Chicago woman frustrated after U.S. Postal Service fails to deliver her mail
CHICAGO (CBS) – During a busy time of the year for mail, a South Shore woman didn't get hers for over a week, until CBS 2 got involved.
She reached out to CBS 2, frustrated with the U.S. Postal Service for holding her mail with no real explanation. CBS 2's Sabrina Franza is always investigating and got to the bottom of it.
In her basement apartment, bundled up, Andrea Fulgham waited for another space heater to arrive in the mail. She had a perpetual "on its way" notification on her app.
"Delivery attempted. No access to deliver location," it read.
She's lived in her home for almost a year.
"This is different," she said.
Having a place of her own is a first.
"A year ago, I was homeless," she said.
Franza: "Now you're finally in a home and you want to be able to rely on the services that come with that."
Fulgham: "Yeah."
She relies on the mail for many of the items she needs.
"I have mobility issues and it's just much easier for me to order than go to a store and stand and walk around," Fulgham said.
She's also been waiting for a new driver's license. UPS, Fed Ex and DHL have all been delivering, but not the Postal Service.
"I started looking at my tracking for Amazon and they kept saying there's an issue with the door," she said.
Fulgham called CBS 2 after she said her landlord told her they gave the letter carrier a new key to the building, claiming it was previously lost, but still no mail.
"I went back up there about 3 o'clock and said, 'Has anything changed?'" Fulgham said. "They said, 'Oh no, no, no. There's still problems with the door.'"
CBS 2 reached out to the U.S. Postal Inspectors. They said the issue wasn't a lost key at all, but that a key had never been given. The Post Office wouldn't give Fulgham her mail in person.
"I did that twice, and they said, 'We don't do that anymore,'" she said. "It's very frustrating."
Moments after CBS 2 left the interview with Fulgham, she got a call to pick up her packages. She received her space heater to keep her family warm as she hosts Thanksgiving dinner, a first in her new home.