diff --git a/bot.py b/bot.py
index 5e578cac7d..af313d2e85 100644
--- a/bot.py
+++ b/bot.py
@@ -639,10 +639,7 @@ async def is_blocked(
 
         blocked_reason = self.blocked_users.get(str(author.id)) or ""
 
-        if (
-            not self.check_account_age(author)
-            or not self.check_guild_age(author)
-        ):
+        if not self.check_account_age(author) or not self.check_guild_age(author):
             new_reason = self.blocked_users.get(str(author.id))
             if new_reason != blocked_reason:
                 if send_message:
@@ -738,7 +735,7 @@ async def process_dm_modmail(self, message: discord.Message) -> None:
                 await self.add_reaction(message, blocked_emoji)
                 return await message.channel.send(embed=embed)
 
-            thread = self.threads.create(message.author)
+            thread = await self.threads.create(message.author)
         else:
             if self.config["dm_disabled"] == 2:
                 embed = discord.Embed(
diff --git a/cogs/modmail.py b/cogs/modmail.py
index 6a2b3bbfe8..cee11f84bc 100644
--- a/cogs/modmail.py
+++ b/cogs/modmail.py
@@ -900,7 +900,7 @@ async def contact(
             await ctx.channel.send(embed=embed)
 
         else:
-            thread = self.bot.threads.create(user, creator=ctx.author, category=category)
+            thread = await self.bot.threads.create(user, creator=ctx.author, category=category)
             if self.bot.config["dm_disabled"] >= 1:
                 logger.info("Contacting user %s when Modmail DM is disabled.", user)
 
diff --git a/core/config.py b/core/config.py
index 695b743f56..a0eda4a2dc 100644
--- a/core/config.py
+++ b/core/config.py
@@ -27,6 +27,7 @@ class ConfigManager:
         "twitch_url": "https://www.twitch.tv/discordmodmail/",
         # bot settings
         "main_category_id": None,
+        "fallback_category_id": None,
         "prefix": "?",
         "mention": "@here",
         "main_color": str(discord.Color.blurple()),
diff --git a/core/config_help.json b/core/config_help.json
index c6c0fc95d0..177e488094 100644
--- a/core/config_help.json
+++ b/core/config_help.json
@@ -20,6 +20,16 @@
       "If the Modmail category ended up being non-existent/invalid, Modmail will break. To fix this, run `{prefix}setup` again or set `main_category_id` to a valid category."
     ]
   },
+  "fallback_category_id": {
+    "default": "`Fallback Modmail` (created when the main category is full)",
+    "description": "This is the category that will hold the threads when the main category is full.\n\nTo change the Fallback category, you will need to find the [category’s ID](https://support.discordapp.com/hc/en-us/articles/206346498).",
+    "examples": [
+      "`{prefix}config set fallback_category_id 9234932582312` (`9234932582312` is the category ID)"
+    ],
+    "notes": [
+      "If the Fallback category ended up being non-existent/invalid, Modmail will create a new one. To fix this, set `fallback_category_id` to a valid category."
+    ]
+  },
   "prefix": {
     "default": "`?`",
     "description": "The prefix of the bot.",
diff --git a/core/thread.py b/core/thread.py
index bf13030776..83f7f5267b 100644
--- a/core/thread.py
+++ b/core/thread.py
@@ -97,7 +97,7 @@ async def setup(self, *, creator=None, category=None):
                 overwrites=overwrites,
                 reason="Creating a thread channel.",
             )
-        except discord.HTTPException as e:  # Failed to create due to 50 channel limit.
+        except discord.HTTPException as e:  # Failed to create due to missing perms.
             logger.critical("An error occurred while creating a thread.", exc_info=True)
             self.manager.cache.pop(self.id)
 
@@ -846,7 +846,7 @@ def _find_from_channel(self, channel):
             return thread
         return None
 
-    def create(
+    async def create(
         self,
         recipient: typing.Union[discord.Member, discord.User],
         *,
@@ -859,11 +859,24 @@ def create(
         self.cache[recipient.id] = thread
 
         # Schedule thread setup for later
+        cat = self.bot.main_category
+        if category is None and len(cat.channels) == 50:
+            fallback_id = self.bot.config["fallback_category_id"]
+            if fallback_id:
+                fallback = discord.utils.get(cat.guild.categories, id=int(fallback_id))
+                if fallback and len(fallback.channels) != 50:
+                    category = fallback
+
+            if not category:
+                category = await cat.clone(name="Fallback Modmail")
+                self.bot.config.set("fallback_category_id", category.id)
+                await self.bot.config.update()
+
         self.bot.loop.create_task(thread.setup(creator=creator, category=category))
         return thread
 
     async def find_or_create(self, recipient) -> Thread:
-        return await self.find(recipient=recipient) or self.create(recipient)
+        return await self.find(recipient=recipient) or await self.create(recipient)
 
     def format_channel_name(self, author):
         """Sanitises a username for use with text channel names"""