Commonly asked questions relating to our services will be placed here as they are received. If you have any questions, please contact us at 604-822-9495.
Mail Service Transition for Village Gate Homes Residents
Effective Monday, July 20th, 2015 there will be major changes relating to mail service for residents living in Hawthorn Place and Wesbrook Place neighbourhoods. The two primary changes are:
- Mail and parcel service will be provided directly by Canada Post, with no further involvement from UBC Campus Mailing Services staff.
- Existing postal codes will need to be changed to facilitate this transition for all residents.
Why is this change being made?
Historically, Village Gate Homes residents (aside from the new Nobel House) had their mail delivered by UBC Campus Mailing Services staff after it arrived at UBC’s mail room and was sorted. However, there were a few unavoidable disadvantages to this arrangement:
- There are some non-faculty/staff residents who live in these buildings. Those not affiliated with UBC should not be using or require the services of UBC Campus Mail staff. Since Canada Post directs mail to UBC based on postal code, these residents’ mail automatically gets sent to UBC’s mail room.
- Campus Mail requires one day to sort incoming parcels and letters before delivery to residents. So, there is a business day’s delay over the service levels provided direct by Canada Post.
- Campus Mail’s hours for parcel pickup are limited, where Canada Post locations can offer increased hours and some weekend pickup.
- Tracked items delivered direct to UBC are shown as delivered on Canada Post’s website before they are delivered or picked up by the recipient. There is a lack of visibility relating to where items are once they arrive at UBC.
- Campus Mail staff are not able to provide direct-to-door service for Express parcels, and all items regardless of urgency are sent a pickup notification card.
Moving service over to Canada Post, where it rightfully should be, will provide improvements to the above issues.
Why do I need to change my postal code?
We understand that changing postal codes for all known senders can be a large undertaking and will take time. We apologize for this requirement. But, since Canada Post automatically directs all existing V6T 1Z4 postal codes to UBC’s mail room, there is no way that the old postal codes can work with Canada Post providing direct delivery. New codes are required as a one-time change to facilitate sorting at Canada Post’s facilities.
What is the timeline for this change?
On Monday, May 11th, all residents were sent a letter from Canada Post indicating that a change was coming and that they would receive further updates regarding new postal codes.
In mid-June, all residents will receive a letter from Canada Post detailing their new postal code and instructions on when to start notifying those sending items that they should use a new postal code.
On July 15th, the master locks on your existing mailboxes will be removed. Please ensure all mail is removed from your mailboxes prior to this process starting to ensure the safety of your mail. The new locks will be installed July 17th, so please ensure your mailboxes are clear during these 3 days. Notices reminding residents of this will be posted near your mailboxes.
Before July 20th, anything addressed to either the old or new postal code will be delivered to Campus Mail for delivery to you like in the past. Starting July 20th, those items addressed to the new postal code will be delivered by Canada Post and those items addressed to the old postal code will go to UBC Campus Mail for delivery.
What happens if I don’t change my postal code?
There will be a 3-month grace period running from July 20th to October 17th, with a phased approach:
From July 20th to August 21st, any mail addressed to the old postal code will be delivered as normal by UBC Campus Mail. Please ensure any mail received in this period is looked at and senders informed of the change so future mail does not go to Campus Mail.
From August 22nd to September 18th, items with the old postal code will continue to be delivered by Campus Mail. But, any items with the old postal code will have a reminder to change postal codes written on them by Campus Mail staff.
From September 19th to October 17th, items with the old postal code will be held at Campus Mail and a notification card indicating mail is available for pickup will be sent to you. Residents will have to come to UBC’s mail room to retrieve anything, and will be reminded in person to ensure changes are made.
Starting October 18th, any mail received by UBC Campus Mail with the old postal code will be sent back to Canada Post for further mail processing and delivery. Please be advised that this will cause delays in mail and parcel reaching you. To avoid these delays, we urge you to inform all of your mailers of your new postal code starting on July 20th so that they have time to update their address records.
What happens if I am moving?
If you are moving before July 20th, please do not inform any of your senders to switch your postal code to the new one you receive. You can put in a mail redirect request (using the old postal code only) directly with UBC Campus Mail and we can redirect your mail appropriately for the same rates charged by Canada Post.
If you are moving after July 20th, and have already changed your postal codes to the new one provided, you will need to put in a request with Canada Post directly to have your mail redirected.
If your move date is very close to July 20th, you may wish to put in a change of address request with both Canada Post (new postal code) and UBC Campus Mail (old postal code).
UBC Campus Mailing Services and Canada Post apologize for the inconvenience during this transition. But, in the long-term, this will enable residents of Village Gate Homes to receive the same level of service that those external to UBC would normally receive.
UBC Campus Mailing Services staff would like to thank the residents of Village Gate Homes for being such excellent customers of ours over the years. It has been our pleasure serving you. If you have any questions about the transition, please contact us at 604-822-9495 and we’d be happy to assist you in any way we can.