Turning NDRs Into Deliveries: How Better Visibility and Action Can Save Orders

In today’s dynamic Indian eCommerce landscape, order fulfilment isn’t just about speed, it’s about reliability and completion. One of the most persistent friction points sellers face is the Non-Delivery Report (NDR), a notification generated when a courier is unable to deliver a shipment to the intended recipient. Every NDR is more than just a failed attempt, it is an early warning signal. If not addressed quickly, it can snowball into a Return to Origin (RTO), typically triggered after multiple unsuccessful delivery attempts or when a customer cancels or refuses an order mid-journey. Left unmanaged, this cycle erodes margins, delays revenue realisation, and weakens customer trust.

Industry patterns suggest that nearly one in five shipments fails to get delivered on the first attempt, making NDRs far more common than most sellers anticipate. Shiprocket believes the future of commerce logistics lies in actionable visibility built on intelligent workflows transforming NDRs from lost opportunities into recoverable orders.

Why NDRs Matter for Indian Sellers

NDRs are not merely delivery failures; they are critical operational signals. They indicate that something has gone wrong in the delivery journey whether a customer was unreachable, an address was incomplete, or delivery preferences were unclear. 

A significant share of shipments that enter the NDR loop eventually end up returning to origin, increasing logistics costs and locking working capital in unsold inventory. Industry experience shows that well over half of post-NDR shipments risk conversion into RTOs if not handled quickly and effectively. As volumes scale, streamlining post-delivery failures through smart automation and real-time visibility becomes essential to protecting margins and improving delivery success.

The Shiprocket Difference: Visibility and Control in Real Time

At the heart of Shiprocket’s approach is a centralised NDR workflow that brings all undelivered orders into one place the moment a courier partner marks them as undelivered. Instead of waiting hours or even a full day sellers gain immediate visibility into what went wrong and what can be done next.This shift from delayed reporting to real-time insight fundamentally changes outcomes. Sellers are empowered to act while recovery is still possible, rather than managing failures after the fact.

This real-time control becomes a strategic advantage:

Instant Action on Undelivered Orders: As soon as an NDR is logged, sellers can initiate re-attempts, update delivery instructions, or reach out to buyers without losing crucial time.

Automated Buyer Communication: Automated SMS, WhatsApp messages, and IVR calls replace manual follow-ups, helping capture updated delivery preferences, alternate contact details, or confirmation of availability reducing response delays significantly.

Smarter Re-Attempts and Decisions: Clear NDR reason codes and guided action paths remove guesswork, enabling faster, more consistent decision-making across teams.

Internal trends indicate that automation-led NDR handling can reduce RTOs meaningfully, ensuring more orders reach customers instead of returning to sellers.

Beyond NDR: Predicting and Reducing Risk

Effective NDR management doesn’t start at the delivery doorstep, it begins well before dispatch. A common misconception is that NDRs are driven primarily by operational issues such as rider availability or last-mile constraints. While these factors exist, they tell only part of the story.

A significant share of NDRs stem from incorrect or incomplete input data, wrong addresses, unreachable phone numbers, or changes in buyer intent after checkout. These data gaps lead to execution failures on the ground. Improving this data quality is therefore key to improving delivery success after an initial failure.

Shiprocket’s broader toolset is designed to address this challenge proactively:

AI-Driven RTO Prediction: Machine learning models flag high-risk orders such as certain COD shipments or address mismatches allowing sellers to intervene early.

Address Verification and Refinement: Checkout-level nudges and validations help reduce one of the most common causes of failed deliveries.

Multi-Channel Customer Updates: Proactive WhatsApp, SMS, and email communication keeps buyers informed and engaged throughout the delivery journey, reducing missed attempts and last-mile friction.

Delivery Boost: Recovering Orders That Would Otherwise Be Lost

Shiprocket’s Delivery Boost proactively engages buyers through automated WhatsApp messages and calls to capture updated delivery details and re-attempt preferences. By prioritising these shipments, sellers see significantly higher delivery conversions, translating into a 10–15% uplift in overall delivery success.

Tech-First Logistics for Better Outcomes

Shiprocket’s investment in AI and automation extends across the logistics lifecycle. From smart courier allocation and route optimisation to predictive risk modelling, the platform continuously learns from millions of shipments intervening faster and more intelligently than manual processes ever could. This intelligence helps sellers navigate scale and complexity with data-driven confidence.

What It Means for Businesses

For brands and sellers, especially small and mid-sized enterprises this approach delivers four clear outcomes: higher delivery completion rates, lower operational friction, more predictable revenue flows, and better cash flow and working capital management.