Problems with Welcome PM's and Emails

[mistapuggs]

Running 3.6.8

Hi Everyone,
I apologize if this is a repost, I've searched for a couple of hours and can't seem to get it figured out.

My board is moderated in that I manually approve each member. For a long time I've just manually sent a welcome email to the new users explaining what our group is about and what they needed to do to activate their account. I've only recently tried automating this and I've had no luck. I know that in VBO>User Registration Options>Send Welcome Email is specifically says-

Note: If you require emails to be verified, this email will be sent after the user has activated his or her account. If you moderate new memberships, no welcome mail will be sent as the user will already be receiving an email.

Is there a way to force this out anyway even though I moderate my board?

I've tried using a welcome PM in addition to the email (since the email isn't going out) and can't seem to get that to work either. Defaults for new users are set to to receive pm's, and the number of pms set for COPPA users is 5 so according to my calculations it should be working but I'm getting nothing when I make a new user and try it myself.

Anyone have any pointers on this?

TIA

--------------- Added [DATE]1266563301[/DATE] at [TIME]1266563301[/TIME] ---------------

Nothing?