Answers to Recent, Timely Important Questions

Q – Are you open normal business hours?

A – The office is open to the members and to the public and answering phones M-F 9-5, and Saturday by appointment only. Sundays we are closed.

Q – What do I do first?

A – Your first step is to become a member of Americas Mailbox, Inc. by clicking HERE.

Q – How many names can I have on the account?

A – Anyone traveling together year round can share the same account. You may also include minor children, and anyone handicapped or deceased for whom you have power of attorney. Businesses can be included on any plan. You can never allow anyone else to use your address, even for a single piece of mail. We are not legally allowed to accept it and it must be returned to sender.

Q – What names must I list?

A – ALL first, middle and last names. ALL maiden names and adopted names. ALL nicknames that are not obvious (do not bother listing Bob for Robert). ALL pet names. ALL closed business names (on any plan). For our Titanium plan holders: ALL business names and ALL DBA names. ALL names that you might possibly ever receive mail in.

Q – When is the best time to join?

A – You can join at any time!

Q – Do I have to be in Florida to join?

A – You do not have to be in Florida to join Americas Mailbox Florida. It is very simple to join LONG-DISTANCE, through the U.S. Mail, FedEx, UPS, fax or email. Many folks send their documents electronically to receive their unique address.

Q – What are the methods of payment for joining?

A – You are always welcome to send in a personal check or money order, or even use cash if you sign up in person. Only if you use a credit or debit card will there be an additional fee. This convenience fee is what we are charged by the merchant processor, and it is passed on to you since otherwise we would be in effect subsidizing your postage fund.

Q – When I join, is my address changed automatically with the Post Office?

A – No, only YOU can change your address, by contacting your correspondents individually, or by filling out the paper post office change-of-address card following our supplied specific instructions (you CANNOT use the post office online system). It will take the post office about 2 weeks (possibly more) to put your address change into effect.
Here is sample of the Post Office paper COA.

Q – What is my Americas Mailbox address good for?

  •  Vehicle Insurance
  •  Packages of any size
  • Certified/Registered mail
  •  Refrigerated medications
  • You can use your Americas Mailbox address to receive all, some or none of your mail.

Q – What will my Americas Mailbox address look like?

A –Your PMB (Personal Mail Box) address will be:
Your Name
160 Cypress Point Parkway XXXXX
Palm Coast, FL 32164

Instead of the letters PMB, per USPS Regulations, you may use the # sign, as well as Apt, Ste, Unit, etc. If your unique number is not on every piece of mail or package, there is no way for you to receive it. Imagine you live in a large apartment complex with 20,000 other people. Would you really expect your mailman to know what apartment everyone lives in by name only? And what about Joseph Johnson and Jim Brown. We have multiple members with the same first AND last names. The U.S. postal service has the legal ability (and they occasionally exercise it) to return your mail to sender when improperly addressed, and we will never see it.

Q – Answers about your mailings – How often do you send my mail? How is it sent?

A –How many times do you want it? That is entirely up to you. You set up one shipment or a series of them for whenever, wherever, however you wish. We ship through the U.S. Postal Service, UPS and FedEx Air and Ground. Most shipments will have a tracking number that will be emailed to you when sent. USPS mail is usually not guaranteed, while FedEx Air shipments are guaranteed.

Q – On the day I have a shipment going out, is that day’s incoming mail or packages included?

A – No, your mail is packaged in the middle of the night before and is picked up before that day’s mail is sorted. It takes the entire workday to process the incoming mail and packages and your outgoing mail has already left the building.

For scanning accounts, your requests would be processed during that day, and the packaged mail will already have left.

Q – Can I pick up my mail in person?

A –Of course. Providing you have access to the Internet simply set up a customer pickup on your secure home page on our web site by midnight before the day you’re coming in, and it will be up front and waiting for you by 10 a.m..

Q – What if I am looking for something specific?

A – On our traditional plans, email and let us know what you’re specifically waiting for. We will check towards the end of the day when the mail has been put up and email you back. Of course on our scanning plans, you see the front of every envelope and package as it comes in.

Q – What types of things can you ship?

A –Anything as allowed by US law. Medications can be shipped anywhere in the world with the proper customs declarations. We can even ship unloaded firearms, but not ammunition.

Q – What are your business hours?

A – Monday-Friday 9-5 Mountain time. Saturday by appointment only. Sunday we are closed.

Q – How do I change my address with my current post office?

A – Follow the information supplied in your Welcome Kit:

Rather than fill in a USPS Change of Address Card, we very politely request that you simply contact the companies and people who send you mail individually. This gives you kind of a new start and you avoid some of the junk mail and a relief from the many junk mail lists you’ve found yourselves on. While you can use the USPS paper Change of Address card, we have found it is not the preferred method for your purposes. If you DO fill out a paper Change of Address card, you MUST write the letters PMB in the boxes on line 8a before you write in your unique 5-digit number.

Q – How do I set up a shipment?

A – Follow your Welcome instructions to log in to your secure home page at Americas.Mailbox.com. Step 1 is when, Step 2 is where, Step 3 is how. Make sure everything is correct and your shipment will go out as you scheduled it. If you are experiencing difficulties in changing an existing schedule, we recommend simply deleting everything in our systems, confirming the delete, and then starting over.

Q – How long does it take to get my mail?

A –You have many choices for the type of shipment. Fedex overnight will arrive the day after it is shipped, unless we are shipping on a Friday. Then it is up to you as a member to determine if Fedex Saturday delivery is available in your area, and to decide if you wish to incur the extra expense Saturday delivery entails. Remember that NO shipper counts the day of shipment—e.g. Fedex 2-day shipped on a Tuesday will arrive on Thursday afternoon. Only Fedex air shipments and USPS 2-day Express Mail are guaranteed. Fedex Ground and all other USPS shipments are NOT guaranteed, but will have tracking numbers in most cases.

Q – How do I know when my mail is sent?

A – You will get a tracking number for any type of Fedex shipment. USPS 2-day Express and Priority shipments also always have a tracking number. These are emailed to you automatically as part of your notification of shipment email. First Class mail does not qualify for a tracking number unless it is sent as a parcel. In order to meet postal requirements and have a tracking number for you on your first class mail (total weight less than 16 ounces) we add a sucker to the package which does NOT add any weight, but which creates a bulkier profile so that the package qualifies as a parcel and automatically receives a tracking number.

Q – What if I have NO mail when I have a shipment set up?

A – Please refer back to your Mail Service Agreement, which explains:

If you request a mailing and there is no mail in your box, you will receive postcard notification with normal handling fees applying. (We began this convenient additional service at the request of a large majority of our members.)
 

Q – What happens on holidays?

A – When you set up a shipment our systems will not allow you to choose a date that is a holiday, and will ask you what date you wish to defer the shipment to. Of course we cannot ship on postal holidays, but we also set up several other holidays depending upon what day of the week a major holiday falls on.

Q – Can I receive packages? Is there a size limit?

A – We accept all properly addressed packages, of any size, and separately log them in, store them, and retrieve them when you set up a shipment. There is a small additional charge for oversized package handling, as explained in your Mail Service Agreement.

Q – Can my level of service be upgraded or downgraded?

A –You may upgrade at any time throughout the year at a prorated amount. You may downgrade from Titanium Scanning to Gold or the Silver plan, or from Gold to Silver, on your membership anniversary. ONLY on the Titanium plans are you able to view each piece as it comes in

Q – Can fees be raised at any time?

A –While we have never in the past had to raise our rates unexpectedly, due to the unpredictability of federal, state and local taxes and fees, we must reserve the right to adjust our rates at any time due to extraordinary circumstances.

Q – What happens when I want to close my account?

A –The Mail Service Agreement that you sign when you join explains the closing procedures that must be followed. We require 90 days written notice before closure and refund of any remaining postage funds.

Q – How can I reach Americas Mailbox by email?

A – Send an email with your PMB number and last name in the subject line and ask whatever you wish. This is always the preferred method of reaching us. There is a written record of your request/comment and our staff will always respond in a timely manner. If you are looking for an important piece of mail, they will check for you at the end of the day when all the mail has been put up and reply to your email with the information you requested.

Q – How can I reach Americas Mailbox by phone?

A – If you cannot email for some reason through your smartphone, tablet or computer, then of course you are always welcome to call. Please immediately give your name and PMB number and then the reason for your call. In many cases, that staff member will be able to help you immediately, or transfer you to the correct department. You can reach us at 386-276-3486

Q – How does my automatic top-up/replenishment work?

A –This feature on your secure home page on the Americas Mailbox website is entirely within your control. It may be turned on or off (as well as automatic account renewal) and you may set the top-up amount to whatever you wish–$1, $500, anywhere in between.

You may add or delete credit/debit card information at any time. If you ever have any questions about these features simply contact our Accounts department at 386-276-3486. These funds are your money until we use them on your behalf, and they are safely tucked away in the bank (in non-interest bearing accounts as required by law).

Q – What is the order of doing things for vehicle registration?

A – You always start by filling out the correct vehicle checklist for the type of vehicle we will be handling. If you do not have the title in your possession, but it is held by a lienholder, you must immediately start the title request process to your lienholder. If you want our help at this point, we will also immediately need our power of attorney, signed and notarized, so that we may begin to help you with the title request process right away. This is a process which can take a month or more before we can give you an amount for your initial registration fee. If you have the original paper title in your possession, then it is a quicker process. All documents may be scanned and emailed to begin with, and you will follow up by sending in all required documents and checks per the specific instructions of our vehicle registration staff. All original paper titles/MSOs should be sent by private carrier.

Q – Can you ship UPS or FedEx for non-member customers?

A – We are a drop off for AMB of Florida members only. We are not a drop off for FedEx and UPS for non-members, or the general public.

Q – Can we use this address for registering our vehicles in the state of Florida?

A –No-we cannot use this address for registering our vehicle in the state of Florida.