UPS (United Parcel Service): item arrived damaged or defective
Keep the item and all packaging, photograph it, and open a damage claim within 30 days of receipt (60 days from scheduled delivery is the outer limit).
What does this mean?
Grade B (good: mostly official pages; check the flagged values before relying on them). 98% of 40 sources are the organization's own pages or government sites; 3 value(s) were read from a search snippet or an archive copy.
Collect
- tracking number
- photos of the item and the box
- the item and packaging
- invoice or receipt
- merchandise description
Steps
Keep the contents and the packaging. Photograph the damage and the box before discarding anything.
Open a damage claim, as a guest if you are the recipient. UPS encourages doing this within 30 days of receiving the package.
Upload photos and invoices. UPS may ask for a physical inspection at a UPS-approved location.
If The UPS Store packed and shipped the item, use the Pack & Ship Guarantee claim instead or go back to the store.
If you bought the item, also ask the seller for a replacement or refund.
More contacts for this issue
Facts you can cite
- Deadline
If a package was delivered damaged, UPS encourages starting a damage claim within 30 days of receiving the package.
Source: ups.com, verified 2026-10-12
- Process
All claims need supporting documentation, such as an invoice showing value. Damage claims require photo documentation, and a physical inspection at a UPS-approved location may be needed. Without enough documentation a claim can be delayed or denied.
Source: ups.com, verified 2026-10-12
- Process
Since July 31, 2022, claim paperwork cannot be submitted by fax or USPS; it must be uploaded in the Claims Dashboard. UPS pays claims by electronic funds transfer.
Source: ups.com, verified 2026-10-12
- Limit
Under The UPS Store Pack & Ship Guarantee, an item's value is covered up to $100 for UPS shipments unless a higher value was declared and Declared Value was bought. The guarantee also refunds packing and shipping costs (not Declared Value charges).
Source: theupsstore.com, verified 2026-10-12
- Policy
The Pack & Ship Guarantee excludes customer-packed packages and shipments packed in free carrier-supplied materials.
Source: theupsstore.com, verified 2026-10-12
If that fails, escalate
Go up one step at a time. Keep the reference numbers and dates from each contact.
Customer service
Written complaint
Claim with UPS within 60 days of the scheduled delivery. Recipients can file as a guest unless the shipper restricts it; then the shipper must file.
Card or bank dispute
Fair Credit Billing Act billing-error and purchase-dispute rights (Regulation Z)
Electronic Fund Transfer Act error resolution and unauthorized-transfer liability (Regulation E)
Dispute with the seller who shipped the item.
State agencies for this sector: your state’s attorney general. Find yours in the list of state agencies, or as JSON in states/<code>.json (for example states/ny.json).
Watch out
- The UPS Tariff/Terms and Conditions of Service and the UPS arbitration terms are PDFs that download instead of opening; the default liability limit and arbitration notice method are not recorded.
- If the shipper restricts its account, the recipient cannot file a claim; the shipper must file it.
- Uploading claim documents and receiving payment by EFT need the claimant's own UPS sign-in or bank details.
Let your AI agent handle this
Escalate Anything is a free, open-source MCP server for Claude, Cursor, VS Code, Gemini CLI, Codex and other AI apps. Your agent gets this playbook, keeps a case log with reference numbers and follow-up dates, and drafts each message for you to approve.
1. Set it up (needs uv):
uvx escalate-anything setup2. Ask your agent:
My UPS (United Parcel Service) order arrived broken on [date]. Use Escalate Anything to get a refund or a replacement.Source code, other install options and the Claude Code plugin