Buyer Says Part of the Order Is Missing: Seller Guide

First check: reconcile the order with the actual parcels

One parcel planned? Read the order lines, listing and promised quantities. Establish exactly which items the buyer says arrived and which are missing.
Actually split? Check the fulfilment record, not just your usual practice. Look for backorders, dispatch from another warehouse and items allocated to a second package.
Multiple tracking numbers? Match every number to its contents and physical acceptance. A second label without handover does not prove a second shipment.
Quantity understood? Compare SKU, size/variant, pack size, listing photographs, accessories and invoice. “Quantity 1” may mean one unit or a listed multipack.
What was picked and packed? Save the pick list, packing list, warehouse scans, original photos/video and any stock discrepancy.
Packaging opened or damaged? Ask for the buyer’s photos of what arrived, inside wrapping, outer packaging, seams and label. Ask them to keep everything.
Weight supports which quantity? Compare actual measurements with the expected goods plus packaging, allowing for weight bands, rounding and scale differences.
Issue already open? Read the marketplace task, reason and response deadline. Answer it while investigating the stock and shipping records.

Incomplete-order diagnostic tree

This guide is for an order where some goods or quantity arrived and some did not. If no purchased goods were inside the delivered package, use the empty-parcel guide. A completely missing second package is a non-delivery investigation for that tracking number, not proof of partial loss from the first.

Work from the order line to the parcel allocation before deciding who caused the shortage.

What exactly is missing: SKU / variant / quantity?

Allocated to another parcel?
Yes → find its tracking and acceptance. Still moving → explain the separate shipment and investigate any delay; no handover → establish whether it was dispatched.
Supposed to be in this parcel?
Compare order quantity, pick/pack records and received contents. An omission before handover calls for a seller or fulfilment correction.
Evidence points to loss after handover?
Preserve packaging and the packing-to-arrival comparison. Notify the booking provider for partial loss without waiting for the marketplace outcome.

Unclear → record the competing explanations, request the missing record and keep the buyer’s issue response moving. Do not label the buyer dishonest because your stock system says “complete”.

Split-shipment checklist

Make a parcel ledger: one row per physical package with allocated order lines, quantities, label, carrier, acceptance date, latest scan and delivery promise.
Verify every handover: match the dispatch manifest or collection receipt to each parcel, including packages sent by a supplier or warehouse.
Check the numbers: two tracking numbers may be a cancelled and replacement label for one parcel. Two boxes may also share a consignment but have separate item references.
Explain the actual allocation: tell the buyer which goods are in each parcel and supply the correct tracking. Do not say “it will arrive tomorrow” without a reliable basis.
Reconcile final receipt: ask which package and goods arrived, not simply whether the order status says delivered. Investigate a missing second parcel independently.
Check the live platform task: supplying a second tracking link in chat may not answer an open refund request. Follow the order workflow too.

Example: an order has three mugs and a print. One parcel contains the mugs; a second accepted parcel contains the print. A photo of three mugs is consistent with that allocation. If the print has no acceptance record, do not treat the label alone as evidence the full order was dispatched.

Packing mistake or transit loss?

These are investigative signals, not automatic findings.
Check	Packing / fulfilment error may fit	Partial transit loss may fit
Pick and pack trail	Missing scan, short pick, unshipped line or stock left at the station.	Contemporaneous packing record identifies all goods in this package before sealing.
Packaging	Intact packaging and an omission consistent with the packing record.	An opening, burst seam, damaged inner wrap or carrier repacking record.
Weight	Measured dispatch weight is consistent with only the goods received.	Comparable measurements suggest a change after acceptance.
Important limitation	A completed warehouse status can be wrong; intact packaging does not prove an omission.	Damage does not prove the specific goods were packed, and similar weights may conceal a shortage.

Other explanations remain possible: an incomplete listing, pack-size misunderstanding, a missing accessory tucked inside other wrapping, a second parcel still travelling, or an error by a fulfilment provider. Ask the buyer to check the wrapping carefully without implying blame.

Got this problem right now?

Run your actual order through ParcelClaim to see your next action, evidence gaps, marketplace/courier routes and deadlines where they can be confirmed.

Start free assessment

Free assessment preview • No account or payment required

Evidence table: prove the quantity, then the handover

Keep original records and identify which order line and parcel each attachment concerns.
Evidence	Question answered	Limit / follow-up
Order lines, SKU, quantity, listing and invoice	What did the buyer purchase, including bundle contents and accessories?	Keep the listing version at sale. A current edited listing may differ; the invoice does not prove fulfilment.
Pick list, packing list and warehouse records	Which goods were allocated, scanned or marked packed, and by whom?	A status is a process record, not necessarily an independent count. Ask the warehouse about discrepancies and audit history.
Packing photos/video and item identifiers	Can the goods and quantities be connected to this label and sealing event?	An unrelated product photo or a video of an open box does not establish the final handover.
Parcel weight and dispatch receipt	Does an actual measurement support the packed quantity and dispatch?	Check whether measured or declared; include packaging. Weight supports an inference, not a precise inventory.
All tracking numbers and acceptance events	Was the order divided and were all packages handed over?	Avoid double-counting replacement labels. One delivered scan cannot prove all packages arrived.
Buyer photos, packaging and contents list	What remained and was any seam or wrapping damaged?	Ask when photos were taken. Photos may not establish when the shortage occurred.
Delivery proof and carrier incident records	Which package reached which location; any recorded loss or repacking?	A closed-box delivery photograph does not count the items inside. Request any available handling record.

Seller decision table: choose the correction and the claim separately

The platform decides its case under its own rules. No one outcome fits every incomplete order.
Cause appears to be	Immediate action	Marketplace action	Courier action
Confirmed seller omission	Acknowledge the missing line and arrange an appropriate correction with the buyer.	Record any agreed missing-item dispatch or refund through the order’s supported process.	Do not claim the omitted goods were lost in transit.
Confirmed split shipment; second parcel moving	Share verified allocation and tracking; investigate any delay.	Answer the live task with both parcel records and relevant delivery promises.	Enquire about the second parcel if required; no partial-loss claim against the first without evidence.
Quantity / listing misunderstanding	Compare the listing at sale with the buyer’s report and clarify the exact disputed quantity.	Provide that record; correct an actual listing or fulfilment error using the proper remedy.	Usually no transit claim unless goods actually went missing after handover.
Warehouse / fulfilment error	Request a pick/pack audit and shortage record from the provider.	Keep handling the customer’s issue; identify who fulfils customer service for this order.	Use the fulfilment contract for its error; carrier recovery needs evidence of loss during carriage.
Likely partial loss after handover	Retain packaging; document packed versus received goods and the missing quantity/value.	Respond to any case and proposed remedy independently of carrier recovery.	Notify the label provider promptly; ask for partial-loss classification and required evidence.
Cause still unresolved	Ask for the one record most likely to distinguish the explanations.	Meet the response deadline with known facts and outstanding enquiries.	Preserve the notification window if transit loss is plausible; state uncertainty honestly.

Possible resolutions include sending the missing goods, a partial refund, a return or full refund in some circumstances, or a marketplace decision. The goods, contract, listing and platform process matter. A missing component can make the remaining product unusable; do not assume refunding one line always resolves that problem. Avoid duplicate reimbursement for the same loss.

Use the platform route for the actual shortage

Depop’s bundle guidance expressly recognises separate parcels and accidental omissions, and describes a missing-item shipment or partial refund request. Its payment-method routing matters. For seller shipping and protection context use the Depop Seller guide; it does not promise protection for a packing mistake.

Vinted’s standard-member Refund Policy covers missing bundle items through its order issue process; Pro purchases have separate terms. Use the Vinted packaging and investigation guide where transit damage is alleged, without importing every damage outcome onto a quantity dispute.

For eBay, Etsy, TikTok Shop or Amazon, use the marketplace routing table in the empty-parcel guide. It points to each existing Seller cluster. Read the actual contents/quantity reason and current task; an INR delivery rule is not a universal answer to a shortage.

Buyer response template

Thanks for the details. I understand you received [items/quantities] but [items/quantities] are missing from order [ID]. I am checking the order lines and which goods were assigned to each package.
Please keep the packaging and wrapping. Could you send a photo of everything received together, the shipping label, and the inside and all sides of the packaging, including any opening or damage?
Our confirmed dispatch records show [facts only, including any separate accepted parcel and tracking]. I am checking [specific unresolved point] and will update you by [date/time]. I will handle any open marketplace request through the order as well.

If an omission is confirmed, replace the investigation sentence with an accurate acknowledgement and the proposed remedy. Do not claim the buyer agreed to a partial refund or replacement before they have done so. Keep the response on the platform and save any agreement and dispatch proof.

Partial courier-loss route

Where the evidence indicates goods were packed and then lost, follow the missing-contents courier claim guide. Identify the contract holder, report the missing quantity rather than the whole order as lost, and keep the retained goods out of the claimed item value. Ask the handler how it classifies an opened package with some contents missing.

The incomplete-order assessment starts with Incomplete order selected. If the facts also indicate loss after handover, select Empty parcel / contents missing as an additional issue in the assessment so the courier questions can be considered. Only select what matches the evidence; the guides do not add new carrier rules to the product.

Use the Royal Mail contract distinctions or Evri booking route for deeper carrier context. If refused, the rejected-claim guide helps match the reason to the missing evidence.

Update the record when the facts change

Second parcel arrives: confirm the actual remaining quantity, tell the case handler and reconcile any refund or replacement already arranged.
Warehouse confirms an omission: correct the buyer’s order and amend any carrier notification that suggested transit loss.
New weight or packaging record appears: compare it with the original parcel ledger; do not rewrite the earlier evidence or exaggerate certainty.
A remedy is processed: record which goods, amount and transaction it covers. Keep a separate record of any provider recovery.
A case is decided: save the reason and any review deadline. A platform finding and a carrier partial-loss decision can differ.

Unlock your complete Seller Case — £6.99 one-off

Get a personalised action plan, evidence checklist, prepared responses and saved case timeline. Record new facts to update your next steps. You review and send responses yourself.

Start free assessment

No subscription • Starts with a free assessment

Sources & policy review

Policy checked: 31 October 2026. UK guidance. Check the terms applying to your actual order and shipping booking.

The diagnostic tree, parcel ledger and decision table are practical tools, not a claim that every platform requires each record or offers the same remedy. Marketplace-specific instructions govern the actual order. ParcelClaim is independent of the marketplaces and carriers.