Plano Residents Concerned Over Overflowing USPS Mail Collection Boxes

PLANO, TX (CBSDFW.COM) “Check fraud is already becoming a rampant problem, and some believe Plano’s overflowing collection boxes aren’t helping to slow it down.

Larry Strauss had a deadline to get an IRS check in the mail.

A 76-year-old retiree threw it into a collection box at the US Postal Service office on Coit Road in Plano.

“When I sent the check to the IRS, I also sent a check to my son,” he said.

Soon Strauss began to receive warnings from his banks about possible fraud in his account. Both mailed checks were stolen and rewritten to other people for higher amounts, a process called flush and cash.

“I had to change all my user mail, my access codes and my username on my accounts because someone had that information,” Strauss said.

Strauss believes he was a victim because within a few months, two outdoor collection boxes in the branch were so full of mail that anyone could easily reach them and take whatever they wanted.

“I thought I jammed it enough that there were no problems,” he said.

Some of these photos were taken around the time that Strauss’ mail was stolen.

Other Plano residents complained about this, and a frustrated email client even put a sticker on one of the boxes that said, “We don’t actually pick up at 5, hence the overflowing box.”

In a statement to CBS 11 News, the Postal Service said:

“The local post office in Plano is aware of recent customer concerns regarding collection boxes and has taken immediate steps to ensure that outgoing mail is properly handled and all collection boxes are clean. As a reminder to any customer who is concerned about the security of their mail, please leave your outgoing items at our post office in a box in the lobby. We apologize for any inconvenience.”

This was more than an inconvenience to Strauss, who is concerned that much of his personal information has been compromised and he is still waiting for the bank to refund one of the fraudulent checks.

“Unfortunately, when I sent the letters, whoever had to empty that mailbox was one of those who didn’t care,” he said.

What’s going on here should also serve as a general warning about mailing checks. Recent data shows an alarming increase in check fraud and that about 1,300 stolen checks are put up for sale on the dark web every week in the US.

Today we noticed that the collection boxes at the West Plano branch are emptying within an hour of the scheduled time of 5:00 pm.

But that doesn’t matter to Strauss, who no longer trusts them.

“… Once again, if you need to pay a bill, don’t send a check through the post office,” Strauss said.