UK sellers

A buyer says the parcel arrived empty. What you can actually do.

The forums will tell you to refund and move on. Sometimes that is right. But there are four separate processes here on four separate clocks, and refunding first closes some of them.

By Mason Hughes at ParcelProof, which records how a parcel was packed and opened so a seller can answer “it arrived empty”. This guide is written to be useful whether or not you ever use it.

Last checked 8 August 2026. Courier policies change; always confirm on the courier’s own site before you rely on a deadline.

Do these two things today

Ask the courier for the weight recorded at drop-off, in writing, quoting the tracking number. It is the only fact in the dispute that comes from neither you nor the buyer. It is not always retained, and it gets harder to obtain as time passes.

Ask the buyer to photograph the packaging before anything is thrown away: all seams, the tape, any seal, and the inside of the bag or box. Ask politely, as a request for help rather than an accusation.

What not to do first

Do not accuse. Even if you are certain, the courier claim usually depends on the buyer sending photographs. An accusation ends that cooperation in one message.
Do not refund immediately. On several routes the claim closes once the money moves.
Do not promise a timescale. Courier claims take weeks, and payment after settlement can take weeks more.

The four processes, and why they are separate

Sellers lose time by treating this as one argument. It is not. Each of these has its own decision maker, its own evidence appetite and its own deadline, and losing one does not close the others.

1
The marketplace case
Fastest, and the least evidence-driven. On most platforms an empty-parcel report is handled as an item-not-as-described matter, and buyer protection usually decides it. Expect this one to resolve before the others have started.
2
The courier claim
Slower, and the one that genuinely turns on documents. Royal Mail wants evidence of posting and evidence of value in originals; Evri wants the claim from the sender, within a recommended 28 days, with photographs of contents and packaging. Open it even if you expect the marketplace to rule against you.
3
The payment dispute, if the buyer goes to their bank
A different process again, with genuinely surprising limits. eBay’s evidence upload takes five files totalling 1.75 MB, in JPEG or PNG. There is no video format, so plan for stills.
4
Small claims, for a high-value item
Rarely worth it under a few hundred pounds, and worth knowing exists above that. Evidence is read properly, and a contemporaneous record carries real weight.

Your platform

The mechanics differ enough to matter: Vinted holds the buyer’s payment while it investigates, and eBay splits into two different processes depending on whether the buyer went to eBay or to their bank.

The honest part

If you did not record the packing and the courier has no weight on file, you will probably lose this one. That is the answer the forums give, and on the parcel in front of you they are usually right.

What is worth taking from it is narrower and more useful: the reason you lose is not that nobody believes you. It is that the dispute turns on a fact nobody recorded, and in the absence of a record the platform defaults to the buyer. That is a fixable problem, but only before the parcel goes out.

Common questions

Should I just refund and move on?

Sometimes, on a low-value item where your time is worth more than the money. But refund last, not first: on several routes, once the money has moved the claim closes behind it. Decide after you know what the courier's weight scan says, not before.

Is this a scam or a genuine loss?

You usually cannot tell, and it is worth resisting the urge to decide. Parcels genuinely are opened in transit, and packaging genuinely does fail. Treating a real loss as fraud loses you the courier claim, because that claim depends on the buyer cooperating with photographs.

Can I report the buyer?

You can report the interaction on most platforms, but it rarely changes the outcome of the case in front of you. Time is better spent on the courier claim, which is decided on evidence rather than on judgement about who is lying.

What if I have no evidence at all?

Ask the courier for the recorded weight at drop-off and any subsequent scan. It is the one fact in the whole dispute that comes from neither you nor the buyer, and most sellers never think to request it.

Sources

Retail compensation policy for loss — Royal Mail
How do I claim for a lost or damaged parcel? — Evri
If something you ordered hasn't arrived — Citizens Advice

Links checked 14 August 2026. If one has moved, tell us and we will fix it.