Certified mail provides the sender with proof of delivery. No record of the item is kept at the post office where the envelope was mailed. The envelope travels along with regular first-class mail. At the recipient's post office, a receipt is obtained from the recipient, which is either kept at that post office or returned to the sender. Certified mail is appropriate when the sender might require later proof that the envelope was actually received.
I use certified mail only when the addressee is such a scoundrel that he might deny ever receiving it or when I might need to prove to some third person not only that I mailed the envelope but that the addressee actually received it.
Cost: $2.30 in addition to regular postage.
Registered mail provides a secure method of mailing. The envelope travels separately from other mail, in a special locked container.
Cost: $7.50 without insurance, in addition to regular postage
If you only need proof that you mailed an envelope, not that it was actually received, you should request a certificate of mailing, which costs only $0.90 in addition to regular postage. While there is no receipt from the addressee, you do get a receipt from the post office when you mail the item.
Link Posted by Tim at February 14, 2005 09:47 PM | TrackBack