Royal Mail resources
Royal Mail tracking help
Understand your tracking status and find the recommended action.
Sources reviewed
Royal Mail questions before the next step
Check the booked service, the latest carrier information and the relevant dispatch records before deciding what to do next.
How do I check a Royal Mail fee or redelivery message safely?
Check Royal Mail independently. It does not request underpaid-postage payment by SMS or email: it uses a grey Fee to Pay card. Customs-fee SMS or emails may be sent if the sender supplied your contact details.
Do not open suspicious links or attachments. Forward suspicious emails to report@phishing.gov.uk; report suspicious texts to your mobile provider via 7726, free for most UK providers.
If you supplied banking details, contact your bank promptly using independently obtained contact details. Follow the full guide for exposed passwords, device checks and crime-reporting routes.
- Royal Mail: Scam advice
- NCSC: How to spot a scam email, text message or call
- NCSC: Report a scam text
- NCSC: If you have shared sensitive information
- GOV.UK: Report internet scams and phishing
What should I check after receiving a Royal Mail Fee to Pay notice?
Match the notice to your parcel and distinguish insufficient postage from import charges. Royal Mail may send customs-fee notifications by SMS or email where the sender supplied your contact details; underpaid postage uses a grey fee card. The message alone does not prove authenticity or payment. Open Royal Mail independently and use its Pay a Fee instructions for the item.
For incorrectly calculated import VAT or Customs Duty on a Royal Mail or Parcelforce postal item, check GOV.UK’s BOR286 guidance and current form, which instructs payment before the application. Keep the charge label, declaration and value evidence. Ask Royal Mail about its handling fee or payment administration separately. An application does not guarantee a tax refund or repayment of the handling fee.
- Royal Mail: Pay a Fee
- Royal Mail: Scam Advice — customs and underpaid postage notifications
- GOV.UK: Report incorrect Customs Duty or VAT on items imported by post (BOR286)
- HMRC and Border Force: BOR286 form and evidence requirements
Should I contact Royal Mail or Post Office about my parcel?
Confirm the carrier and where postage was purchased. For a Royal Mail delivery, tracking or lost or damaged mail question, follow the Royal Mail help route for your service and account. Post Office directs postage bought through Parcels Online to that channel’s Help Centre.
For customer service at a Post Office branch, opening hours, queues or Drop & Go, use Post Office support. Label printing, posting and collection options depend on the booked product and location; a Post Office branch, Royal Mail Shop and Parcel Locker are different location types.
- Post Office: Parcels and letters help and support
- Post Office: Royal Mail and Parcelforce posting help
- Royal Mail: Tracked 24 — printing and posting options
- Royal Mail: Redelivery and collection
Does every Royal Mail reference show full journey tracking?
No. The information depends on the booked service. Royal Mail lists Royal Mail 24 and Royal Mail 48 under delivery confirmation; Tracked 24 and Tracked 48 provide tracking.
Ask the sender for the full product name and check the official Track your item result before interpreting missing intermediate updates.
Read the full guide (English)Can I collect or request redelivery after an attempted delivery?
Check the Royal Mail card or notification and the latest tracking information for the holding location and available options. Follow the official redelivery or collection instructions for your item, including the identification or collection code required at that location.
Special Delivery Guaranteed and international signature items cannot be redelivered to another address. Age and ID services are excluded from Royal Mail Shops and Parcel Lockers; signature items are also excluded from Parcel Lockers.
Read the full guide (English)Trouble with the tracking page or reference?
Check the complete message before choosing a parcel issue. These three checks cover page errors, reference details and proof display.
System messages
Royal Mail describes “Internal exception occurred” and “We could not retrieve your details” as system issues and asks you to try again later. These messages alone do not establish a lost parcel or a customs problem.
Official tracking-message explanationsEnglishReference not recognised
Check the number, actual carrier and whether the booked product offers tracking. Ask the actual sender to reconcile the reference with your order, the booked service and the physical handover record; creating a reference does not establish carrier acceptance.
Official reference-number guidanceEnglishProof of delivery is not available
Royal Mail explains that some services do not supply a signature copy, or a signature recorded on a confirmation card may not yet be online. Check the exact product and its official or account support route; this display alone does not establish non-delivery or mean the item was delivered but is missing.
Official proof-display guidanceEnglishThis is our guide to page and reference checks. Use the official event history to investigate the shipment. The general enquiry uses a placeholder template; complete it in your own message. No reference, search text or contact role is added to its URL.
12 / 12 issues shown
Reference not recognised
Check the reference and carrier. A number may exist before the item is submitted to Royal Mail.
What to do next
- Compare with the label or posting receipt.
- Ask the sender to confirm the number, service and physical handover.
Sender preparing / expecting item
Sender advice or label creation does not establish physical Royal Mail acceptance.
What to do next
- Request dispatch and handover evidence from the sender.
- For China–UK parcels, check the upstream movement separately.
Pending
Read the detailed event: pending can describe an early scan gap, a fee or a delivery arrangement.
What to do next
- Open the full official tracking history.
- Check dispatch evidence, delivery cards and any fee notice.
Pending: which records should I check?
Use the complete event history and your own notices or request records to choose an enquiry. Pending alone does not establish a cause or parcel location, and these checks do not cover every possible situation.
Initial processing or handover to check
If no initial acceptance is recorded, check the sender’s dispatch and handover records against the full event history. The official page describes awaiting processing among possible contexts; a prepared label or international departure alone does not confirm Royal Mail receipt. Keep any earlier carrier events.
Prepare a sender and handover enquiryOfficial guidanceEnglishA fee notice to check
If the event or notice mentions a fee, read the complete notice and confirm it through the carrier’s official guidance. The fee can concern unpaid postage or customs; Pending alone does not identify which applies.
Prepare a fee-notice enquiryOfficial guidanceEnglishCollection or redelivery records to check
If the actual notice or booking concerns collection or redelivery, compare it with the latest dated scan. A request confirmation is separate from completion. For Keepsafe, Redirection or another unclear arrangement, use the Pending enquiry below.
Prepare a redelivery enquiryOfficial guidanceEnglishThe context is still unclear
If the complete history does not establish one of these contexts, keep the exact Pending wording, last dated event and order-to-reference mapping together. Prepare a Pending enquiry and ask the actual sender or booking team which record needs checking.
Prepare a Pending enquiryOfficial guidanceEnglishThese are our enquiry preparation suggestions. Choose an action that fits your actual records; opening this panel does not choose an issue or send a message. Keep supporting records private.
No new tracking updates
The available scan history depends on the product. Delivery confirmation differs from full tracking.
What to do next
- Confirm the exact booked product.
- Compare the last event and posting date with that service’s guidance.
In transit / on its way
The parcel is moving through the network; this message can cover several journey stages.
What to do next
- Read the latest dated carrier event.
- Give the sender the reference and last event if the delivery aim has passed.
Ready for delivery
Royal Mail reports that the item has reached its local delivery office.
What to do next
- Check the next delivery or attempted-delivery event.
- Mention Redirection, Keepsafe or access arrangements in an enquiry.
Delivered, but cannot be found
Review the address and available delivery evidence with the recipient.
What to do next
- Check household members, neighbours, Safeplace, reception and the post room.
- Royal Mail advises allowing an extra day for a same-day disputed scan before contacting it.
Delivery attempted / inaccessible
The item may need another attempt or collection; access conditions can prevent delivery.
What to do next
- Read the Something for you card or official notification.
- Check entry access and choose the available collection or redelivery option.
Redelivery or collection
A booking or preparation event confirms an arrangement, not completed delivery.
What to do next
- Keep the booking details and check the holding location.
- Follow the parcel-specific notice period, identification and service exceptions.
In customs / fee to pay
Separate customs processing, import charges and insufficient postage. A fee notice needs its own checks.
What to do next
- Verify the notice and fee category through Royal Mail directly.
- Check who agreed to pay taxes, duties and handling charges.
Returned to sender / Returns Centre
Undeliverable or uncollected mail can be returned. Missing return details can lead to the National Returns Centre.
What to do next
- Ask the booking sender to check the reason and return address.
- Confirm receipt and correct the issue before arranging a new shipment.
International movement / UK handover
An overseas shipment may have separate origin, international and UK delivery records.
What to do next
- Request the upstream reference and last confirmed event.
- Ask for Royal Mail acceptance evidence instead of inferring it from label creation.
Prepare a useful tracking enquiry
Gather the records below before contacting the sender or your shipping partner. Tick what you have; the template contains placeholders for you to fill in your own message.
0 / 6 marked ready · self-review
Request template
The template includes your self-review marks. They do not attach documents or verify evidence. Complete the placeholders and attach the appropriate records yourself.
Only the public issue choice is saved in the page URL. Checklist marks stay in page memory. Copying puts the template on your device clipboard. WhatsApp opens without a prefilled message and sends nothing automatically; paste and send your completed message yourself. For another sender’s shipment, contact that sender or the official carrier support.
Read a practical guide
Royal Mail delivery texts and emails: verify fees, redelivery and suspicious links
Check Royal Mail fee and redelivery messages independently, use the current reporting routes, and respond according to whether you clicked or shared sensitive information.
tracking · 4 minRoyal Mail Fee to Pay: check the notice, charge and enquiry route
Check a Royal Mail fee notice, distinguish postage shortfalls from import charges, reach the official payment service and route tax or carrier-fee queries.
tracking · 4 minRoyal Mail tracking reference and display errors: what to check next
Separate an unrecognised reference, tracking system errors and unavailable delivery evidence before investigating a China–UK parcel.
tracking · 5 minRoyal Mail Pending tracking: check the event before choosing the next step
Read Pending alongside the actual carrier history, fee notice and delivery arrangement, then prepare the right enquiry for a China–UK parcel.
tracking · 5 minRoyal Mail “sender preparing item”: what China–UK sellers should check
Reconcile warehouse, air-movement and Royal Mail references, request the missing handover evidence, and give customers a factual China–UK dispatch update.
tracking · 5 minRoyal Mail tracking not updating: a practical enquiry workflow
Separate scan coverage, China–UK movement, Royal Mail acceptance and enquiry ownership when tracking stays unchanged.
tracking · 4 minRoyal Mail says delivered, but the customer cannot find the parcel
A calm evidence checklist for sellers handling a missing parcel after a delivered scan, photo or signature.
tracking · 5 minMissed Royal Mail delivery: redelivery, collection and Safeplace explained
Understand delivery attempts and choose the next available action without confusing a booking confirmation with a completed redelivery.
tracking · 4 minChange Royal Mail delivery options after dispatch: a seller and recipient guide
Use eligible in-flight choices, distinguish saved App preferences from parcel requests, and connect delivery evidence with China–UK merchant support.