Return to sender meaning on tracking information explained

What can be more painful buying a product online and upon tracking the item what you saw on your dashboard is return to sender.

The answer is very clear and simple, but where the question lies is the reason why such happened.

Why did the delivery company sent my package back to the sender? Honestly, you can never tell but I have some of the major reasons why you happen to see return to sender on your tracking information.

For those that are yet to understand the meaning, you need not to worry as I will explain everything in details and also why you are seeing such shipping term on your tracking information.

Returned to sender meaning

What does Returned to sender mean?

Return to sender simply means that your package has been sent back by the delivery company to where it is coming from or the country of origin because of various reasons which includes package being damaged, couldn’t locate the recipient, the package is contraband, etc.

If you are desperate in need of the item, return to sender will be the last thing you would want to see on your tracking information. However, you can’t necessarily put the blame on the delivery company because majorly it isn’t there fault.

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Now let me explain the reasons that warrant returned to the shipper term on your package.

1. The item is contraband

This is usually the case where by you bought an item from another country and upon reaching the destination country and custom clearance, the item deemed not worthy to enter the country.

Right away it will be marked contraband and returned back to the sender or country of origin. Most times when an item is marked contraband, it won’t be returned back to the sender or shipper but rather it will be destroyed by the custom officers.

This depends on a country’s customs and norms.

2. The item has been damaged

This is the second major reason why a product will be returned back to the sender, the delivery company seeing that the item has already been damaged prior to reaching their sorting center.

Mostly the delivery company will never send the item which has been damaged to the recipient cause they might be blamed for it, instead they will return it back to the sender or straight to the country of origin.

3. The delivery company couldn’t locate your address

Most times when a delivery company can’t seem to locate the address of a recipient, they tends to drop the item to any of the nearest local post office.

However, this isn’t applied to all delivery company as some will return the package back to the sender or shipper. This is why it is recommended to give an address that can be located or better still use the address of any of the nearest local post office if you’re living in a remote environment.

4. The delivery company couldn’t contact the recipient

This is another major case when it comes returning a package back to the sender, the delivery company on multiple occasions tried every possible means to reach out to the recipient but all to no avail especially if the package requires a signature.

Once they tried up to four to six times but couldn’t deliver your item, they will return the item back to the sorting facility and from the sorting facility the item will be sent back to the sender or shipper.

I’ve experienced this before where a delivery personnel claimed to have tried to reach me on multiple occasions but failed and instead he returned the package back to the sorting center.

When i contacted the seller and the seller tracked the item and further contacted the delivery company, they claimed to they tried to deliver my package but I wasn’t available and the item requires a signature.

But the truth is that I was home all throughout the days I saw my package was out for delivery.

The truth is the delivery personnel never came to my house to deliver my item because my house is pretty much far or outskirt of the town, and what he did is to scan the item failed delivery.

This is what some of the delivery personnel do especially if you are living in a remote environment or outskirt of the city.

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What to do after seeing returned to shipper on tracking number

Upon checking your item and you saw return to sender, what you should be thinking is the next step to take and which is to immediately contact the delivery company as to know why your package will be returned to the seller.

Depending on the situation the delivery company will explain the situation and if possible they will try to deliver to package to you.

This is usually the case or the delivery personnel trying to reach you or deliver the item but couldn’t because of one reason or the other. Once you called the delivery company, they will this time come and deliver your package or sometimes drop it off at the local post office and request you should go there and pickup your item.

If it is possible to pick-up an item from the delivery sorting center, the will request you go there and pick up your item.

Another thing to do is to contact the seller especially if the delivery company has already returned the item to the seller. If you still fancy to have the item, kindly request the seller should resend the item using another delivery company, if not wait and get your full refund of the money you paid for the item.

return to sender

If a package is returned to sender can you resend?

A seller can resend a returned package but it will be according to the recipient request, if not the seller will only refund the recipient the full amount paid for the item.

If after seeing return to sender on your tracking number but you really want to have the item, just contact the seller if the delivery company already returned the item, and request for the seller to resend the item.

What is Missed delivery returned to sender

This occurs when a delivery personnel tries to deliver an item on multiple occasions especially item that requires a signature but couldn’t because the recipient wasn’t available during the time of delivery.

But if you ask me, I will say that some mischievous and delivery personnel will claim to have tried to deliver your item on multiple occasions but failed, while in reality they never reach your house to deliver your item.

When you see missed delivery returned to sender, immediately contact the delivery company and book a delivery date with them.

If they have already dispatch the item back to the sender, then you have to contact the seller/seller and request your item should be resent to you and this time using another delivery company.

What happens when a package is returned to sender?

When a package is returned to sender especially in terms of shopping online, the sender will receive the package and in turn refund you the total amount paid for the item after confirming to have received the item.

If the seller didn’t receive the returned item, the seller won’t refund your the amount which you paid for the item. In this case, the item or the package is deemed to be lost in transit.

Does Return to Sender have tracking?

The answer no. Return to sender has can’t be tracked anymore but in this type of situation you can only contact the sender or the seller as to know the info about the item.

This is one of the difficulties in online shopping or returning an item back to the seller. You can no longer keep track of the item as to know when the sender or the seller has received the item.

In this type of situation, you can only contact the online store customer service or the seller to know the latest development about the returned item.

Who pays postage on return to sender?

Return to sender is done for free as both the recipient and the sender won’t pay any fee at all. However, if you as the recipient is returning the item in your own will, you the recipient will have to pay the cost of returning the item back to the sender.

This usually gets worse if you are returning the item to a seller from another country.

For example, you received an item and upon opening it you saw that the item has already been damaged or there’s a fault with the item.

You are not satisfied at all with the product and you chose to have it returned back to the sender. In this type of situation, you will have to pay the cost of sending the item back to the sender, the online store or the seller.

But if an item is marked return to sender, and which means you as the recipient didn’t receive the item, you won’t bear the cost of having the item returned back to the sender or the seller.

Will I get a refund if I refuse a package?

Definitely you will get a refund as long as the item or the package is returned in good shape and within the stated time frame, and also you have a valid reason of returning the item, you will receive the full amount paid for the item.

But hey, you don’t have to be mischievous using an item for few days and having it returned back to the seller.

That’s the very bad of you and will create a bad impression of you.

Why I’m saying this is because I’ve seen a buyer that will buy a gown, and will wear the gown to a wedding or event without removing the label, after everything she will return the gown claiming that the gown didn’t look like as it was advertised on the sales page.

That’s very bad and you shouldn’t be doing such.

That’s all I have to explain on returned to sender meaning on tracking information. So it you have your shipping method as dhl, FedEx, UPS, USPS, Aramex, etc, kindly note that return to sender means your item or package has been sent back to where it is coming because of one reason or the other.

About Kennedy

I'm Amaechi Uchenna by name, a mobile tech enthusiast who love writing articles about tips and tutorials especially relating to gadgets.

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