Felony: This Annoying Massachusetts Mail Law Could Bite You Big Time

Massachusetts has several weird, outdated, and annoying laws. One of those laws is mail-related.

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One Massachusetts Law You Want to Be Mindful of Involves Mail

Have you ever moved into a new house or apartment and found that you are still receiving mail from a previous tenant or homeowner? This happened to me for a while when I bought and moved into my home back in 2011. I was receiving mail from the previous homeowner, who had passed away. When the house was for sale, her children were the ones who put it on the market.

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When I received her mail, I wanted to throw it away as that would be the fastest and easiest thing to do, but doing that is illegal in Massachusetts. You can't simply throw away or destroy a previous tenant's or homeowner's mail, no matter if that person is alive or deceased. As a matter of fact, if you were to do that, you could incur significant fines and even face jail time as the act is considered a felony.

Per Massachusetts Law, Here's What You Should Do If You Receive Mail from a Previous Homeowner or Tenant

In my case, I was able to get in touch with the previous owner's children, and I gave the mail back to them. Eventually, though, I contacted the post office and made sure they knew that the previous owner was deceased, so I wouldn't keep receiving her mail, which is one of the things you can do, or you can write "Not at this address" or "Return to Sender" clearly on the envelope and place it back in the mailbox. You'll be doing a good deed, and you'll be keeping yourself out of trouble with the law.