How much tracking you get depends on the service
Not every Royal Mail item is tracked the same way. Tracked 24 and Tracked 48 parcels show the full journey. Special Delivery Guaranteed is tracked from end to end as well. Signed For items generally only confirm delivery, so seeing nothing until the day it arrives is normal for those.
Ordinary first and second class post is not tracked at all. If a retailer gave you a number for one of those, it may be a reference for their own system and not something Royal Mail's tracking will recognise.
Royal Mail tracking statuses and what they mean
Royal Mail adjusts its wording from time to time, so yours may read slightly differently. The stage is what matters.
| Status | What it means | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| Sender preparing item, or sender despatching item | The sender has created a label and told Royal Mail to expect the parcel. Royal Mail does not have it yet. | Wait. If it has not moved after a few working days, ask the retailer when it was handed over. |
| We've got it, or accepted at a Post Office | Royal Mail has the parcel and it has been scanned into the network. | Nothing. This is the point from which delivery options, such as collecting from a Post Office, can start to appear. |
| Item received at, or leaving, a mail centre | The parcel is being sorted and moved across the country. | Nothing. A parcel can pass through more than one mail centre. |
| Arrived at the delivery office, or ready for delivery | It has reached the local office that delivers to your address. | Expect it on the next delivery round. |
| Due to be delivered today, or out for delivery | It is with the postie for today's round. | Be in if you can. Options to change the delivery have usually closed by now. |
| Delivered | It was delivered to the address. The entry may say it went to a neighbour or your chosen Safeplace, and may include a photo or signature. | Check the detail line if you cannot find it. |
| Delivery attempted, or sorry we missed you | Nobody was in and the parcel could not be left. A card should have been put through the door. | Arrange a redelivery or collect it, using the card or Royal Mail's site. Parcels are only held for a limited time. |
| Available for collection | The parcel is waiting at a delivery office, Post Office or Parcel Shop. | Collect it with photo ID and the tracking number or card. |
| Returning to sender, or returned to sender | It could not be delivered or was not collected in time, and is going back. | Contact the retailer about a refund or a resend. |
When tracking has not updated
The most common worry is a parcel stuck at the first status. That gap is usually between the retailer printing a label and actually handing the parcel over, and during a busy release it can be a day or two. It does not mean the parcel is lost, because Royal Mail has not had it yet.
A parcel that goes quiet after Royal Mail has it is different. Tracked 24 and Tracked 48 are aims, not guarantees, and a day or two over is common around bank holidays and peak periods. If nothing has changed for several working days, contact the retailer. The sender is Royal Mail's customer, so the sender is the one who can raise a claim.
Marked delivered but nothing has arrived
Start with the tracking detail. It often shows whether the parcel went to a neighbour or a Safeplace, and sometimes includes a photo. Check with neighbours, look in the places a postie might reasonably leave it, and look for a card.
If it still has not turned up, tell the retailer promptly. Your contract is with them, and they are responsible for getting the goods to you. Give them the tracking number and what the tracking shows.
Changing where a parcel goes
For many tracked parcels, the recipient can choose to collect from a Post Office or Parcel Shop instead of waiting in. The option only shows once Royal Mail has the parcel, and it closes once the parcel is out for delivery. Our guide to redirecting a Royal Mail parcel to a Post Office covers how it works and what you need.
Keeping up with more than one parcel
Reading statuses is simple for one parcel and tedious for twenty. If you have several on the way, with Royal Mail and other couriers, put them in one list so you can see at a glance which are moving and which have gone quiet. Minted's parcel tracker shows every parcel's latest status in one place and tells you when one changes.