Signed, Sealed, but will it be Delivered?

Do you know what happens to the 20 million items of "lost" post that Royal Mail handles each year? From insufficient postage paid, to the addressee having moved away, there are many reasons why some of the 15 billion items that Royal Mail handles annually might be undeliverable. If the parcel or letter is marked with a return address or franking then it will be returned directly, but anything else is sent to the Royal Mail National Returns Centre.

From treasured family photographs that remain unshared to birthday cards that missed the event, each year around 20 million items end up at the NRC in Belfast. Here the mail is opened to see if they can find a return address within. If they are unsuccessful, then the items are held in case the sender gets in touch. If they remain unclaimed, then the items may be destoyed, or auctioned to fund the centre's £10 million annual running costs.

To make sure that none of your parcels and letters end up as recycling or at the auctioneers, Royal Mail recommend labelling each item with a return address and a simple and easy way to do this is with a set of our printed labels. Supplied on a handy roll of 500 and starting at an equivalent of just 1.6p, they are available in an array of colours (including gold & silver) and with a choice of printing fonts. Perfect for keeping your items out of the Aladdin's trove that is the National Returns Centre!

[Information sources: Royal Mail, Liverpool Echo, Post and Parcel]