What happens to dead mail?

Answer by  TwoToneDodge (2204)

After a letter is considered "dead" they scan them to look for valuables and possibly another address. If empty it is shredded. Packages with valuables are stored in warehouses.

Answer by  bl834 (1317)

If the mail has valuables in it (checks, etc) more than $10 they'll hold it for about 6 months to see if anyone claims it. Otherwise it depends on what's in the mail whether they shred it, forward it to the "Mail Recovery Center", donate to museum, or auction it.

Answer by  tamkees (3203)

Mail recovery centers are located in Atlanta, St. Paul and San Francisco. Folks at these offices act like correspondence detectives to locate the intended recipient. They start by scanning the package for valuables and then work backwards from there. You can avoid dead mail altogether by using a return address.

Answer by  cangel818 (981)

The dead letter office, not called mail recovery center receives all correspondence that does not reach its destination. This is rerouted to mail recovery centers in Atlanta, Saint Paul, and San Francisco where every letter is processed by a specialized staff to attempt to return it to the original sender or to forward it to its intended destination.

Answer by  Zoso (869)

In the U. S. undeliverable mail goes to two recovery centers, St. Paul and Atlanta. Enclosed items of any value are separated, any firearms or porn are destroyed, and the rest is sold at periodic auction. The correspondence itself, 90 million pieces in 2006, is destroyed to protect customer privacy.

Answer by  Vanasatchy (816)

Dead mails can be deleted daily when we open the inbox in our mail. At times it can be sent to spam