The parcel is marked as delivered, but you have nothing

You check the tracking, it says "delivered", but there is nothing outside your door. Leaving a parcel with a neighbour is a common solution for delivery services when nobody answers the door, but it is not always communicated clearly. Sometimes there is a card in your letterbox, sometimes there is none, because it got lost or was never left in the first place.

Before you assume the parcel is lost, it is worth taking a quick look around, because the delivery often does turn up with a neighbour or in a storage spot in the building.

Where to look first

Look first in your own letterbox and at your front door, because that is often where you will find a card saying who the parcel was left with. If there is no card, it helps to knock briefly on the doors of your direct neighbours to the left, right and opposite before taking any further steps. In blocks of flats, it is also worth checking shared areas such as the hallway, a storage room or a parcel locker, if the building has one.

When nobody knows anything about the parcel

If you still cannot find the parcel after asking your neighbours, contact the shop. It is the party you have the contract with and can ask the delivery service to open an investigation, in which the driver is asked exactly where they left the parcel. This information can take several days, because it goes through the local delivery depot and cannot be seen online straight away.

Most shops then deal with the delivery service themselves, rather than leaving you to negotiate with the carrier on your own. Some carriers also accept enquiries directly from recipients, but that does not replace reporting it to the shop.

An everyday example

Say you ordered an item for 65 euros. The tracking shows "delivered to neighbour", but there is no card. You ask two neighbours without success and then report the case to the shop. The shop starts an investigation with the delivery service, which takes three working days. If it is confirmed in the end that the parcel really cannot be found, you will usually get either a replacement worth 65 euros or a full refund, depending on what the shop offers and what you prefer.

Why leaving a parcel with a neighbour is allowed at all

Many delivery services state in their general terms that an alternative delivery to neighbours, to a building or to another suitable place is permitted if the actual recipient is not at home. This is meant to save unnecessary trips and increase the rate of successful deliveries at the first attempt. If you do not want this, many services let you set in your own delivery preferences that parcels should only be delivered to your own address or to a parcel locker, if that option is offered.

What to keep a record of in case of a dispute

• A screenshot of the tracking with the time stamp and the status "delivered".
• The date and time when you checked yourself, and which neighbours you asked.
• The name of the person at the shop, or an order or ticket number, if you have already been in touch.
• A short note on whether and when a delivery card was in your letterbox, or that there was none.

When the shop will not cooperate

If a shop refuses to refund or resend a parcel that is marked as delivered but cannot be found, it helps to point to your own records and to insist, politely but firmly, on the matter being cleared up. If you paid by credit card or PayPal, you also have the option of turning to the payment provider if the shop does not respond at all. How a refund depending on the payment method works depends heavily on how you paid originally.

It is important not to wait too long. The more time passes between the supposed delivery date and your report, the harder it becomes later to work out what actually happened, and some shops set a deadline for reporting anyway, counted from the delivery date shown.

Why fake delivery notifications add to the confusion

Sometimes an email or text message arrives that claims to come from the delivery service and reports a delivery problem, but is actually a scam. Messages like this often contain a link that supposedly lets you request a new delivery, but in reality is used to steal personal data. How to tell a fake message like this from a genuine notification is described in the article Spotting phishing in parcel and payment messages. If in doubt, it is always worth going directly through the official tracking page rather than using a link from an email.

How to put delivery dates into context

A parcel that is marked as delivered but is missing is something different from a parcel that is simply still on its way. Before you even assume there is a delivery problem, it is worth checking what delivery date the shop originally gave and whether that period can realistically have passed yet. The basics of how delivery times and delivery costs fit together when you shop online are explained in the article Understanding delivery times and delivery costs when shopping online.

Frequently asked questions

Do I have to prove to the delivery service that I did not receive the parcel?

In everyday practice, you are usually not asked for watertight proof. It does help, though, to describe what happened clearly and, if you have them, to have the tracking screenshot and the result of asking your neighbours ready.

How long does an investigation with the delivery service usually take?

It varies, often several working days, because the enquiry goes through the local delivery depot and the driver there, rather than being answered automatically straight away.

Should I contact the delivery service or the shop first?

It makes sense to start with a quick check with your neighbours yourself. If the parcel still cannot be found after that, the shop is the right first point of contact, because it placed the delivery order and can usually start the investigation directly.

Can I ask for parcels not to be left with neighbours in future?

With some delivery services, you can control this through your own delivery preferences or a preferred safe place. Whether and how that is possible varies depending on the provider and the country.