Delivery problems
When a Package Goes Missing
Late, lost and stolen are three different problems with three different fixes. Here's how to tell them apart and who to chase for each.
First: the one thing most people get wrong
Your contract is with the seller, not the carrier. You didn't hire UPS — the merchant did. In most cases the carrier will not even accept a claim from you, because the shipper is the one holding the contract and the declared value.
So while it feels natural to phone the carrier, the faster route is almost always: go back to the retailer and ask for a replacement or refund. Let them fight the carrier. They have an account manager, a claims process and a volume relationship; you have a phone queue.
In the UK, this is explicit — under the Consumer Rights Act the goods remain the seller's responsibility until they're physically delivered to you. EU consumer law works on the same principle. In the US the statutory position is messier, but in practice large retailers and marketplaces replace lost parcels rather than risk a chargeback.
Step 1: Confirm it's actually missing (day 0–1)
- Re-read the tracking history. Does it say delivered, or does it just say the estimated date passed?
- Look at the delivery photo and GPS pin if there is one. It frequently shows a door that isn't yours.
- Check every plausible spot: side and back doors, porch furniture, behind planters, garage, mailroom, parcel locker, reception, and with neighbours.
- Ask everyone in your household. A startling share of "stolen" parcels were brought inside by someone else.
- Wait until end of day. Premature "delivered" scans are common and often resolve within hours.
Step 2: If it's late but not scanned as delivered
This is usually a stuck parcel, not a lost one. Ground shipments regularly go quiet for days between hub scans — see how tracking works for why.
- Give it 5–7 business days past the estimated delivery date before escalating.
- Check whether the service hands off to the postal service for the final mile. Search the same number on the postal carrier's site.
- Watch for an exception event — bad address, customs hold, failed attempt. These need action from you and won't resolve on their own.
Step 3: Open a trace, then a claim
If it's genuinely stalled, ask the seller to open a trace with the carrier. Some carriers let recipients start one too. A trace prompts a physical search of the last-known facility and often shakes a parcel loose within a few days.
If the trace fails, a claim follows. Rough shape of the major carriers' rules — verify current terms, because these change:
| Carrier | Typical claim window | Included cover |
|---|---|---|
| USPS | Missing-mail search after ~7 days; claims generally within 60 days of mailing | $100 on most Priority and Ground Advantage services |
| UPS | Generally within 60 days of the scheduled delivery date | Up to $100 declared value |
| FedEx | Generally within 60 days of the delivery date | Up to $100 declared value |
Note the pattern: $100 is the default ceiling. If nobody bought additional declared value, that's the cap regardless of what the item cost. This is why the seller — who chose the service and the declared value — is the right party to pursue.
Step 4: If it was stolen from your doorstep
Porch theft sits outside the carrier's liability entirely. Once it's scanned delivered to the right address, the carrier considers the job done.
- Tell the retailer first. Many will replace a stolen parcel once, especially if you're an established customer. It costs them less than a dispute.
- File a police report if the value is meaningful. Insurers and some retailers require one, and it's the only thing that makes local theft patterns visible.
- Check your card benefits. Some credit cards include purchase protection covering theft within a window of purchase. Check the benefits guide, not the marketing page.
- Home insurance is usually the wrong tool. Contents policies may technically cover it, but the deductible often exceeds the parcel's value and a claim can affect your premium.
Step 5: The backstop — dispute the charge
If the seller stops responding, go to your payment provider. Card networks have an "item not received" dispute reason, and marketplaces and payment platforms run their own buyer-protection schemes with their own deadlines.
Two things matter here:
- Deadlines are strict. Dispute windows are commonly measured from the expected delivery date, and once they close you have no leverage. Don't let a seller string you along past one.
- Evidence wins. Order confirmation, tracking history, delivery photo, and your written attempts to contact the seller. Screenshot everything — tracking histories are purged after a few months.
Keep the paper trail before you need it
Every step above runs on records you have to produce: order number, tracking history, dates you contacted whom. This is exactly the gap Love Your Package is built to close — the extension keeps order confirmations, tracking timelines and delivery evidence together automatically, so a claim is a two-minute job instead of an archaeology project.
Reducing the odds next time
- Route valuable orders to a parcel locker or carrier pickup point rather than your door.
- Sign up for the carriers' free delivery-preference accounts so you can redirect or hold parcels in flight.
- Ask for signature on delivery for high-value items.
- Ship to your workplace if someone's there to receive it.
- Enable delivery notifications so a parcel isn't sitting outside advertising itself for eight hours.
This article is general information, not legal advice. Carrier policies, claim windows and consumer protections vary by country and change over time — confirm the current terms with the carrier or seller before relying on them.