When a parcel arrives with damage or an apparent missing item, the useful first task is preserving evidence. A delivery scan does not describe the condition of every item inside; a photograph of an empty space does not by itself establish where a loss occurred.
A Reddit discussion about a missing item prompted this checklist. We cannot verify that parcel or assign responsibility. The aim is to make your own report sufficiently specific for the responsible service to investigate.
Preserve the parcel as received
Keep the outer packaging, labels, inserts and affected contents. Photograph the outside before discarding or altering anything important. If you have an opening video, preserve the original file; do not treat it as the only possible evidence or assume it guarantees a claim.
UPS’s claims guidance asks customers to keep damaged contents and packaging. It describes photos of the damaged item in its packaging, the label and the outside of the parcel, along with the relevant invoice and dimensions. These are useful documentation categories, although your carrier may ask for different material.
Separate the issue you are reporting
- External damage: show where the box, seal or protective material is affected.
- Item damage: identify the item and show its condition, including the relevant packaging.
- Missing contents: compare what you received with the parcel’s saved contents record.
- Delivered but not located: preserve the carrier’s delivery event and any available delivery-location information.
If warehouse packing images are available, save them with the same parcel reference. Distinguish those from seller listing photos, which cannot show what was placed in your dispatched box.
Send an indexed evidence record
Use a short inventory rather than a large unexplained image dump. For example, “label,” “outer-box damage,” “contents as opened” and “affected item close-up” are easier to reference during follow-up.
Example message:
Parcel [ID], tracking [number], recorded as delivered on [date/time]. The issue is [damage/missing contents/not located]. Expected contents were [record]; received contents were [record]. Attached evidence is labelled [list]. Please confirm the investigation process, who submits any carrier claim and the applicable deadline.
This template does not assert liability or a compensation amount.
Identify the correct claims route
Ask the service that arranged the shipment whether you or the shipper must submit the carrier claim. UPS notes that account restrictions can affect who may initiate a claim and that recipients may need to obtain updates through the shipper. Do not copy a deadline from another country’s carrier page into your own contract.
Keep the case reference, requested documents and follow-up dates. A later refund question should use the investigation outcome and transaction records; see the separate refund and withdrawal article.
Check the evidence
Sources & scope
Reviewed 3 November 2026. Carrier guidance applies to that carrier’s service. Community posts identify questions people have raised; their accounts and outcomes have not been independently verified.
- Official guidanceUPS — File a Claim
Supports retaining contents and packaging, invoices, labels and damage photos. UPS deadlines and eligibility must not be applied automatically to another carrier or agent contract.
- Community discussionReddit — report of an item missing from a delivered parcel
Unverified report used to identify the practical question, not to establish who caused a loss or whether compensation was owed.