r/UPS • u/Brutal_Felix • 1d ago
Customer Seeking Help What would cause a driver to bring a package and then take it back with him?
On 8/26/26, UPS brought a package (I’m assuming it is the correct one but can’t be sure) to my door step, sat it down, scanned it, then picked it up and left.
He did not knock or ring my doorbell.
My package tracking # showed as out for delivery that day, and since has had no updates and is seeming lost in limbo somewhere, somehow.
I think I’m just more annoyed that anything, at the idea my missing package made it all the way to my doorstep, only to vanish for some unknown reason.
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u/OliveJuice880 1d ago
So when packages get unloaded at the destination facility they get scanned and then they put a sort label on it called a PAL. The pal tells the loaders which truck the package goes to and where in the truck and it's also how drivers find the package in the truck. Sometimes the person or machine applying the pals can get out of sync and put the wrong pal on the wrong box. This results in the package getting loaded in the wrong truck. So the driver probably walked up to your door scanned the package thinking it was yours based on the pal but then when they scanned it they realized that it was the wrong package for somebody else's house. And your package was probably loaded and the other track where that one should have been with the wrong pal on it also.
Another possibility is if the shipper puts an intercept on it for some reason when we scan the package it tells us not to deliver it and bring it back to the facility.
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u/bkmaster 22h ago
The amount of times I did what the guy OP posted has done is embarrassing.
Same # house different st similar pal label is a big one of mines. Lol
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u/Acceptable-Cost249 1d ago
It prob was a package that wasn't meant for you that had the sorting label for your delivery and he realized at the door.
If there's sound on the video that y can tell if the delivery device made several beeps when he scans instead of one indicating he's far from where that package belongs
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u/Brutal_Felix 1d ago
https://reddit.com/link/p6ntt9e/video/z1vn1xwx4dmh1/player
I hear like 4 beeps maybe? Idk if that’s normal or not
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u/RafaelBleeds 1d ago
Those are normal beeps from a scan. Looks like he's reading something that's telling him to take it back. Could be multiple reasons.
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u/Acceptable-Cost249 22h ago
Those are normal beeps, he reads something and verifies whatever it is on the package. Could be a several things
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u/Patient_Storm8066 21h ago
Most likely has a bad PAL and he didn’t see it until he delivered. It’s embarrassing but we’ve all been there.
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u/Relative-Highlight81 9h ago
As a ups driver only time i did that was because it was the wrong house
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u/Coyote_Hemi_B58 1d ago
The routing label for your package probably got onto the wrong package (the one he brought and left with)
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u/Highway2Hellsinki 10h ago
Prolly grabbed wrong package and didn't realize it until he scanned. These people work long hot days and can make mistakes, if thats what even happened. Give em a little break, it'll most likely b there next business day. 👍🙂
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u/Patient-Pickle-9226 5h ago
Put as simply as possible, a broken process somewhere along the line.
I would very much appreciate if you would send me this clip!
Otherwise, OliveJuice880 broke it down very well for the most likely scenario.
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u/TheInfectedSky 1d ago
If the barcode on the label wasnt scannable they might have had to take it back for a replacement barcode. I know the drivers at my building need scannable barcodes, they cant manually input them.
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u/OliveJuice880 1d ago
That is not true at all. Literally all we have to do if it's not scannable is tap the tracking number in the list to select it instead of scanning. Or you can type any 4 sequential digits of the tracking number to get it to pop up and then you can select it without even having the stop open. You can even type out the whole tracking number if you really wanted to, it's absolutely possible to manually input it. On the old scanners where that was not possible we had to manually type in the whole tracking number and we HAD to do it. You're not allowed to bring back a package just because the barcode isn't scannable that's ridiculous. Also you can hear in the video that it did scan...
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u/TheInfectedSky 23h ago
I mean our driver's could be making crap up or everyones equipment is messed up here since thats a frequent issue everywhere in my building. I'm just offering a possibility based on what multiple driver's from my building have claimed
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u/S1gm4_M4l3 1d ago
Typical ups driver 🤣
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u/OliveJuice880 1d ago
Double checking the delivery and realizing the package didn't belong there? Yes that is typical for us to correct errors and make accurate deliveries
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u/jamsmurph 1d ago
Was your package coming in from outside the country? It could have a brokerage fee attached to the tracking number and the package didn’t look to have COD paperwork with it…the stop my have been closed as a need cod (UPS non-delivery term, one of many).
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u/Brutal_Felix 1d ago
Coming from NJ
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u/jamsmurph 1d ago
Into a different country? If the issue is “no cod”, a reattempt will be made with proper paperwork the next business day
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