What to Do If Your Package Is Lost

A package that hasn't arrived is stressful, but "hasn't arrived yet" and "lost" are two different things. Most packages that seem missing are simply between scans, sitting at a facility, or marked delivered a day before they actually show up. Before you assume the worst, work through a short checklist. It'll either recover the package or set you up to get your money back cleanly.

Step 1: Confirm it's actually lost

Give the timeline an honest read before acting. A few common situations look like a loss but aren't:

• No scans for a few days — packages routinely go quiet in transit, especially on ground and economy services or during customs on international shipments. This alone isn't loss.
• "Delivered" but not in hand — carriers sometimes scan a package delivered up to a day before it arrives, or leave it in an unexpected spot (side door, garage, with a neighbor, at a parcel locker).
• Estimated date passed — estimates are estimates. A day or two late is normal.

Start by pulling the full history in one place. Paste the number into PackageTrackNow to see every scan, including handoffs between carriers that individual carrier sites sometimes hide. If the last scan is recent and moving toward you, it's probably fine. Our guide on why tracking updates get delayed explains what the quiet stretches mean.

Step 2: If it says "delivered" but you don't have it

This is the most common false alarm, so handle it specifically:

1. Wait up to 24 hours. Some packages are scanned before the truck reaches you.
2. Search around your property — porch, side and back doors, garage, bushes, mailroom, parcel lockers, and with a building manager.
3. Ask household members and neighbors. Misdeliveries to a nearby address are frequent.
4. Check the delivery scan details. USPS, UPS, and FedEx often record the location or a photo. If the photo shows a door that isn't yours, it was misdelivered.

If a day passes and it's genuinely not there, move on to contacting the carrier and seller.

Step 3: Contact the carrier

Each carrier has a formal path to report a missing package:

• USPS — submit a Missing Mail search request after 7 days from the mailing date. USPS will try to locate it in their network. See our USPS tracking hub for the details.
• UPS — open a lost-package case or claim; UPS typically runs a package search before approving a claim. Details on our UPS hub.
• FedEx — file a claim or report the missing package through customer support. See the FedEx hub.

Have the tracking number, the ship date, a description of the contents, and the value ready before you start.

Step 4: Contact the seller or shipper

Here's the part people skip, and it matters: if you bought something, the seller is responsible for getting it to you, not you. The shipping contract is between the sender and the carrier. So even when the carrier lost it, your fastest resolution is usually through the seller, who can reship, refund, or file the claim themselves (they're the ones who paid for shipping and often hold the insurance).

Contact the seller, state clearly that the package hasn't arrived, and reference the tracking status. Reputable retailers and marketplaces resolve these quickly because they can reclaim the loss from the carrier.

Step 5: Use buyer protection

If the seller won't help, your payment method is your backstop:

• Amazon — the A-to-z Guarantee covers items that don't arrive.
• eBay — the Money Back Guarantee covers non-delivery; open a case from the order.
• PayPal — Purchase Protection covers "item not received" disputes.
• Credit card — you can dispute a charge for goods you never received (a chargeback), usually within 60–120 days.

These programs have deadlines, so don't wait months. Open the case while you're still within the window.

Step 6: File a claim if the item was insured

If you were the shipper, or the item was declared with insurance, you may be able to recover the value directly from the carrier. Claim windows and requirements vary by carrier, and the process has specific documentation needs. We walk through it in detail in how to file a claim for a lost or damaged package.

What to keep on hand

Whatever path you take, gather this before you file anything:

• The tracking number and a screenshot of the full tracking history.
• The order confirmation or receipt showing what you paid.
• A description and value of the contents.
• Any delivery photo or scan detail from the carrier.
• Dates: when it shipped, the estimated delivery, and when you first reported it.

A realistic timeline

Don't panic on day one, but don't wait forever either. A reasonable rhythm: give a domestic package a few days past its estimate, open a carrier search around the 7-day mark for USPS, contact the seller in parallel, and escalate to buyer protection if there's no resolution within a week or two of reporting. International shipments deserve more patience, often 2–3 weeks past the estimate, because of customs and long transit gaps.

The takeaway

Most "lost" packages aren't. Confirm the status in one full timeline, rule out an early "delivered" scan and misdelivery, then work two tracks at once: a carrier search request and a message to the seller, who is the one actually responsible for delivering your order. Keep your tracking and receipt handy, and lean on buyer protection if the seller goes quiet.