A rise in vandalism has prompted Canada Post to put mailboxes out of service or relocate them, prompting concern among some residents and business owners.
Mailboxes in East York have been subjected to minor incidents of vandalism like spray painting, to major incidents like being kicked over, broken into or damaged. As a result, Canada Post has covered many of them with shrink wrap and caution tape, and they are no longer in use.
“We experienced a rapid, and unprecedented increase in vandalism to our street letter boxes in Toronto from December 2022 to February 2023,” spokesperson Lisa Liu said in an email.
Canada Post has put their security and investigations team to work collectively with local law enforcement to “look into these incidents and better serve our customers,” Liu said.
Toronto resident Jeff Earl said he visits the post office directly to send out his mail rather than putting his letters in the mailboxes outside.
“It is a concern of mine. I very rarely use the mailboxes now. I go into the store and purchase my stamps and [mail] them right inside,” he said in an interview.
“These things get broken into a fair bit.”
Canada Post is ensuring customers that they remain focused on any repairs to keep them in service.
The owner of the Kingston Road Flower Market recently noticed a mailbox outside of her store that’s been covered in shrink wrap and caution tape, along with a notice of relocation.
“I did not hear anything except that they were closing the Henley Garden pharmacy location and that the boxes had been vandalized in the area,” she said.
“Our local mail carrier didn’t even know about the taping till I asked him and he said he was going to ask his supervisor,” said the flower market owner, who asked not to be identified.
Canada Post did not make any formal announcements about the mailbox issue.
In her email, Liu said Canada Post apologized for any inconvenience and said the Crown corporation hopes restoration will begin “shortly.”
When asked about possible reports on reasonings behind the surge of vandalism, Canada Post didn’t provide any further details.
Canada Post is simply encouraging customers to directly deposit their mail at a nearby post office when possible.
If customers would like to contact the customer service team with questions about postal services, visit canadapost.ca/support or dial 1-866-607-6301.