Residents look to replace displaced mailboxes - 13 WTHR Indianapolis

The plows that battled to keep our roads clear also sometimes cleared away something else in the snow fight.

In Johnson County, the highway director says there are more than the usual number of reports of mailboxes damaged during road plowing on country roads.

He says most are due not to the plow actually striking the mailbox or post. Most boxes are damaged by the wet, heavy snow the plows toss to the shoulder of the road.

In Monroe County, the Highway Department director told his crews to go slower to lessen the flying snow and damage.

Johnson County resident Carol Stephens lives south of Franklin. Her mailbox post still stands, but bungee corded to it is a new letter box.

"That little plastic mailbox was only $10," Stephens said. "I got the cheapest I could get."

She doesn't expect to file for reimbursement. She thinks it will take too long to get an answer.

Johnson County may reimburse other homeowners if they fill out a claim form with photos. They also have to show the damage was caused by the plow, not just snow.

"I'm also going to move it farther back off of the (road), far back as I can and the mail lady can still get to it," Stephens said.

Another resident around the corner, whose mailbox and family business sign are both sunk in the snow, says "We've just left it. Every few days, we're just going to the post office."

At her neighbor's up the road, the mailbox survived, thanks to a brickwork shelter around it. But a blast of snow off the plow knocked a concrete cap right off the shelter.

Check your county highway department's website for how to get reimbursement in your area.