I get a lot of post forwarded to me in Patong and all the junk and obvious business letters seem to get through just fine. But anything without a company logo on the envelope often doesn't make it. My guess is that someone in the post office thinks their might be cash in these "personal" looking letters and opens them up. Of course, no one is sending me cash in the mail and this is just a guess based on the type of mail that goes missing, but it's become quite obvious that I can't rely on Thai Post.

Has anyone else had similar experiences?

Had a xmas card sent 18 dec arr' 22 feb, off the xmas card list, however EMS seems to work, pang, talk to the girls where you live and get to know the postie you don't even have to leave the bar the posties amazing I don't know how they find baans.

YES, it is not only a problem for receiving mail but sending it too. Very frustrating.

My sister sent me some documents from England 3 months ago and still nothing has arrived.

Yes, my mother sent me a cashiers check from Australia back in mid December. Nothing ever arrived.

I've sent letters to th USA and all arrived.

I have mailed them from different places; a real stand alone post office, The Post Office in the malls (Big C, Carrefour) and some franchises that appear to be sanctioned by the Thai Post Office.

I receive mail 50% of the times.

I have received packages that were delivered EMS in padded envelopes.

Mail was not delivered in regular envelopes with inactive credit cards.

I have received mail that the address was written in Thai and have received mail written in English.

my home mailing address is in a secure area and the homes are modern and new.

I can't put my finger on will have a better chance of delivery.

I'm expecting a letter on company letterhead that I must sign and I can't chance that getting lost so I will have to wait for my brother to bring it to me next month.

Has anyone ever visited there local Post Office and asked if they had any mail laying around that might be yours?

I don't think there is a way to specify at a U.S Post Office that something needs to be delivered EMS in Thailand (requires signature)

Patong in particular is famous for bandits in the post office. You would be mad to send anything of importance to Phuket in a letter. I send mail to Nakhon Sri Thammarart on a regular basis and every single letter or package has got through. Patong post office is legendary for thieving going back decades.

Agree with previous poster(s),

Sending, receiving something in a generic looking manila or official looking envelope seemed to do better than an obviously personal letter that was probably pilfered or opened to see if any $ inside, etc.

Last year (2009) in late February,family sent items of clothing from Australia and New Zealand.

I never recieved them and despite several inquiries at the Jomtien and Banglamung Post Offices

They have never been found !!

I have since told everyone I know,'if you're going to send anything,anything at all to Thailand,

send it by registered mail,that way at least you've got a chance of recieving it.

Quite a few items sent to me and by me to and from the UK have disappeared over the years.

Use DHL or similar in either direction if the documents are important.

Yes, similar experience here. Over seven years, anything of value (unregistered) never got through.

Thai Post is notoriously corrupt and full of thieves. Any Thai will tell you that. We should heed the natives.

When i lived in kathu anything of value sent to me from Australia i never received and the mail i did receive had been torn at one end to check if anything of value was enclosed.

Last year (2009) in late February,family sent items of clothing from Australia and New Zealand.

I never recieved them and despite several inquiries at the Jomtien and Banglamung Post Offices

They have never been found !!

I have since told everyone I know,'if you're going to send anything,anything at all to Thailand,

send it by registered mail,that way at least you've got a chance of recieving it.

Traxster, you mentioned a chance of receiving it by registered mail. Have had problems with reg. mail too? Thanks.

Had many problems with post in Patong.............2 Birthday cards, both with around A$20 never arrived. Earings sent as a present from Sydney never arrived. Five cans of Pyrethrim spray for an indoor mosquito repellant never arrived (sent by sea) and a few more also.

I suspect that the Greetings card with the square type envelope gets intercepted and opened cos more likely to contain a "gift", but then the thieving seems to be fairly consistent.

Really makes me think badly of the postal system here, a bunch of crooks in my opinion.

For domestic mail, EMS seems to always go through. Anything important being sent internationally I had sent via FedEx.