05) WILL YOUR MAIL BE SAFE IN A "SUPERBOX"?

 

By Kimball Cariou

 

            "There is no problem, and if there is a problem, we're fixing it, so don't worry."

 

            That's the argument from Canada Post and the federal Conservative government when it comes to security of the mail delivery system. But the reality is much different.

 

            Canada Post has announced a "restructuring" program to eliminate urban door-to-door mail delivery within the next five years. "Community superboxes" are coming to your neighbourhood, as they already have in rural and many suburban areas.

 

            The public relations campaign to sell this change relies heavily on distorted facts and outright lies. For example, Canada Post's $500,000 a year CEO Deepak Chopra claims that 66% of Canadians already get our mail at community mailboxes. But the actual figure is just 25%, while 33% get door‑to‑door, 25% by apartment lobby mail boxes, 12% general delivery and 5% at rural mail boxes (Thanks to PV reader Joyce Neufeld for those numbers from a 2012 Canada Post report!)

 

            There are also huge questions about the government's inflated numbers for economic losses at Canada Post. We'll return to that topic in a future issue. But for now, there are already serious concerns about the cost of leasing or buying tens of thousands of sites for community mailboxes in urban neighbourhoods where land values are sky-high.

 

            Let's look at a related question raising serious concerns in many parts of the country: the insecurity of the "community mailboxes."

 

            Canada Post and Tory politicians dismiss the epidemic of mailbox theft as trivial ("most of your mail doesn't get stolen"), or as a "British Columbia problem."

 

            Yes, that's right, other Canadians shouldn't worry, because mail thefts are more common in B.C. Those of us who live on the west coast are not reassured by this bland explanation, nor do we necessarily believe it to be true.

 

            Here are some facts. Documents obtained by CBC News through a freedom of information request show that in British Columbia alone,  Canada Post has recorded more than 4,800 incidents involving community mailboxes, ranging from vandalism and arson to mail theft. Those incidents took place in over 130 communities between 2008 and 2013.

 

            A quick Google search on this topic shows that the 4,800 number is almost certainly an understatement. Many community mailbox recipients tell local media and police that their boxes have been hit repeatedly by criminals using everything from crowbars to pick-up trucks. There are even reports that some thieves now appear to have keys, eliminating any need for brute strength.

 

            But even taking the 4,800 attacks as accurate, that represents nearly one out of every four community mailboxes in the province. A map on the CBC website shows the attacks clustered in areas such as the Fraser Valley and along every major highway.

 

            As nearly everyone points out, the relatively flimsy aluminum construction of these boxes makes them an easy target. But instead of replacing lightweight theft magnets with sturdier mailboxes, Canada Post claims to be expanding the use of so‑called "bait mail", hoping to catch the crooks in problem areas, such as Surrey.

 

            Canada Post spokeswoman Anik Losier told CBC that "The bait mail is intended to catch those who are doing criminal activities. We know that when they bring that mail with them, it enables our postal inspectors as well as police to catch them."

 

            Losier couldn't say how many bait‑mail operations have been run. A 2010 report from Surrey RCMP noted that a bait mail sting with Canada Post resulted in 39 arrests, but the problem has not gone away.

 

            One Surrey resident told the CBC that his community mailbox has been plagued by "non‑stop break‑ins" over the past decade, often in broad daylight.

 

            "The doors are left wide open - the two big panel doors - and obviously mail missing. Looks like mail fraud‑type people looking for phony IDs."

 

            A new super mailbox with a special anti-pry bar device was installed at that particular site recently, but the break-ins have continued.

 

            The mayor of Belcarra, a Vancouver suburb, says that thieves are using a screwdriver or crowbar to simply pry open individual mailboxes, attacking the vulnerable lock mechanism. There have been at least 375 reported incidents of mailbox tampering in Belcarra and surrounding municipalities in the past five years. Yet residents are rarely informed when their mail has been compromised, putting their personal information at risk.

 

            Despite these reports, Losier says community mailboxes are "very secure" and that the number of incidents is "still incredibly low." Her advice: "never leave mail overnight, because that's where generally most of these incidents occur."

 

            In other words, don't forget your hike to the superbox every day, and never go on vacation.

 

            The Canadian Union of Postal Workers says the theft problems will persist if the company insists on replacing home delivery with super mailboxes in all urban areas.

 

            Can readers share experiences from the rest of the country? Is it true that mailbox crooks prefer to stay west of the Rockies? Let us know!

 

(The above article is from the February 15-28, 2014, issue of People's Voice, Canada's leading socialist newspaper. Articles can be reprinted free if the source is credited. Subscription rates in Canada: $30/year, or $15 low income rate; for U.S. readers - $45 US per year; other overseas readers - $45 US or $50 CDN per year. Send to People's Voice, c/o PV Business Manager, 706 Clark Drive, Vancouver, BC, V5L 3J1.)