(WSVN) - Her insurance company told her the check was in the mail, but the post office says they don’t have it. And now one South Florida homeowner says the mix-up is keeping her from repairing her home damaged by Irma. So who’s responsible for this “Delivery Trouble”? 7’s Lorena Estrada investigates.
Home is where your heart is — and between her dog, her parrot and her 80-year-old mother, Ale’s home is filled with a lot of heart.
But Hurricane Irma didn’t show much love for their home. Ale’s family was left with a lot of damage.
Ale Quintero, missing mail: “Giant trees in the front of the house, on top of the house, part of the soft fit of the roof came down. The avocado tree ended up in my neighbor’s pool, and the shed is gone.”
Ale’s insurance company approved $12,000 for repairs.
Things were looking up — until her mortgage company mailed her check. That was the last time the check was seen.
Ale Quintero: “Everything is fine and it’s stuck in … I don’t know where, in the post office.”
Tracking shows the check arrived at the Opa-locka distribution center on February 26.
The status says the check is “in transit,” but it’s been more than a month, and Ale still hasn’t received it.
Ale Quintero: “It’s serious. It’s stuff that we’ve got to get done, and I just feel hopeless, and you feel disrespected almost.”
The post office never responded to a complaint Ale filed in February, but after we started making calls, she received a letter saying they “conducted an extensive search” for Ale’s check but “the search was unsuccessful.”
Ale Quintero: “It’s your mail, and you’re supposed to depend on it.”
Ale says it’s not just about the one check going missing at this facility. Her local postal workers tell her they call the sorting facility a black hole because letters and packages disappear there all the time.
Ale Quintero: “The black hole is not a good place to be, especially if you’re waiting for an important document.”
Employees wouldn’t go on camera with us, but we found dozens of complaints online about the Opa-locka facility as far back as 2012.
Ale Quintero: “Somebody’s not doing their job, or something’s not operating correctly.”
A post office spokesperson sent us this statement: “The postal service values all of its customers and continues to assist this customer.”
Ale says she and other postal customers deserve to know what is happening to their mail. Her insurance company is issuing a new check. She hopes this time there won’t be any delivery trouble.
FOR MORE INFORMATION:
U.S. Postal Service help page
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