Winston Peters meets US Secretary of State in Washington DC and negotiations over the Russia-Ukraine ceasefire continue. Video / NZ Herald, AFP
Carrol Makatea discovered her bowel cancer screening test results were delayed because they were posted in an overflowing postbox that had been closed for nine months.
NZ Post says the signs advertising the closure have been frequently removed and it is going to get rid of the box soon.
Makatea fears important mail could be lost or delayed, like hers was, potentially leading to tragic consequences.
Hastings residents are dropping mail into postboxes as normal, only to find out weeks later that the “overflowing” boxes have been closed for in some cases close to a year.
NZ Post says when it closes a post box, as it has six in Hastings or Havelock North in the past 12 months, it puts a sign on it to tell former users of them where to go instead.
In Hastings, vandals are ripping them down, NZ Post says, making the postboxes appear to still be in operation.
Carrol Makatea posted her bowel screening test in an NZ Post box, only to find out weeks later that it had been closed for nine months. Photo / Jack Riddell
But Carrol Makatea, who was caught out, says NZ Post has to either find more effective ways to inform people of the closures or be more proactive in removing the post boxes.
Makatea had just completed a free bowel screening test provided by Health NZ and decided to post her kit in an NZ Post box on Heretaunga St West on February 20.
“But when I put my mail in the letterbox it sort of fell out because the post box was so overloaded,” she said.
“I thought, that’s weird.
“So, when I put it back in there you could feel the mail at the top of the slot. I pushed it in there with the rest of the mail and just ignored it.”
A laminated sign taped to a closed NZ Post box on Southland Rd, Raureka. Photo / Chris Hyde
Two weeks passed and Makatea hadn’t had her results from Health NZ yet, which she considered strange, considering her brother-in-law got his within five days of posting it.
Makatea then had another look at the postbox and it was even more full than when she dropped her test off.
“I was shocked,” Makatea said.
“There were packages in there, and I was just worried about peoples' bills not being sent and them winding up with no lights on, or worse.”
The closed NZ Post letterbox that Carrol Makatea sent her bowel cancer screening test in that was "overflowing" with mail. Photo / Carrol Makatea
Makatea then contacted NZ Post, who told her that this postbox was one of several that had been closed in the Hastings and Havelock North area and were in the process of being removed.
The boxes are at 714 Heretaunga St West, Duart Rd, Te Mata Rd, Railway Rd, Southland Rd and Willowpark Rd and were closed due to low volumes of mail, following audits.
Makatea was also told that there should be signs on the boxes, informing senders that they need to post their mail elsewhere.
“But there was no sign, and the box was overflowing with mail,” Makatea said.
“How are people meant to know about these closures?”
The letterbox Carrol Makatea sent her bowel screen test in on Heretaunga St West. NZ Post say it is closed and a sign saying this has been ripped off multiple times by unknown parties. Photo / Jack Riddell
An NZ Post spokeswoman said the postbox Makatea had posted her test in has been closed for about nine months.
“The postbox did have a sign on it, but this has been ripped off multiple times by unknown parties,” the spokeswoman said.
“We regularly check this postbox to ensure no mail has found its way inside.
“We intend to have this postbox removed in the next month or two.”
Hawke’s Bay Today has seen a laminated sign stuck on one of the closed boxes with sticky tape.
Makatea says laminated signs taped to closed postboxes were always likely to be ripped down, or even fall off on their own, and mail would then continue to pile up.
“You would think they [NZ Post] would lock off the slot or make it really clear not to post mail there,” she said.
“Imagine if I sent that test off in one of those boxes and I had cancer but never found out because the test never arrived at the right place.”
Makatea is still awaiting the results of her bowel screening test.
Jack Riddell is a multimedia journalist with Hawke’s Bay Today and spent the last 15 years working in radio and media in Auckland, London, Berlin, and Napier. He reports on all stories relevant to residents of the region.
