Shipment delayed beyond expected delivery - Operational Scenarios

What's happening

A shipment has been marked as "shipped" and tracking shows it in transit, but the expected delivery date has passed. The customer is either asking for an update or will be soon. The carrier is not showing delivery exceptions in their system, but the package has not moved in several days.

Signals you're in trouble

Customers asking "where is my order?" before you reach out
Support ticket volume spiking 3–5 days after expected delivery dates
Carriers showing "in transit" for 7+ days without internal acknowledgment
Team assuming shipment = delivery
No documented process for when labels are generated but packages are not scanned
Support metrics showing high "first response time" but low "resolution rate"

Questions worth asking

Whether anyone can answer how many days typically pass between "shipped" and the first proactive message
If there is visibility into which orders are past their expected delivery window
Whether delayed shipments trigger internal alerts before customer complaints
Who has explicit responsibility for deciding when to issue refunds versus wait longer
If weekend or holiday delays are accounted for in communication timing

Related operator insights

"The most expensive order is the one you have to ship twice."

— Ops Manager

"Customers forgive mistakes, they don't forgive silence."

— CX Head