When should I share my delivery code?
Give the delivery code only at an attended handover, when you or your authorised recipient can see the matching parcel ready to be handed over. Verify unexpected requests through the carrier independently. If a code was used without receipt, preserve the messages and challenge the handover evidence. Ask Cambridge China Bridge to help trace the China dispatch.
Verify what the code is for
Open the order account or carrier website yourself, rather than following an unexpected message link. Check the final carrier, tracking reference and delivery address against your order. Ask independently contacted support whether this shipment uses a delivery code and where to find its current instructions. A caller knowing your name or order details is not enough verification.
Keep the delivery code separate from account sign-in, password-reset and payment codes. Do not give those other codes to a driver. If a request seems suspicious, stop the exchange and contact the carrier through a route you found independently. Suspicious text messages can be forwarded to 7726.
Share it at the handover
Wait until the driver is present with the parcel ready for handover. Check the visible name, address and shipment label against the delivery you expect. Do not read the code over the telephone to someone who says they are approaching, need to finish their route or will leave the parcel later. Do not leave it in delivery notes or on your door.
If the code is missing, rejected or linked to a different parcel, contact support rather than supplying alternative security information. Ask about redelivery or another supported arrangement if handover cannot proceed. Check visible damage and carton count before sharing; record exceptions separately and do not assume a code confirms the contents or condition.
Brief an authorised recipient
Ask the carrier whether a nominated colleague, reception team member or warehouse receiver can accept this coded shipment, and how to record that arrangement. Give the person the expected carrier, shipment reference and parcel description. Share only the delivery code privately, once the arrangement is confirmed, rather than forwarding an entire account email.
Tell the recipient to check the parcel and give the code only during the attended handover. Ask them to record who received it, when, and any packaging exceptions. If nobody suitable is available, request a supported alternative. Do not assume a code permits unattended delivery; our outside-parcel guide covers checking safe-place instructions.
Challenge a code-used delivery record
Tell the seller and carrier promptly that the shipment is recorded as delivered using a code but you dispute receiving it. State accurately whether you disclosed the code, to whom, through which channel and when. If you shared it before arrival, preserve that exchange. Do not omit it or claim the code was never shared.
Ask them to preserve and investigate the code-validation event and its connection to the physical handover: which shipment was validated, when and where, and who reportedly received it. Request available delivery photographs, recipient records and location evidence. Explain what conflicts with your receiving records. Use our delivered-tracking challenge guide for the wider destination and dispatch checks.
Working out your own order? Send us the product on WhatsApp and we reply the same working day: WhatsApp us
Request a review that addresses the missing handover
Suggested wording: “Your record says a delivery code was used, but neither I nor my authorised recipient received the parcel. Please investigate how that code event establishes physical handover of this shipment at the agreed address, and address the attached discrepancies.” Include the order, tracking reference, code-request messages and recipient statement without circulating the code unnecessarily.
Request a written decision and check the applicable review and claim deadlines with the seller, marketplace, carrier, payment provider or insurer. Ask the booking party to obtain records if the carrier will only deal with it. For business purchases, review the agreed risk and delivery terms using our business supply terms guide; do not assume an automatic refund.
Frequently asked questions
Should I give the driver my code over the phone?
Wait for an attended handover with the matching parcel ready. If someone asks in advance, contact the carrier independently to check the request.
Can a colleague accept a delivery with my code?
Check the carrier's arrangements first. Brief the nominated colleague, share only the delivery code privately and tell them to use it only at handover.
What if I already shared the code but got nothing?
Save the exchange and tell the seller and carrier exactly what happened. Ask them to investigate the code-validation event alongside the physical handover evidence.
Can I challenge delivery if the correct code was used?
Submit a non-delivery complaint explaining who was authorised and what was actually received. Ask for a written review addressing the handover evidence, rather than only the code-used status.