Customer Says an Item Was Missing From Their Order? Here's What to Do

A missing item claim usually arrives as one line: "hi I got my order but so and so item was missing please send it thanks". That's how one owner on r/smallbusiness described the email they keep getting, and they were sure the items weren't missing. A merchant on the Shopify forum sees it the other way: "if someone is missing something it's typically someone ordered 2 of something and only got 1". Both can be true in the same week, which is the annoying bit. You have to answer both without insulting the honest ones.

Can an AI agent deal with missing item claims without refunding everyone?#

Yes, as long as your playbook says which cases need a person. The agent looks up the order, asks for a photo, reads the photo when it arrives, and drafts the refund for your approval. Anything your playbook marks for a person goes to your team.

The playbook is where you write down what you'd do yourself: a first claim on a two-item order gets sorted, a third claim this year gets a person.

What to check before you reply#

• The order lines against the packing record. Was the item actually on the order, and did someone tick it off when packing?
• A split shipment. If the order went out in two parcels, the missing item may still be on its way.
• The weight, if your carrier records it. A parcel that weighed what one item weighs tells you something.
• The customer's past claims. One claim is a packing mistake until shown otherwise. Three in a few months is a pattern.

What to ask the customer for#

Ask for a photo of the box, the shipping label and the packing slip, and say why: it helps you check whether the order shipped in two parcels, and it gets them sorted faster.

The wording of the claim tells you something too. The same merchant on the Shopify forum also wrote: "Nobody ever emails me with a missing item immediately wanting a refund, they always want the product they ordered". So I'd read it this way: a customer who asks for the item is usually just missing the item, and one who goes straight to the refund deserves a closer look. That's a signal, though, not proof.

First claim, repeat claim, empty box#

• First claim, and the photo matches. Resend the item or refund it, whichever the customer wants.
• Split shipment. Send the tracking link for the second parcel and a date.
• Repeat claim. Pass it to a person, who checks the packing record before anyone replies with a fix.
• Empty box. Ask for photos of the box, the tape and the label, ask the customer to keep the packaging, and open a claim with the carrier. Claim windows can be short. USPS gives you 60 days from mailing for missing contents, and Royal Mail gives 80 days from posting for a lost UK item, so open it early.

How do I handle missing item claims without losing money?#

Resend when you have stock. They ordered the item, so that's usually what they want. Refund when you're out of stock, or when the item costs less than the postage to send it again.

If the parcel was lost or opened in transit, the carrier claim is usually yours to make. In the UK and EU, the goods stay at your risk until the customer has them, but check your carrier's rules on who can claim. Don't send the customer off to argue with the courier. And keep the conversation either way. If the customer goes to their bank later, what they told you and when is part of your case. We cover that in chargeback evidence from customer conversations.

How Hay.chat handles a missing item message#

Hay.chat looks up the order in your store, checks what was on it and how it shipped, then asks the customer for a photo. It reads the photo when it comes in. If your playbook says to refund, the refund waits for a person on your team to approve it by default. Anything your playbook marks for a person goes to your team.

Hay.chat

Online

Hi, my order came today but the candle holder wasn't in the box.

Checking order #2291. 2 items, 1 parcel, delivered today

Sorry about that. Could you send me a photo of the box and the packing slip? Then I'll get it sorted.

Here you go.

Reading your missing item playbook

Thanks, that helps. The candle holder wasn't packed, so I'll refund it to your card. You'll get a confirmation once the team has approved it.

Drafted for your approval Approve Reject

If you'd rather write the replies yourself, our missing item reply templates cover a first claim, a second parcel, an empty box and a repeat claim.

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Frequently asked questions#