-class mail was late by the time Christmas arrived.

Tractor-trailers stuffed with mail were left idling outside some postal-sorting facilities. Packages and letters piled up in distribution hubs. Delays grew by days, and then weeks, in many instances.

Two things were painfully obvious. More workers and more space were needed — and both are being addressed.

To get a handle of the volume, the Postal Service is transitioning more than 30,000 non-career employees to the ranks of career employees by peak season, hiring 40,000 seasonal employees, and leasing extra space at more than 100 locations to ensure there’s room for parcels.

The Postal Service installed more than 100 new package sorting machines as of early November, part of $40 billion of planned investment over 10 years. Also, more than 50 package systems capable of sorting large packages are expected to be deployed before December. Combined, these expand capacity by an additional 4.5 million packages per day, officials said.

UPS, for its part, is hiring more than 100,000 seasonal employees across the country and continues to add aircraft and automation. It expects nearly 90% of its packages to flow through automated facilities by year’s end.

FedEx, meanwhile, is in the process of boosting its nationwide workforce by 90,000 across its operating companies. Most of those new workers are expected to remain after the holidays, the company said.

Despite all those extra workers, the shippers agree that this is not the year for shoppers to procrastinate.

“Complete your holiday shopping as soon as possible,” said Jim Mayer, spokesperson for UPS.