Dead letter mail is a type of mail that never reaches its intended recipient. This can happen for a variety of reasons, including incorrect addresses, missing or incorrect zip codes, or even the recipient's mailbox being full.
Dead letter mail is first sent to a local post office where it's sorted and processed. If it can't be delivered, it's then sent to a larger sorting facility.
Mail that's deemed undeliverable is then sent to a centralized facility called the National Dead Letter Office. This is where mail is sorted and processed one last time before it's either returned to the sender or destroyed.
The National Dead Letter Office processes over 200 million pieces of mail each year.
Why Does Dead Letter Mail Happen?
Dead letter mail is a frustrating phenomenon that can happen to anyone. It occurs when a piece of mail is undeliverable due to an incorrect or incomplete address.
Mail can become undeliverable for a variety of reasons, including a wrong or missing apartment number. This can happen even if the address is correct in most other ways.
In the United States, the Postal Service has a system in place to handle undeliverable mail, which is called the "dead letter" system. This system was established to prevent mail from being returned to the sender.
Dead letter mail can also occur when a person moves without updating their address with the Postal Service. This can cause mail to be sent to the old address, where it will eventually be returned as undeliverable.
According to the Postal Service, the most common reasons for dead letter mail are incorrect or incomplete addresses. This can include missing or incorrect street names, numbers, or apartment numbers.
What to Do with Dead Letter Mail?
So, you've got dead letter mail on your hands and you're not sure what to do with it. Simply return it to the post office where it was received.
You can also donate unopened, unused items like clothing, household goods, and personal care products to local charities.
The post office may also be able to forward the mail to the intended recipient if they have a forwarding address on file, but this is only possible if the mail is less than 30 days old.
Examples of Dead Letter Mail
Dead letter mail can be a real mystery, and it's not uncommon for people to wonder what happens to it.
The US Postal Service has a dedicated division called the Dead Letter Office, which handles over 200,000 pieces of mail every day.
Some examples of dead letter mail include undeliverable packages, letters addressed to fictional characters, and mail with incorrect or incomplete addresses.
A package addressed to a non-existent street in a small town is a common occurrence, and it's estimated that 1 in 5 packages are delivered to the wrong address.
Letters to Santa Claus are another example of dead letter mail, with many being addressed to the North Pole.
Returning Mail to Sender
Returning Mail to Sender is often the best option for dead letter mail.
The United States Postal Service (USPS) has a process in place for returning mail to senders, which can be initiated by the recipient or the USPS itself.
If you're the recipient, you can request that the USPS return the mail to the sender by filling out a form and providing the correct address.
The USPS will then attempt to deliver the mail to the intended recipient.
Keeping Mail for Future Reference
If you're not sure what to do with a piece of mail, it's a good idea to keep it for a while to see if the sender tries to contact you again.
You can file away mail that you're not sure about in a designated spot, like a "to be handled" folder.
Dead letters are typically kept for 90 days before being sent to the dead letter office.
This allows time for the sender to try and contact you again or for you to figure out what to do with the mail.
Some examples of mail that you might want to keep for future reference include bills and invoices that you're not sure about or packages that you're expecting but haven't received yet.
You can also keep mail that contains important information, like insurance documents or medical records.
In some cases, mail can be kept indefinitely if it's deemed to be of historical significance or if it's a valuable document.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does the USPS open dead mail?
The USPS opens mailpieces containing items of value to identify a forwarding address, but only those deemed undeliverable and non-returnable are sent to the Mail Recovery Center for processing.
Does the post office have a dead letter file?
The U.S. Postal Service has a centralized "lost and found" department called the Mail Recovery Center (MRC), formerly known as the Dead Letter Office. The MRC is where undeliverable mail is processed and attempts are made to reunite it with its intended recipient.
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