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Australia Post tracking status

Australia Post says delivered but no parcel: what to do

The short answer

Take action

Tracking says delivered, but you do not have the parcel. It is often in a safe place at your address or with someone there, so check the delivery photo first and search the same day.

When to act: If you cannot find the parcel by the end of the next business day, file a complaint and we send it to Australia Post.

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Tell me what happened. I write your complaint with you and we send it to Australia Post.

Also shown as: “Delivered” · “Delivered - Left in a safe place” · “Your parcel has been delivered”

What to do now

  1. Open the AusPost app, tap 'See where we left it' and compare the door, fence or house number in the photo with yours.

  2. Look in the mailbox, under or behind nearby objects, and around the front of the property.

  3. Ask the people you live with and your neighbours. In an apartment block or workplace, check reception and the mail room.

  4. Compare the delivery address on your order with your real address.

  5. Save screenshots of the tracking and the photo, plus any doorbell camera recording from the delivery time.

  6. Still not sorted? File your complaint here. We write it with you and send it to Australia Post, so you do not have to chase it yourself.

    Start my complaint

Says delivered, but it is not here with another courier

Tracking says delivered but nothing arrived: who is responsible? →

What is going on

'Delivered' means the driver scanned the parcel as handed over or left. 'Delivered - Left in a safe place' means nobody signed and the driver chose a spot, which can be the front door or porch, the mailbox, a carport or verandah, or by the side gate. When a driver leaves a parcel in a safe place, they usually photograph the spot, and the AusPost app shows it under 'See where we left it'. In one shared case, the photo showed only the general area, not the parcel.

If the parcel is not there, it may be hidden, taken in by someone, in a mail room, at the wrong address, or taken after delivery. Australia Post says that under its Safe Drop terms it cannot be held liable for a parcel that goes missing after being left in an approved safe place.

Why it happens

  • Left in the mailbox, under or behind something, or around the front of the property
  • Someone at your address took it in
  • Left at reception or in a mail room at an apartment block or workplace
  • Workplace mail redirected to a PO Box
  • Delivered to the wrong address
  • The address on the order was wrong
  • Taken after it was left

What usually happens next

Australia Post publishes no waiting time for this, so check straight away. If the photo shows another address, or there is no photo and you cannot find the parcel, it needs looking into. If you bought from a business, it is in most cases for the seller to put right if the parcel never reached you.

Other Australia Post statuses

All Australia Post statuses →

Who is responsible for a late or missing parcel from Australia Post?

If you bought online from a business, it is in most cases for the seller to put right. The Australian Consumer Law (section 36) says a business that took your payment must supply the goods within the time it stated, or a reasonable time if it stated none, unless the failure was due to someone else or a cause beyond its control and it took reasonable precautions and due diligence to avoid it. A seller may argue that a failure by Australia Post falls under that exception. Section 36 does not itself set out a refund, and the Australian Consumer Law does not say in so many words who carries the risk of a parcel lost in the post. Government guidance in Victoria and Western Australia says the seller is responsible for resolving delivery problems with Australia Post, and that you are entitled to a refund if the seller still does not deliver. State sale of goods law and the seller's terms can also matter and are not covered here. Australia Post generally pays the sender for a lost domestic parcel, but its terms leave the claim with the addressee, up to $100, on parcels a business lodges under Business Standard or Business Express Delivery.

If you posted the parcel yourself, you have a contract with Australia Post, and its General Terms and Conditions apply. Most parcel services include compensation of up to $100 plus a refund of the postage when a parcel is lost or damaged and Australia Post is at fault, and Extra Cover bought when posting can raise that. It pays nothing for delays, except a refund of the postage when Express Post misses its next business day guarantee. Its terms say any rights you have under the Australian Consumer Law apply in addition to them.

Questions about “Delivered but not received”

Why does AusPost say delivered when I don't have my parcel?

The driver scanned it as delivered, and it is often in a safe place or with someone at your address. Less often it went to the wrong address or was taken after delivery. The delivery photo, if there is one, shows where it was left.

What do I do if AusPost delivered to the wrong address?

If the photo shows a house you recognise, ask there, and check the address on your order. If you cannot find the parcel by the end of the next business day, file a complaint on Complain.biz and we send it to Australia Post.

Is Australia Post responsible if a parcel is stolen from a safe place?

Australia Post says that under its Safe Drop terms it cannot be held liable once a parcel left in an approved safe place goes missing or is damaged, and its terms exclude compensation for loss after delivery. Whether the seller replaces it depends on the facts of your order.

Does Australia Post always take a delivery photo?

Not always. Australia Post says drivers usually photograph the spot when they leave a parcel in a safe place, and that a photo may not exist. Where there is one, the AusPost app is the easiest place to see it.

Based on

  • Australia Post help: Delivered status but parcel not received (what to check, photo)
  • Australia Post help: Left in unsafe place (Safe Drop, liability)
  • Australia Post: Improving your customers' tracking experience ('Delivered - Left in a safe place')
  • Australia Post: Parcels in transit (safe places)
  • Australia Post: Trusted tracking and notifications guide ('See where we left it')
  • Australia Post: Lost or late items (what to check first)
  • Australia Post General Terms and Conditions, clause 3.7 (no compensation for loss after delivery)
  • OzBargain: a customer's shared case of a parcel scanned as delivered (the delivery photo)
  • Australian Consumer Law (Competition and Consumer Act, Schedule 2), section 36: supply within the stated period or a reasonable time
  • Government of Victoria: Products missing or damaged in transit (the seller resolves delivery problems, refund if the goods are not supplied)
  • Government of Western Australia: Missing or damaged products (the seller resolves delivery problems, refund if the goods are not delivered)
  • Australia Post General Terms and Conditions, clauses 3.1 to 3.8 (delays, lost items, included compensation, claims by addressees on business parcels)
  • Australia Post: Compensation (generally who is paid, amounts, Express Post refund)

Parcel still not here?
File a complaint about Australia Post.

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