An improved postal service for Bermuda: that's the aim of a new act passed by the House of Assembly yesterday.

If it gets the green light from Senators, regulations could soon require all buildings to have accessible private post boxes. There could also be new conditions to be met before mail is delivered, to protect postal staff from hazards such as dangerous dogs.

New regulations may be drafted stating when post can be opened, returned to the sender or disposed of. In addition, mail sent to the right person but the wrong address could be delivered to that address regardless, instead of staff wasting time finding the person.

The original Post Office Act dates back to 1900. Outlining the Post Office Amendment Act 2008 to the House yesterday, Minister of Telecommunications Terry Lister said it resulted from a comprehensive review aimed at modernising the Post Office.

Participants included a New Zealand postal consultancy firm called Transend, the Bermuda Industrial and Public Service Unions and the Department of Management Services.

At the moment, he said delivery persons encounter challenges delivering mail to the location of post boxes, while some places don't have a box at all. Poorly-addressed mail holds up the rest and staff sometimes find themselves in danger while carrying out their duties.

Charlie Swan of the United Bermuda Party said: "I understand how it's difficult for our post people to find post boxes and navigate their way around two-legged and four-legged obstructions and animals, but what kind of improvement can we expect in delivery times?"

Echoing that question, Grant Gibbons of the UBP complained: "I have here a letter mailed on October 8. It was an invitation to a party. It didn't reach me until October 17, which was after the party.

"Maybe the Post Office is looking after my health in not wanting me to go to a party, but all of us have heard that things like Belco bills which have a date where you lose the discount, and maybe credit card bills are coming in after the date.

"These people have Post Office boxes that are numbered and they're still having difficulty in getting mail through."

The Minister responded by revealing that out of 8,100 postal packets delivered in Hamilton each day, 6,000 cannot be put straight into a mailbox like they should be. He gave the example of a delivery man having to visit every floor in a multi-storey office block to hand packets to receptionists instead of being able to leave them in cluster boxes.

"And we're Bermudians. When he has to go and talk to 15 receptionists about their mom and dad – because that's what makes us who we are – it takes time.

"What we're doing is making it easier for them to get around their route, and for the City of Hamilton I would say delivery times will be significantly enhanced," he said.

Plenty of MPs took the opportunity to praise Bermuda's delivery people. Dame Jennifer Smith of the PLP praised St. George's postal service as "timely and with a smile" and said any MP who has ever canvassed knows "the difficulties and dangers we encounter on the way to someone's door."