What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? MS
I moved into my apartment two weeks ago. I was given a set of keys, two of which were supposed to open my mailbox. The keys didn't work, and when I reported this to the landlord, he didn't believe me and said that unless the previous tenants were getting mail somewhere else, those keys had to work. So I tried them again, thinking maybe they needed some extra jiggling. No luck. I decided to try them in the other 8 mailboxes for my building. To my surprise, they worked for the mailbox for unit #2, but I'm in #7. Hmm...
I contacted my landlord with this new information, and still, he refused to believe me. He said he'd have to try the keys for himself. I brought him the keys, and a few days later, he contacted me. He said he tried the keys, and they didn't work. (Surprise!) However, he was now convinced that I still had keys in my possession I hadn't given him to try. By this time, I had been in my apartment for a week. There was time sensitive mail in my mailbox that I needed to get to, and I was unable to convince him that they gave me the wrong mailbox keys.
Today I was finished being nice. I told him I needed a key by the end of the day, "or we're going to have a big problem". He shot back an email which said he hired a locksmith to rip out the old locks for mailbox #7, and it was going to cost $125 to replace the lock. He concluded by saying, "That money will have to come from somewhere", which I guess was hinting that he would take it out of my security deposit.
After reading his email, I decided to take this matter to the post office. They were extremely nice, and said all I needed to do was bring a copy of my lease and ID, and they'd replace the locks for $10. Wish I had known that 2 weeks ago. I called the landlord back and told him I took care of it. He chewed me out, saying they had been addressing the issue, and still accusing me of lying about having keys.
My questions: 1) The mailboxes are federal property, right? Can the landlord legally hire a locksmith to change the locks? 2) I had to take care of this myself. Do I have the right to demand reimbursement? Granted, it's only $10, but they should have taken care of this, right?
Thanks in advance for the feedback.
I moved into my apartment two weeks ago. I was given a set of keys, two of which were supposed to open my mailbox. The keys didn't work, and when I reported this to the landlord, he didn't believe me and said that unless the previous tenants were getting mail somewhere else, those keys had to work. So I tried them again, thinking maybe they needed some extra jiggling. No luck. I decided to try them in the other 8 mailboxes for my building. To my surprise, they worked for the mailbox for unit #2, but I'm in #7. Hmm...
I contacted my landlord with this new information, and still, he refused to believe me. He said he'd have to try the keys for himself. I brought him the keys, and a few days later, he contacted me. He said he tried the keys, and they didn't work. (Surprise!) However, he was now convinced that I still had keys in my possession I hadn't given him to try. By this time, I had been in my apartment for a week. There was time sensitive mail in my mailbox that I needed to get to, and I was unable to convince him that they gave me the wrong mailbox keys.
Today I was finished being nice. I told him I needed a key by the end of the day, "or we're going to have a big problem". He shot back an email which said he hired a locksmith to rip out the old locks for mailbox #7, and it was going to cost $125 to replace the lock. He concluded by saying, "That money will have to come from somewhere", which I guess was hinting that he would take it out of my security deposit.
After reading his email, I decided to take this matter to the post office. They were extremely nice, and said all I needed to do was bring a copy of my lease and ID, and they'd replace the locks for $10. Wish I had known that 2 weeks ago. I called the landlord back and told him I took care of it. He chewed me out, saying they had been addressing the issue, and still accusing me of lying about having keys.
My questions: 1) The mailboxes are federal property, right? Can the landlord legally hire a locksmith to change the locks? 2) I had to take care of this myself. Do I have the right to demand reimbursement? Granted, it's only $10, but they should have taken care of this, right?
Thanks in advance for the feedback.