diff --git a/backend/notifications.py b/backend/notifications.py
index fa5677a..391adce 100644
--- a/backend/notifications.py
+++ b/backend/notifications.py
@@ -224,7 +224,11 @@ def format_expiration_email(user, warranties, get_db_connection, release_db_conn
     # Create a MIMEMultipart object for both text and HTML
     msg = MIMEMultipart('alternative')
     msg['Subject'] = subject
-    msg['From'] = os.environ.get('SMTP_USERNAME', 'notifications@warracker.com')
+    # use SMTP_FROM_ADDRESS if provided, otherwise use SMTP_USERNAME or a default value as below
+    _from_address = os.environ.get('SMTP_FROM_ADDRESS')
+    if _from_address is None:
+        _from_address = os.environ.get('SMTP_USERNAME', 'notifications@warracker.com')
+    msg['From'] = _from_address
     msg['To'] = user['email']
 
     part1 = MIMEText(text_body, 'plain')
diff --git a/docker-compose.yml b/docker-compose.yml
index 3b9efd4..9a2908f 100644
--- a/docker-compose.yml
+++ b/docker-compose.yml
@@ -19,6 +19,8 @@ services:
       - SMTP_PORT=${SMTP_PORT:-1025}
       - SMTP_USERNAME=${SMTP_USERNAME:-notifications@warracker.com}
       - SMTP_PASSWORD=${SMTP_PASSWORD:-}
+      # if SMTP_FROM_ADDRESS isn't defined, then SMTP_USERNAME will be used - but that may not always work
+      - SMTP_FROM_ADDRESS=${SMTP_FROM_ADDRESS:-}
       - SECRET_KEY=${SECRET_KEY:-your_very_secret_flask_key_change_me} # For Flask session and JWT
       # OIDC SSO Configuration (User needs to set these based on their OIDC provider)
       - OIDC_PROVIDER_NAME=${OIDC_PROVIDER_NAME:-oidc}
diff --git a/env.example b/env.example
index ac23683..8a0cb8b 100644
--- a/env.example
+++ b/env.example
@@ -11,8 +11,9 @@ SECRET_KEY=your_very_secure_flask_secret_key_change_this_in_production
 # Email Configuration (for password resets and notifications)
 SMTP_HOST=smtp.gmail.com
 SMTP_PORT=587
-SMTP_USERNAME=your-email@gmail.com
+SMTP_USERNAME=your-email-username
 SMTP_PASSWORD=your-app-password
+SMTP_FROM_ADDRESS=your-email@somewhere.com
 SMTP_USE_TLS=true
 
 # Application URLs
@@ -89,4 +90,4 @@ APPRISE_TITLE_PREFIX=[Warracker]
 # APPRISE_URLS=json://webhook.site/your-unique-id
 
 # For more services and URL formats, visit:
-# https://github.com/caronc/apprise/wiki 
\ No newline at end of file
+# https://github.com/caronc/apprise/wiki