Routine shipments don't need a playbook — they need a queue. The exceptions do. The parcel stalled in a hub for five days, the one marked delivered that never arrived, the crushed box, the COD remittance that didn't land: each is survivable if somebody knows what to do, and costly if nobody does. Here's the runbook.

The four exception types

Stalls. Tracking quiet for 48–72 hours means the parcel stopped moving — query it with the carrier while it's findable, because a stall that becomes "lost" gets worse. Tell the buyer proactively: a "running late" message is reassurance; silence is a WISMO ticket.

Loss. The stall that never resolves. Most carriers' terms allow a lost-parcel claim — value up to a cap, often needing proof of contents value — but the window is short (30–45 days typical). Document early; the claim that waits for certainty misses its window.

Damage. Buyer reports a broken item. The claim needs evidence at both ends — packing photos (why you photograph at dispatch), the buyer's photos of box and contents, and the timeline showing it left intact. Damage claims are winnable with a file and unwinnable without one.

Money disputes. Phantom RTO lines, weight mismatches, remittance shortfalls — the invoice-side exceptions. Same runbook: match the line to the AWB, pull the evidence (tracking trail, weight photo, remittance record), dispute inside the window.

48–72h
Tracking silence that qualifies as a stall worth querying
30–45d
Typical claim window — the clock that kills unfiled exceptions
~5%
Share of shipments that hit an exception — small rate, outsized cost
Exceptions don't destroy margins. Undocketed exceptions do — every claim window that lapses was money on the table.

The operating rule

The difference between an exception cost and an exception claim is a ticket filed in time. Keep an exceptions list — every stall, loss, damage and disputed line, one row each, with the clock visible. Review it weekly, act inside the windows, and the 5% stops being a write-off and starts being a claims pipeline.

The bottom line

Shipping exceptions are inevitable; unrecovered exceptions are a choice. Know the four types, know their clocks, keep the evidence habit at dispatch, and the worst shipments in the queue become recoverable costs instead of silent losses.

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