Redirected Post and Missed Accounts Log

Who this is for

Post that followed you from the old address. Every item that arrives through redirection gets a line with the sender, what it was and what needs doing, so each organisation still writing to the old address is told once and the redirection is not renewed just in case.

Anyone with a post redirection running after a move, and households who want to know whether it is safe to let the redirection lapse.

What this helps you track

• Each item of redirected post, with the date and sender
• Whether it was a statement, letter, parcel or marketing
• What each sender needs: telling, cancelling or ignoring
• When each sender was told and whether they confirmed the change
• How much redirected post arrives each month, to judge when to stop

How to use it

1. Write the old address and the dates the redirection starts and ends.
2. Each time redirected post arrives, give it a line with the date, the sender and the type of item.
3. Choose the action: notify the sender of the new address, cancel the account or mailing, or ignore it.
4. Write the date you told the sender and tick confirmed once they show the new address.
5. At the end of each month, fill in the summary by month; when senders still to notify reaches none, decide whether the redirection needs renewing.

Formats

• Printable PDF (A4 and US Letter)
• Fillable PDF with form fields
• Fill in online, saved in your browser

The printable is laid out inside a box that fits both A4 and US Letter, so the two files are identical and neither one is scaled. The fillable PDF has real form fields. The online version keeps what you enter in your own browser and builds the completed PDF on your device.

How to print

Download the A4 or US Letter file to match the paper in your printer, open it in a PDF reader and print at 100% — not "fit to page", which shrinks the writing space. Both files leave a 14 mm margin, which clears the unprintable edge on home printers. To print the online version with your entries in it, use the Print this sheet button, which prints only the sheet and none of the page around it. More on printing.

Questions

Why log redirected post at all?

Because each item is a clue to an account that still has the old address. Logging it means each sender is told once, and the log shows when post has stopped coming so you can decide about renewing.

What is the difference between notify and cancel?

Notify is for accounts you are keeping, which need the new address. Cancel is for things you no longer want, such as catalogues or services tied to the old home. Ignore is for one-off items that need nothing.

How do I know an organisation has updated my address?

When their next letter arrives addressed to the new home, or they confirm in writing. Tick confirmed then, not when you send the request.

How does this fit with the change of address register?

The register is the list you work through before and after the move. This log catches the ones that were missed, because they only show up when their post is redirected.