What do I do if a parcel never arrived?
Who is actually responsible, the checks to make first, and how to escalate when the tracking says delivered.
- Difficulty
- beginner
- Time
- 45 min
- Read
- 3 min
Short answer
Your contract is with the retailer, not the courier — they are responsible for getting it to you. Check the tracking and with neighbours first, then go to the retailer rather than the delivery company.
Retailers frequently direct customers to the courier, and in most consumer protection regimes that is wrong. You bought from the retailer, so the goods remain their responsibility until they reach you.
What you'll need
- Order confirmation
- Tracking number
- Photographs of any delivery notice (optional)
Step by step
- Check the tracking in detail.Look for a delivery photograph, a signature, or a note saying it was left somewhere. That determines what has actually happened and what you claim.
- Check the obvious physical places.Neighbours, behind bins, porches, outbuildings, and any nominated safe place. A surprising proportion turn up within a few metres.
- Wait the stated period if it is only late.Many retailers ask you to allow a few extra days before treating it as lost. Missing that step slows the claim.
- Go to the retailer, not the courier.Your contract is with them. In most consumer regimes goods remain their responsibility until delivered to you, and being told to contact the courier does not change that.
- Put it in writing.Order number, what was ordered, the tracking status, and what you want — redelivery or a refund. A written record is what any escalation depends on.
- Challenge a false 'delivered' status.If the tracking says delivered and it was not, say so explicitly. Ask for the delivery photograph, the GPS data and the signature. Retailers can request all three.
- Note that a nominated safe place changes things.If you instructed them to leave it somewhere specific, delivery there generally counts as delivered. A courier choosing a safe place without instruction does not.
- Escalate to a chargeback or the ombudsman.If the retailer refuses, your card provider's chargeback process or a relevant dispute scheme is the next step. Both have time limits, so do not wait.
Tips
- Photograph any card left by the courier and screenshot the tracking page. Tracking histories are sometimes updated or lost afterwards.
- Paying by credit card above a threshold often adds a second route to recovery through the card provider's joint liability.
- If parcels regularly go missing at your address, a nominated safe place or a collection point removes the problem rather than repeating the argument.
Common mistakes
- Contacting the courier instead of the retailer — Your contract is with the retailer. The courier is their subcontractor and generally has no obligation to you at all.
- Accepting 'the tracking says delivered' as the end of it — Ask for the delivery photograph, GPS data and signature. Retailers can obtain all three and a false status is challengeable.
- Waiting weeks before raising it — Chargeback and dispute schemes have time limits, and retailers' own claim windows with couriers are short.
Questions people ask
Who is responsible if a parcel goes missing — the shop or the courier?
The retailer. In most consumer regimes goods remain their responsibility until delivered to you, so being told to contact the courier does not remove their obligation.
What if the tracking says delivered but I did not get it?
Say so explicitly in writing and ask the retailer for the delivery photograph, GPS location and signature. They can obtain all three, and a disputed delivery status is challengeable.