Letter box

A letter box or private mailbox is a mailbox in the mail deliverer interject to deliver it so the recipient. They are used to the mailpieces deposit protected in the absence of the recipient and to the service performed quickly. Private mail boxes, for example, mounted in the hallway of apartment blocks, built into the façade or in the front door, mounted on the building façade or front of the house on a stand or be attached to the property line to a stake.

History

According to some information was in the 16th century in the churches of Florence wooden boxes, called tamburi, situated where the population was prevented from anonymous sources for the government to warn them against attacks and crimes. Later, these boxes should have been used by the postman to the post office, which were addressed to the clergy, to have thrown in there. These boxes are thus rather the ancestors of modern office boxes.

For German multi-family homes, a grant from the German Federal Post Office to the owner in the amount of $ 10 was paid to each mailbox in the 1950s, 1960s and 1970s, when were installed instead of the door mailboxes home mailboxes on the ground floor.

In single-family houses sometimes a flap is inserted directly into the front door. Sometimes the post office can fall to the ground inside simple without being caught by a vessel. Tenements were formerly often equipped with several individual mailboxes in the hallway. Today instead, so-called letter box systems are used, which combine several mailboxes in a single housing. In addition to the front door recessed By putting installations allow the ball from the outside and the removal from the inside.

Dimensions

In the European Union the minimum dimensions and other requirements for mailboxes in EN 13724 are regulated. The minimum size is based among other things on a test envelope in paper format C4. This has to fold easily and undamaged can be inserted without. The deposit slot must be at least 30 mm high and 230 mm wide. There are already a number of methods in which a reduction in rent due to non- compliance with the standard (minimum size ) was confirmed in court. Although landlords try to deny claims on a mailbox accordance with current standards, if the old mailbox was accepted at collection, courts found tenants but still a reduction in rent, because you do not first then look at renting an apartment, how big the mailbox is. A tenant accept a faulty mailbox as such not only by renting the apartment, there was in accordance with § 535, 536 BGB entitled to install a mailbox accordance with current standards.

Delivery and pickup in a mailbox

Germany

Unlike normal household letterboxes are the " office boxes in the country" (type EB100K ), called today by Deutsche Post AG " Country Mailbox", the mailer provided without charge if they live more than 100 meters from the public road network away. They are used in coped Landzustellbereichen when the receiver of mail is off the paved road in houses or yards, which can be reached by motor vehicle is not or only under severe conditions. The mailboxes are mounted mainly on the road to support posts, less on buildings, etc.. serve you

• The deliverer to insert the given to the holder of each letter box letters and parcels and
• The box owner to insert his outgoing shipments.

The emptying of the mailboxes and forwarding of consignments carried by the delivery at the next Zustellfahrt. For this reason, the locks of this type are equipped with major closures. They were originally pressed from mousy colored polyester resin and are provided for emptying with a lid ( letter box roof ) and equipped with a name tag and a deposit Gazette. The insert indicator can optionally be operated by the owner box and displays the deliverer that outgoing shipments are in the box. The letter drop slot located on the front.

The German Post AG offers three different models: " Ludwig red " is held, as well as " Knut " in green and "Sam" which, in the style of American sheet metal mailboxes.

In October 2008, the German Post AG tested the pickup from the private mail box for all customers. However, the " postman Service " was in contrast to the " letter box in the Country" with costs. It was charged a monthly fee of 4.99 €.

Since the fall of 2013 tested DHL package boxes that are like mail boxes at the customer assembled at the house. First test area is in Ingolstadt. This package boxes can also be used both for receiving the shipment as.

USA

In the United States it is customary to put his outgoing mail not in a public letter box but in your own private home mailbox. These moves the owner of the mailbox a kind of flag to the top, so that the delivery person knows that he finds there Take-away programs when he delivers the Daily Mail. This system is identical to the German post office boxes in the country.

In addition, there are also normal letter boxes.