How To Solve Common Delivery Issues
13 May 2025 | Editor's Pick | Most Popular | Parcel Deliveries
Author: Parcel2Go.com
Because of the popularity of online shopping, more and more parcels are being delivered each year.
Most parcels will arrive on time, but when something goes wrong, it can be a frustrating experience.
What Are the Top 4 Most Common Delivery Issues?
Let’s look at the most common issues that can affect your deliveries and how you can resolve them.
1. Wrong address or missing details
It’s easy to make a mistake, but small errors like typos or missing information, such as house numbers or postcodes, can lead to delayed or missed deliveries.
How to avoid delivery issues:
One of our top shipping tips is to check the delivery address before you complete your booking.
You can use our handy postcode and address finder to do this. With this helpful tool, you can search up to 20 addresses per day completely free and can even use its Google Maps functionality to make finding the right address even easier.
If you notice you’ve made a mistake with the delivery address after you confirm your booking, or you want to change address details completely, most couriers will allow you to do this ‘in-flight’.
2. Parcel delayed in transit
Experiencing delivery delays can be frustrating, particularly when the item is needed urgently, such as a birthday gift.
High parcel volumes during peak delivery times, adverse weather, and inefficient route planning can all cause deliveries to be late.
How to avoid delayed deliveries:
Consider upgrading to express delivery or timed services if you need to receive your parcel by a specific date.
Send your parcels early during peak times such as Christmas and Black Friday.
Pick a reliable courier through Parcel2Go. We’re proud to work with the UK’s best couriers such as Royal Mail, Evri, Parcelforce, so you can be confident your parcel will arrive when you need it to.
What to do if your delivery hasn't arrived
If your parcel hasn’t arrived when expected, the best thing to do is to check your updated tracking information.
Every time you book with Parcel2Go, you’ll get accurate parcel tracking included, which is ideal for checking the location of your shipment from the start of its journey to the end. See our guide to tracking your parcel to make things easier!
3. Missing parcel(s)
Our couriers will always do their best to deliver your parcels, but sometimes packages can get lost.
It's very unlikely your parcel will be lost, but if you're shipping something extra valuable or time sensitive, you'll want the confidence in knowing your delivery is safe.
Use a recorded service to add extra security on your delivery.
Consider adding parcel protection to your shipment. With coverage options up to £10,000, it’s a smart way to safeguard your valuables.
Make sure the address details are correct. You can usually change the address before delivery if needed.
Always attach the shipping labels securely to your packages. You can also provide a return address, if possible.
Is Parcel Protection worth it?
If you’re sending valuable items, you might want to add Parcel Protection to your order to cover you in the unlikely event that anything happens.
Our Parcel Protection covers you against lost, damaged, or stolen parcels, and you can protect your parcel up to a value of £10,000. Want to learn more? See if parcel protection is worth it.
What to do if your parcel is lost
We can help if you have a lost parcel.
If your expected delivery date has passed, contact us to start an investigation and file a missing parcel claim.
4. Failed delivery attempts
Although our couriers will always do their best to deliver your parcel, failed deliveries can happen because there is no-one at the property to accept the parcel, or the delivery requires a signature.
How to avoid failed delivery attempts:
Parcel tracking is free with every booking made with Parcel2Go and can help to plan when someone needs to be in to receive a delivery.
You can arrange for parcels to be delivered to a safe place or a neighbour.
You can choose to collect your parcel from a local drop-shop, locker, or local depot.
What to do if your delivery hasn’t arrived
Most couriers will attempt to redeliver your parcel the next working day if you’re not in. Others might leave a card explaining how you can rebook your delivery.
If your parcel hasn’t arrived, you can also let us know via our Help Centre on our Self-Service panel.