Newly built eldery care home using my adress

dartel

A care home for eldery people has being constructed across the road from us and we have been getting their mail. Their website also has our adress and postcode as ours. We have contacted them but they seem to be dragging their feet about doing anything, despite the fact we have been receiving mail for multiple residents, parcels and even an ambulance. What steps should I take now. Is it possible for them to be using our internet connection? I don't know if it uses your adress to connect to your isp, I use BT. I definatly don't want to be responsable for what an entire care home do on the internet. Any advice?

AdrianC

Firstly, no, there is absolutely no way that them "using your address" could mean them using your internet.

What do you mean by "using your address"? Their postcode may well be the same as yours - postcodes are not unique to individual properties. Obviously, the road name is the same. So are they using the wrong property number on that road?

The ultimate problem in getting their post to your property is that your postman is clearly incapable of distinguishing between the two properties...

dartel

AdrianC said:

Firstly, no, there is absolutely no way that them "using your address" could mean them using your internet.

What do you mean by "using your address"? Their postcode may well be the same as yours - postcodes are not unique to individual properties. Obviously, the road name is the same. So are they using the wrong property number on that road?

The ultimate problem in getting their post to your property is that your postman is clearly incapable of distinguishing between the two properties...

 They are using our postcode and house number.

Robin9

Have you spoken to the manager ?

As @AdrianC has said - its not your post code - perhaps 50 properties in your road share that.

MoneySeeker1

Postcodes are indeed often shared with a noticeable number of other properties and I share mine with about half the properties in my road.

The number though is uniquely yours and yours alone and "you were first" to have that number.

In your position - as you seem to be drawing a blank with the care home - then it's time to "go elsewhere" about this.

Personally I'd:
- tell the Post Office officially that your house number is yours and yours only and has been since Year X (ie when your house was built) and this home has only just been built and so, obviously, have a number of their own and it's just a question of finding out what it is
- tell your local Council that someone else (ie this home) is using "your" number and need to be allocated their own
- put a note up on your local Facebook page to the effect of "Number X is MY number. The care home has just been built and doesn't seem to have a number yet. Can everyone please note - until such time as they are given a number and stop trying to use mine".

They are probably not actually allowed to use "your" number (as you already have it). Certainly with houses that have names - then one can't change the name of one's house to the same one that another house in that particular road already has - so the same must apply with numbers. The other thing is re changing housenames - one can do so "unofficially" - but going down the official route means telling the local Council and then telling the local Post Office. (Some people "ask" their local Council - which is what they tell you to do. But I "told" mine that I had already done so and they were just being notified for information).

Worst case analysis - you just stop "helping the care home to misuse your number" and just return all their mail to the Post Office marked "not known at this address"/turn away all callers for them etc and so on. Then, some weeks later, verbally tell someone "in charge" of the care home that you've redirected 200 items of mail/100 callers/etc - as they had the wrong number for the care home and I bet they get a move on then with getting their own number.

pjcox2005

It's not great for the residents so I probably wouldn't actually do it, but if the care home are dragging their feet, then just tell them you'll send all post back to the Post Office marked as "Not at this address, return to sender" or something similar. Edited to add only for those addressed specifically to your house number.
I expect that may spur them into action if they miss out on their post rather than just having to pop across the road to get it from you.

bouicca21

what was there before the care home?  Was it a vacant plot with no address?  If so it may be worth taking it up both with the post office and the owners of the home.  And it is perfectly possible for a postcode to be allocated to a single building - mine has its own.

House2021

The care home really should be taking this seriously as there are GDPR implications to their residents post being sent to a wrong address as well.

Robin9

Is the Care Home Listed on www.royalmail.com/find-a-postcode   - it may be too new.

warby68

The problem could be two way - some of your post may be going to the care home.
Could lead to other confusion later as service providers, tradespeople and other deliveries choose the wrong place.
What do you mean by dragging their heels? Make an appointment to discuss - you might do well to chase down the owners of the premises rather than the manager - that might just be an employee. 
You could put a temporary sign up to deter the postie and others meantime
Do you or the care home know how to sort it out? I think they should have applied to the council for the actual address quite early in the construction. The council then notify Post Office to allocate a postcode. That's how I think it works but could be wrong. Not sure how they have got services, bank accounts etc with a duplicate address so perhaps its just a mistake on the website. What does it say on their signage?
I think I'd be more worried about getting their rates or electricity bills than the broadband. 

gld73

Oddly enough, your situation is not unique - I've responded to a 999 call and been banging on someone's door early on a Sunday morning only to be told by the occupant that they hadn't phoned and it was probably for the care home on the same street which shares their number for some reason. (This was 3 or 4 years ago, so not you).  I'd never had that problem before as the location was usually given as the care home name rather than just a building number. We spoke to the care home on that occasion to say in future only give the care home name, not the building number, as ambulances will get to the correct address much quicker as we know all the care homes!
I assume the care home in your situation also has a name - is the mail being addressed to that, or just the building number? If the care home name is on the address, you'd think the postie could apply a bit of common sense in delivering to the right address...