Although shipments are usually delivered by other carriers such as FedEx and UPS, the USPS does deliver parcels on occasion.
When you expect a parcel from the USPS but never receive it, despite tracking information indicating that it was delivered, you may be unclear what to do next.
What To Do?
First and foremost, you should be aware of the most common causes for this to occur.
The USPS may claim that a delivery has been delivered, but it may take up to 24 hours for the product to arrive.
They could do this for a variety of reasons.
The most typical reason is because they need to push a particular number of deliveries per day and, in order to save time, they may mark the delivery as complete before it is actually completed.
Occasionally, clerical and technological errors occur.
A mail carrier may make a mistake, or a computer may malfunction, causing a parcel to be marked as delivered early.
Fortunately, there are a few measures you may take to find out where your item is.
The first step is to contact the United States Postal Service.
You'll want to leave an email with them because their phones are generally busy.
If you wish to call for human contact
| 1-800-275-8777 | Press 0 , then 0, then press 5, then 5, then 2 |
They'll probably tell you to wait 24 hours, so you might as well wait that long before anything if so they'll create a case or you'll have to do it. Depends who you get on the phone.
If your package hasn't arrived after 24 hours, despite the fact that it says "Delivered," you should contact a USPS employee.
Did The USPS Driver Put It Somewhere Hidden?
With the increase of porch pirates, postal employees and delivery drivers are doing everything they can to hide goods.
Packages will no longer be delivered at your front door by everyone.
They like to hide the package behind a back door, in a garage, or in a hidden location.
They also don't always say where they put it.
If your package's tracking system claims it's been delivered but you don't see it, take a look about your house.
Examine the area around the front door to determine if the postal worker hid it under or beneath a bench or other decoration.
If you left your garage door open, look inside.
If you have a back entrance, you should also check the area around it.
It's also feasible that they place it on the side of your house.
Finally, go through your mail.
If the parcel is small enough to fit inside your mailbox, the postal worker is likely to place it there.
Even larger parcels are occasionally squashed inside the mailbox.
Does you neighbor have your package?
Before contacting the USPS, check to see whether your item was picked up by mistake by a neighbor.
Occasionally, the USPS will deliver your box to your neighbor instead of you.
They do it with mail, thus it's likely that it will happen with packages from time to time.
Visit each of your neighbors and ask if they received a parcel addressed to your address.
If your neighbor hasn't opened the item or looked at the delivery address, they might not even realize it wasn't for them.
A USPS employee may also give your item to a neighbor for safekeeping.
However, this is normally only done if you tell them to.
Typically, USPS will only do this in apartments or condominiums.
If you live in a house, it is uncommon for them to deliver your package to a neighbor.
How To Prevent This Happening?
There are a few steps you may take to avoid this happening to you.
While it is hard to prevent clerical or technical errors, you may put in place a few measures to lessen the likelihood of it happening to you.
Follow these procedures to avoid receiving a warning that your product was delivered erroneously.
1) Ask For Signature
One of the most effective ways to avoid this problem is to request a signature upon arrival.
When you sign up with USPS for this program, the postal worker must obtain a signature from you or another adult at your residence in order to deliver the box. *Contact the business before shipping to see if they can add the signature, they might charge a fee but it can be worth it.
They will not be able to deliver the delivery unless someone signs for it.
That implies they won't be able to mark the package as delivered.
This does, however, imply that someone must be present at home to accept the gift.
Otherwise, you won't get the package.
The USPS will only attempt to deliver a box a few times before holding it for you at your local post office.
If you leave it there for too long, it will be returned to the sender as a failed shipment.
However, requesting a signature is an efficient technique to avoid missing items and incorrect information.
2) Sign Up For Informed Delivery
Informed Delivery is a service provided by the US Postal Service.
It entails the postal service taking photographs mail headed to your address.
It also provides images of any packages you receive.
They then give you those photographs and a note via email.
The notification explains that the linked items will be delivered to your address by your local postal worker.
Occasionally, especially if the delivery day is a Saturday or the day before a holiday, the package will not arrive until the following day.
However, having Informed Delivery provides you a better indication of whether or not a delivery is on its way.
At the very least, it indicates that the item was handled by a USPS employee at some time.
3) Invest In A Locked Box
If you reside in a house rather than an apartment or a condo, you might think about getting a lockbox.
This box has a code or key that you can provide to the postal worker.
They also have skeleton keys, which enable them to open most lockboxes.
A lockbox is beneficial since it protects your package.
Only you and the postal worker have access to it.
The postal worker can place your parcel inside the box and then lock it.
As a result, robbers will be unable to steal the package.
It's safer than putting your package outside your front door or in other parts of the house.
It also prevents you from receiving a shipment delivered notification when you did not receive a package.
This is because the package is more difficult to overlook.
It should be kept within your lockbox at all times.
It's easy to find, and it reduces the possibility of someone stealing it.
There's always the possibility that USPS did deliver the box, but it was stolen before you were home to pick it up.
A lockbox solves a variety of issues.
4) Change Your Delivery Preferences
You can adjust your delivery options with the USPS office if you want to be absolutely assured that your shipment is delivered.
This involves informing the postal worker when the parcel may be delivered.
However, it must be inside the USPS office's operational hours, so don't expect them to deliver your parcels after 5 p.m.
Some even close earlier than that.
Giving the workers a defined time frame for accepting their deliveries ensures that they always make the delivery.
They are aware that they only have a limited time frame in which to deliver.
They'll work hard to deliver your delivery on schedule because they don't want your box taking up space in their inventory and because it costs them money to re-deliver a missed package.
5) Install Cameras
Another approach to ensure you receive your shipment is to install cameras in front of your property.
The camera must capture the driveway or front door area.
This will allow you to utilize the camera as proof that the delivery agent never arrived at your door with the goods.
It will also tell you whether or not the shipment was stolen.
With this information, you can contact the USPS office and determine the situation.
Keep in mind that there may be some deliveries in your mailbox.
It's also recommended installing a camera aimed towards the mailbox.
Conclusion
While the USPS is a reliable mail carrier, mishaps do occur.
Errors in clerical work can occur.
Most of the time, your package will be labeled incorrectly or will receive an update too soon.
When this occurs, you should wait 24 hours.
If the package does not arrive the following business day, contact the post office.
They'll assist you in determining what went wrong.