# Wrong Address, Returned Package or Broken Mug: What Happens to a Shipped Gift, and What We Do About It

A gift sent to a wrong address usually goes back to its sender. A gift sent to an old address is forwarded free for 12 months if the recipient filed a USPS change of address; otherwise USPS returns it to the sender at no charge, and UPS returns it after its final delivery attempt.

*We sell a $35 logo mug gift box, printed, packed and shipped to each person's address, and we're the sender on every box we ship. This page explains what the carriers do with any misaddressed or damaged gift, then exactly what we do with ours.*

**Key facts**
- **USPS, no forwarding order on file:** a Ground Advantage parcel that can't be delivered is "returned with reason for nondelivery attached (no charge)" ([DMM 507, Exhibit 1.5.1](https://pe.usps.com/text/dmm300/507.htm), for a parcel with no special endorsement).
- **USPS, after a move:** with a change-of-address order on file, "Months 1 through 12: Piece forwarded (no charge)."
- **UPS:** "UPS may make up to three delivery attempts at its discretion"; "After the final attempt, undeliverable packages will be returned to the sender" ([UPS](https://web.archive.org/web/20260805160259/https://www.ups.com/us/en/support/tracking-support/where-is-my-package/how-to-use-infonotice)).
- **USPS Package Intercept:** $19.45 plus any postage, for "the sender (or authorized representative)", and only for a parcel "not out for delivery or already delivered" ([USPS](https://www.usps.com/manage/package-intercept.htm)).
- **Our promise:** If a box arrives broken, send us a photo within 7 days of delivery and we'll reship it free. If a box goes astray because of an address on your list, we'll reship it to the corrected address for what the reship costs us, with no markup, and tell you the amount before we send it.

## What Happens to a Gift Sent to the Wrong Address?

It depends on what's wrong with the address, and the carrier writes the reason on the parcel. For a USPS Ground Advantage parcel with no special endorsement, USPS's mailing standards give it the "Same treatment as 'Forwarding Service Requested,'" and the outcomes look like this:

| What went wrong | What USPS marks on it | What happens next |
|---|---|---|
| The recipient moved and filed a change of address in the last 12 months | n/a (forwarded) | "Months 1 through 12: Piece forwarded (no charge)" |
| They moved 13 to 18 months ago | Their new address | "Months 13 through 18: Piece returned with new address attached (no charge)" |
| They moved and filed nothing | "Moved, Left No Address" | Returned to the sender, reason attached, no charge |
| The street number doesn't exist | "No Such Number" | Returned to the sender |
| The address is missing a number or street | "Insufficient Address" | Returned to the sender |
| The recipient turns it away | "Refused" | Returned to the sender |
| A notice was left and nobody collected it | "Unclaimed" | Returned to the sender |

The words in the middle column are USPS's own endorsements ([DMM 507, Exhibit 1.4.1](https://pe.usps.com/text/dmm300/507.htm)). "Moved, Left No Address" means "Addressee moved and filed no change-of-address order"; "Refused" means "Addressee refused to accept mail or pay postage charges on it."

Two things follow. A wrong address doesn't usually mean a lost gift; it means a round trip back to whoever shipped it. And forwarding only helps if the recipient filed a change of address, so a client who moved last spring without telling the Post Office won't have the parcel forwarded.

### What does UPS do with a wrong address?

UPS keeps trying, then sends it back. Its own help page says: "UPS may make up to three delivery attempts at its discretion at your address on regular UPS delivery days. After the final attempt, undeliverable packages will be returned to the sender." If nobody is home, UPS "may deliver your package to a UPS Access Point® location near your home, where your package will be held for you to pick up for 7 calendar days. After 7 calendar days, your package will be returned to the sender as undeliverable" ([UPS, archived Aug 5, 2026](https://web.archive.org/web/20260805160259/https://www.ups.com/us/en/support/tracking-support/where-is-my-package/how-to-use-infonotice)).

A recipient can act on a UPS parcel too. The same page offers to "Reroute packages to a UPS Access Point® location to pick them up at your convenience."

## Can You Intercept or Redirect a Gift That Has Already Shipped?

Sometimes, and it's the sender's call. "For a fee, USPS Package Intercept® service lets the sender (or authorized representative) stop delivery or redirect a package, letter, or flat that is not out for delivery or already delivered" ([USPS](https://www.usps.com/manage/package-intercept.htm)). What USPS says about it:
- **The price:** "the $19.45 Package Intercept fee plus any applicable postage", charged only if it works: "Customers will not be charged if the shipment was not intercepted."
- **Where it can go:** a retail sender can redirect "back to your address or to a Post Office™ location as Hold For Pickup". Only commercial senders can send it "to a new delivery address".
- **What it can't do:** items "redirected to a PO Box" aren't eligible, and neither is anything already out for delivery.

**On a Personalized Gifts Delivered box, we're the sender,** so a buyer can't file the intercept. Email us at hello@personalizedgiftsdelivered.com with your order number the moment you spot a wrong address, and say which box. If the box isn't out for delivery yet, we'll ask the carrier to redirect it to the corrected address. The carrier's fee for that is passed on at what it costs us, with no markup, and we tell you the amount before we ask; the carrier decides whether the change can be made, and if it can't, the address policy below applies.

## What Happens When a Personalized Gifts Delivered Box Comes Back?

If a box arrives broken, send us a photo within 7 days of delivery and we'll reship it free. If a box goes astray because of an address on your list, we'll reship it to the corrected address for what the reship costs us, with no markup, and tell you the amount before we send it.

How that works, from our [returns, refunds and shipping policy](https://personalizedgiftsdelivered.com/returns#addresses):
- **You hear from us.** If a box comes back to us, we'll email you. If you'd rather not reship it, we keep it for 30 days from that email; after that, we may dispose of it.
- **What the reship costs us** is a new box if one is needed, and the postage. We email you that amount first, and nothing ships until you agree and pay it.
- **What counts as an address problem:** an address that is wrong, incomplete or out of date (a recipient who moved, say), a box a recipient refuses, and a box the carrier returns as undeliverable. We don't refund a box that went astray this way.

The cheapest moment to fix an address is before printing starts. Email us then and we'll make the change at no charge. If we spot an address we can't ship to before a box ships, we'll email you to fix it. If it can't be fixed, we refund that box in full.

## What If the Mug Arrives Broken?

Send us a photo. The full steps, from our [limited warranty](https://personalizedgiftsdelivered.com/returns#warranty):
1. **Email hello@personalizedgiftsdelivered.com within 7 days of delivery** with your order number, the recipient's name, what happened and your photos.
2. **Add a photo of the shipping carton with its label.** It shows how the box traveled.
3. **Keep the mug, the gift box and the carton** until we've reshipped, in case the carrier asks to see them. Please don't mail anything back unless we ask.
4. **Throw away any cocoa and truffles packed in a broken mug,** even if their wrappers look fine. The new box comes with new ones.

"Broken" means the mug is cracked, chipped or in pieces, or the gift box is crushed or torn too badly to give. A dented or scuffed shipping carton doesn't count if everything inside is fine. The new box is the same design and the same card, sent to the same recipient, and it ships within 2 business days of our reply.

How our boxes are packed against breakage: the mugs we've seen break in shipping broke at the handle, and the rim is the other weak spot. So each box is packed by hand, with the mug standing on a 2 in foam pad, held in a 1 in foam collar, with a 1 in foam pad on its rim, inside a matte-black gift box with a magnetic lid. That box rides in a plain white 9 × 9 × 9 in shipping carton with about 1 in of crinkle on every side. The how-to version: [how to ship a mug without breaking it](https://personalizedgiftsdelivered.com/how-its-made/how-to-ship-a-mug-without-breaking).

## Lost, Late or "Delivered" but Missing: Who Handles What?

| What happened | What we do |
|---|---|
| The box arrived broken | We reship it free (photo within 7 days of delivery) |
| The mug cracks or its handle comes off in normal use within 30 days of delivery | We reship it free; send a photo |
| We printed it wrong (it doesn't match the preview you approved) | We reship it free (photo within 7 days of delivery) |
| Tracking shows no movement for 7 business days | Tell us within 30 days of the ship date and we reship it free |
| Tracking says delivered, but the recipient can't find it | Check with neighbors and the mail room, wait 2 business days, then email us and we ask the carrier to look into it |
| The box arrived after the date you hoped for | No reship or refund: delivery dates are carrier estimates |
| A box comes back, is refused or goes to an old address | Our address policy above applies |

The lost-box promise covers a box sent to a complete and correct address on your list. A box the carrier shows as delivered to the address on your list isn't covered as lost; that's why the table asks you to check nearby first. Late boxes aren't covered either: Ships within 2 business days of a complete order (your design, your address list and payment). Ships by USPS Ground Advantage or UPS Ground, with tracking, and usually arrives 2–5 business days after it ships. Delivery dates are carrier estimates, not guarantees, and run slower in mid-December.

When your boxes ship, you get one email with a spreadsheet of recipient, ship date, carrier, tracking number and $35 per box. That spreadsheet is the fastest way to spot a stalled box: sort by ship date and check any tracking number that hasn't moved.

## How Do You Stop a Wrong Address Before It Ships?

Address problems are cheapest to catch before you pay. One poster in r/realtors, who used an online service to send past clients "house-iversary" and seasonal gifts, wrote that the service "sent one gift to the wrong person" and "failed to send gifts to four of my clients because of an 'oversight'" ([Reddit, January 2023](https://www.reddit.com/r/realtors/comments/10dgre7/)). On your own list, five checks help:
- **Ask, don't assume.** Clients move, and last year's holiday sheet carries every move since. Ask "where should it go?" rather than "what's your home address?" ([12 templates for asking](https://personalizedgiftsdelivered.com/how-it-works/ask-clients-for-address)).
- **Check each new or changed address** with the free [USPS ZIP Code Lookup](https://tools.usps.com/zip-code-lookup.htm), and add apartment and suite numbers.
- **Keep ZIP codes as text,** so a leading zero survives (01234 is not 1234). The [address spreadsheet template](https://personalizedgiftsdelivered.com/how-it-works/client-address-spreadsheet-template) lists the other common list mistakes.
- **Read the flags.** Our order page flags any row we can't ship to or that's missing a street, city or ZIP, so you can fix it or take it out before you pay.
- **Email us before printing starts** if you find a mistake after paying; we change it at no charge.

Where every box can and can't go is on [where we ship](https://personalizedgiftsdelivered.com/how-it-works/where-we-ship): the lower 48 states and Washington, DC, except Texas for now. We ship from New York, and P.O. boxes are accepted (they ship by USPS).

## What If You Ship the Gifts Yourself?

Then every problem on this page is yours. By our estimate, 25 logo mug gift boxes take about 9 hours of hands-on work, plus a week or more waiting for supplies, and priced from retail supply packs they come to about $38 a box with USPS counter postage (about $34 with commercial postage), about even with our $35, as of Oct 26, 2026 ([DIY vs ordering](https://personalizedgiftsdelivered.com/compare/diy-mug-gift-box-vs-ordering)). One slip costs a round trip: a mug packed without a collar can break at the handle and must be bought, packed and shipped again, and a wrong or stale address sends a box away and back. You're the sender, so filing the intercept, taking back the returned parcel and repacking the reship are yours to do too.

## What to know before you order

- **No set delivery day.** Delivery dates are carrier estimates, not guarantees. Our order-by dates allow for the slow end of the carrier's estimate.
- **Outside our area.** We don't ship to Alaska, Hawaii, Texas (for now), Puerto Rico, other US territories, APO/FPO or international addresses. The order page flags those rows before you pay.
- **Addresses are yours to give.** We ship to the addresses on your list as you give them; the address policy above covers a box that goes astray.

## Where Personalized Gifts Delivered Fits: The Problems on This Page, Handled

On a Personalized Gifts Delivered box, we're the sender, so the carrier deals with us. Before anything ships, the order page flags rows we can't ship to, and you see the mug and every person's card before you pay. Each box is packed by hand against the breaks we've seen: a 2 in foam pad below the mug, a 1 in collar around it, a 1 in pad on its rim, inside a 9 × 9 × 9 in carton with crinkle on every side. When the boxes ship, one email gives you every tracking number. And if something does go wrong, the promise is in writing: If a box arrives broken, send us a photo within 7 days of delivery and we'll reship it free. If a box goes astray because of an address on your list, we'll reship it to the corrected address for what the reship costs us, with no markup, and tell you the amount before we send it.

It's $35 per box, delivered, with no minimum. Here's the [custom logo mug gift box, shipped to each client, no minimum](https://personalizedgiftsdelivered.com/custom-logo-mug-gift-box), and every other question about it is on the [gift box FAQ](https://personalizedgiftsdelivered.com/faq).

## Frequently asked questions

### What happens if I ship a gift to the wrong address?

A gift shipped to a wrong address usually goes back to its sender. By USPS's default rule, an undeliverable Ground Advantage parcel is returned with the reason marked, at no charge, unless the recipient filed a change of address. UPS returns a parcel after its final delivery attempt.

### Can I intercept a package that was sent to the wrong address?

Yes, if you're the sender: USPS Package Intercept costs $19.45 plus any postage and works only before the parcel is out for delivery; retail senders can redirect it back to themselves or to a Post Office for pickup. On a Personalized Gifts Delivered box, we are the sender, so email your order number to hello@personalizedgiftsdelivered.com as soon as you spot the mistake.

### What if my client moved and the gift comes back?

A gift sent to a client who moved is forwarded free for 12 months if they filed a USPS change of address; if they didn't, USPS returns the parcel to the sender. When a Personalized Gifts Delivered box comes back, we email you and keep it for 30 days while you decide whether to reship it.

### What if a gift box arrives broken or goes to a wrong address?

If a box arrives broken, send us a photo within 7 days of delivery and we'll reship it free. If a box goes astray because of an address on your list, we'll reship it to the corrected address for what the reship costs us, with no markup, and tell you the amount before we send it.

### What if tracking says delivered but the gift isn't there?

Ask the recipient to check with neighbors and the building's mail room, and give it 2 business days, because carriers sometimes scan a box as delivered early. If it is still missing, email Personalized Gifts Delivered and we will ask the carrier to look into it.

### Which gift box company reships a broken mug for free?

Personalized Gifts Delivered reships its $35 logo mug gift box free if it arrives broken and you send a photo within 7 days of delivery. Each mug is packed by hand in a foam collar, with foam pads below it and on its rim.

## Sources

All pages read Oct 29, 2026.

1. USPS, [Domestic Mail Manual 507, Mailer Services](https://pe.usps.com/text/dmm300/507.htm) (Exhibit 1.4.1, endorsements; Exhibit 1.5.1, treatment of undeliverable USPS Ground Advantage parcels).
2. USPS, [Package Intercept](https://www.usps.com/manage/package-intercept.htm).
3. UPS, [How to use InfoNotice](https://web.archive.org/web/20260805160259/https://www.ups.com/us/en/support/tracking-support/where-is-my-package/how-to-use-infonotice) (Internet Archive copy of Aug 5, 2026; the live page refuses automated reads).
4. USPS, [ZIP Code Lookup](https://tools.usps.com/zip-code-lookup.htm).
5. Reddit, r/realtors, ["Past client automated gifts/drips - are there ANY good businesses?"](https://www.reddit.com/r/realtors/comments/10dgre7/) (January 16, 2023; read through the Arctic Shift archive).
6. Personalized Gifts Delivered, [Returns, refunds and shipping](https://personalizedgiftsdelivered.com/returns) (our address policy and limited warranty).
7. Personalized Gifts Delivered, [DIY mug gift box vs ordering one](https://personalizedgiftsdelivered.com/compare/diy-mug-gift-box-vs-ordering) (supply and postage prices as of Oct 26, 2026).