Parents shouldn’t let their children take mail directly from letter carrier unless they take a few precautions to help keep letter carriers safe, according to the United States Postal Service.
USPS is worried about their letter carriers being attacked by dogs as those incidents have increased to more than 5,800 cases last year
When children take the mail directly from the letter carriers, USPS states that “the dog may view the carrier as a threat to the child.” This could lead them to attack the letter carrier, USPS claims.
“Even though a customer’s dog is friendly to most people, it can always have a bad day,” letter carrier Tara Snyder said in a press release. “I know, from experience, even when a dog is in the house, customers need to make sure their door is secure so their dog can’t push it open and bite the letter carrier.”
Pet owners are asked to keep the dogs inside the house or behind a fence, away from the door or in another room or on a leash.
When a postal employee is injured in a dog attack, the owner “could be responsible for medical bills, lost wages, uniform replacement costs, and pain and suffering for the employee,” USPS said, adding that the average cost per insurance claim for a dog bite is $64,555.