Your tracking says Delivered, but you cannot find the package. Start by checking the delivery details and nearby drop-off locations, then use the process for the carrier that recorded the delivery.
This guide compares the U.S. help routes for USPS, UPS, and FedEx. A missing-package report, a search request, and a compensation claim are not interchangeable. Eligibility and filing periods depend on the shipment and claim type.
Start here: check the delivery and save the evidence
- Open tracking on the carrier’s official website. Confirm the tracking number matches your order and read the latest event, delivery location, and any available delivery photo or note.
- Check your mailbox, porch, exterior doors, garage, and sheltered places. Ask household members and, where appropriate, neighbors or building staff whether they received it. For USPS community mailboxes, check whether a parcel-locker key was left in your compartment.
- Save the tracking record and order details. Tell the seller that the shipment is marked delivered but you have not located it; explain what you have checked.
- Use the carrier-specific route below. Do not assume all three carriers require the same waiting period, use the same claim deadline, or provide the same tracking features.
Carrier comparison: which route should you use?
The sections below compare the same three questions for each carrier: what to check, where to report the problem, and what to verify before claiming compensation.
USPS: service request, Missing Mail search, and insurance claim
Check first: USPS’s Delivered guidance lists the garage, household members, mailbox, porch, sheltered areas, and places out of street view. For apartments or condos, ask building management. A parcel-locker key should identify the relevant locker.
Report an unresolved delivery: If the package is still missing and it has been more than one postal business day since the Delivered scan, USPS directs customers to submit a service request for eligible items through its Email Us page. Use the USPS tracking-status help page and follow the Delivered instructions to the service-request form.
Search for missing mail: USPS says a Missing Mail search request can be submitted starting 7 days from mailing. That is measured from mailing, not from the Delivered scan. Have the sender and recipient addresses, mailing date, tracking number, container description, contents description, and identifying pictures ready.
Before an insurance claim: The USPS domestic claims page covers eligible insured mail. Either sender or recipient may file, but the filer must have the original mailing receipt and the required evidence. Check the filing-period table for the actual service and claim type: lost-mail periods are not the same as the rule for damaged or missing contents. International shipments have a separate claims process linked from that page.
UPS: check the drop-off area, then coordinate a claim
Check first: UPS advises checking exterior doors, the porch, back patio, garage, and anyone who might have picked up the package, such as a neighbor. Review any available delivery photo in tracking or the delivery notification.
Report an unresolved delivery: The delivered-but-missing answer on UPS Tracking Support says to contact the seller to start a claim if you still cannot find the package. Send the seller the tracking number and a short record of your checks.
Before a claim: The UPS claims page also offers guest filing for recipients or third-party shippers. Keep the tracking number and an invoice showing the item’s value. Shipper restrictions or other eligibility rules can prevent an online claim; if that happens, contact the shipper rather than assuming you can file independently. Recipients seeking claim updates are directed to the shipper.
The U.S. claims page says to start a lost-or-damaged-package claim within 60 days of the scheduled delivery, not the ship date. It also says filing timeframes vary by country. Check the current rules for your shipment rather than treating this as a worldwide deadline.
FedEx: report the missing shipment and distinguish the claim category
Check first: Review the delivery details and any available photo or note, then check the places the package might have been left. Record any mismatch between the delivery information and your address; do not assume that tracking always supplies a photo or a GPS pin.
Report an unresolved delivery: FedEx’s missing-package instructions for expedited services tell the sender to log in, enter the tracking or reference number, and choose Manage Delivery → Report Missing Package. Confirm the recipient has checked possible delivery locations, provide contact details, and submit the report. Save the case number.
That FAQ directs customers with missing standard-services packages or other packages not shipped via expedited services to FedEx customer support. If you are the recipient, ask the sender to help with the report or contact support for the appropriate route; do not assume the same tracking menu is available for every service.
Before a claim: The FedEx claims page says recipients may contact the merchant to request a replacement, ask the merchant to file, or file a claim themselves. Online claim filing requires login. Have the tracking number and proof of value ready.
The claim category matters: FedEx lists nine months from the shipment date for claims for undelivered or lost shipments. Its separate deadlines for damaged or missing contents are 60 calendar days from shipment for U.S. packages and 21 calendar days from shipment for international packages. Those contents deadlines should not be used as a generic deadline for a whole missing shipment. Ask FedEx which category and eligibility rules apply to your case; a Delivered scan alone does not establish claim approval.
Evidence checklist: what to keep
Keep a single record you can use when speaking with the seller or carrier. This is a practical checklist, not a statement that every item is mandatory for every report.
- Carrier name, full tracking number, and shipping service if known.
- Order confirmation, merchant order number, invoice or receipt, and item description and value.
- Tracking screenshots with the Delivered event, timestamp, and location wording.
- Any available delivery photo, delivery note, or signature/name shown in the record.
- Sender and recipient addresses, mailing or shipment date, and scheduled delivery date if shown.
- A list of delivery areas checked and people asked, with dates and results.
- Case or claim numbers, messages, requested documents, and the next follow-up instruction.
- For an insurance claim, the required mailing receipt and proof of insurance; ask the sender for documents you do not have.
Contact the seller without promising a refund
Send a concise message such as: “Order [order number], tracking [tracking number], is marked Delivered on [date/time], but I have not located it. I checked [locations/people]. Attached are the tracking details and my order receipt. Please help confirm the delivery information and advise on the missing-package or claim process.”
Ask what options are available under the seller’s policy. Keep the seller informed of any carrier case already opened so you can coordinate rather than submit duplicate claims. A report or claim does not guarantee a replacement, refund, payment, or recovery.
Follow up using the case record, not a universal countdown
- Record the carrier’s or seller’s requested next step and follow-up date.
- Check for requests for documents and keep copies of what you submit.
- Check the applicable filing period separately from any search or investigation; do not treat a search request as an insurance claim.
- If the instructions or tracking details do not fit your shipment, ask the carrier or sender to clarify the service and reporting route.
Describe the discrepancy accurately: tracking says Delivered, but you have not located the package. Avoid assuming that the record alone proves theft, misdelivery, personal receipt, or a legal outcome.
If USPS tracking says Insufficient Address instead
This guide is for a Delivered scan with a missing package. If the newest USPS event says Insufficient Address, use the separate address-error workflow rather than the delivered-package steps above.
USPS Insufficient Address: sender contact, Package Intercept limits, and return steps
Official sources and scope
Guidance checked on September 21, 2026. This comparison uses the U.S. help pages below; service, country, eligibility, and claim-category exceptions still apply. Check the official page when acting.
- USPS: Tracking Status Help — Delivered
- USPS: Missing Mail and Lost Packages
- USPS: Domestic Claims
- UPS: Tracking Support
- UPS: File a Claim
- FedEx: Report a missing expedited-services package
- FedEx: Claims and filing deadlines
This article summarizes carrier guidance, not legal, financial, or insurance advice. BigBears does not guarantee recovery, compensation, or a specific investigation time.