“Delivery Attempted” with no notice: what USPS tracking means
When tracking shows an attempt with no notice, such as “No Access to Delivery Location” or a closed business, USPS's text says it will redeliver on the next delivery or business day and adds “No action needed.” For weather, animals and operational problems, USPS says the item will go out again on the next business or delivery day.
Quoted from USPS's own tracking documents and help pages, checked . This page covers: “Delivery Attempted”, “No Access to Delivery Location”, “Redelivery Scheduled for Next Business Day”, “Rescheduled to Next Delivery Day”, “Delivery Delay, Local Weather Issue”, “Delivery Delay, Animal Interference”, “Delivery Attempted; Recipient Not Home”.
Attempts USPS retries on its own
| Status line on USPS.com | What USPS.com says | What USPS's event list says it is |
|---|---|---|
| No Access to Delivery Location Alert · event 30, p. 7 | “We could not access the delivery location to deliver your package at TIME on DATE in LOCATION. We will redeliver on the next delivery day. No action needed.” | “The item was attempted but not delivered because the employee could not access the delivery location (e.g., gated community where an access code is required).” |
| Redelivery Scheduled for Next Business Day Delivery Attempt · event 51, p. 9 | “We were unable to deliver your package at TIME on DATE in LOCATION because the business was closed. We will redeliver on the next business day. No action needed.” | “The item cannot be delivered because the business is closed.” … “On the scanning device, this event is now combined with No Access.” |
| Delivery Delay, Local Weather Issue Alert · event 57, p. 9 | “We were unable to attempt delivery of your item on DATE at TIME in LOCATION due to hazardous or unsafe weather conditions.” … “Your item will go out for delivery on the next business day as conditions permit.” | “The item could not be attempted and / or delivered due to local weather conditions.” |
| Delivery Delay, Animal Interference Alert · event 72, p. 11 | “We were unable to attempt delivery of your item on DATE at TIME in LOCATION due to interference by an animal.” … “Your item will go out for delivery on the next business day as conditions permit.” | “because of interference by an animal at the delivery location, the employee could not attempt delivery of the item.” |
| Rescheduled to Next Delivery Day Alert · event 71, p. 11 | “We apologize we are unable to attempt delivery of your item on DATE in LOCATION due to an unforeseen operational issue.” … “Your item will go out for delivery on the next delivery day.” | “The local post office has indicated that there is a delay impacting the delivery of the item.” |
Words in capitals (TIME, DATE, LOCATION and so on) are USPS's placeholders; the real tracking page fills them in.
USPS notes that on carriers' scanners the closed-business event “is now combined with No Access.”
When the address is the problem
“Your item was returned to the Post Office for address verification on DATE at TIME in LOCATION because of an incomplete address.”
“Your item will go out for delivery on the next business day if the address can be verified.”
“there was a problem with the employee determining the correct address, so the item needed to be brought back to the office for address verification”
If the address you shipped to is wrong, you can ask USPS to stop or redirect the package. “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, Package Intercept, "USPS Package Intercept") “Retail Senders: You can redirect a shipment back to your address or to a Post Office location as Hold For Pickup.” The fee is $19.45 plus any postage, charged only if USPS intercepts it, and “USPS Package Intercept is not a guaranteed service and certain conditions apply.” (USPS, Package Intercept; the fee matches Notice 123 effective Oct 4, 2026). The manual adds “Package Intercept requests are active for 7 business days from the date of the request.” (DMM 507.5.1.1) “You can only request a Package Intercept online with a USPS.com account.”
Attempts that need the recipient
A notice changes things: Notice Left lines sit under “Delivery Attempt: Action Needed”, and the recipient has to schedule redelivery or pick it up. So does “Held at Post Office, At Customer Request”: “The item could not be delivered because of instructions provided by the customer.”
The overview's rename table also turns “Delivery Attempted; Recipient not at Home” into “Delivery Attempted; Recipient Not Home”, but neither line appears in USPS's April 2026 PTR2 or older PTR event lists, so USPS gives no description of it there.
Worked example
Tracking shows “No Access to Delivery Location” on Thursday, Nov 12, 2026. USPS's text says it will redeliver on the next delivery day with no action needed, and its example of no access is a “gated community where an access code is required”. If the same line repeats, ask the buyer how the carrier can get in. If you'd rather have it back, a retail sender can use Package Intercept to send it to you or hold it at a Post Office: $19.45 plus any postage, charged only if USPS intercepts it, and only while it isn't out for delivery.
Edge cases
- Address verification (event 70) needs the address to check out: “Your item will go out for delivery on the next business day if the address can be verified.”
- Weather and animal delays are filed under Alert, like no access: see Alert.
- Out for delivery with nothing after it for 18 hours is a different status: Awaiting Delivery Scan.
What to do as the seller
- No access, business closed, weather or an animal: USPS says it will go out again; tell the buyer that.
- Address verification: compare the label with the buyer's address. If it's wrong and the package isn't out for delivery, Package Intercept can bring it back or hold it at a Post Office.
- Repeated attempts with no delivery: To ask USPS about a tracking number, call 1-800-222-1811 (the number in DMM 503.1.8); the Customer Care Center is 1-800-ASK-USPS (1-800-275-8777), Monday to Friday 8 AM to 8:30 PM ET; Saturday 8 AM to 6 PM ET (USPS, Contact Us). Before you call: “The tracking information available to customer service representatives is the same information you will see on USPS Tracking.”
Questions
Does “Delivery Attempted” mean USPS will try again?
For no access, a closed business, weather, animals and operational delays, USPS's text says it will. If a notice was left, the recipient has to act.
What does “No Access to Delivery Location” mean?
“The item was attempted but not delivered because the employee could not access the delivery location (e.g., gated community where an access code is required).”
What does “Rescheduled to Next Delivery Day” mean?
USPS uses it for two cases: an operational issue (“The local post office has indicated that there is a delay impacting the delivery of the item.”) and an address check (“Your item will go out for delivery on the next business day if the address can be verified.”).
Can I redirect a package with a wrong address?
Often, with USPS Package Intercept: “Most domestic mailings with a tracking or extra services barcode are eligible for Package Intercept.” It costs $19.45 plus postage if the package is intercepted, nothing if it isn't, and it can't be used once the package is out for delivery or delivered. “USPS Package Intercept is not a guaranteed service and certain conditions apply.”
How we checked this
The status lines, the sentences under them and their meanings are quoted from the PTR2 Domestic Scan Events and Descriptions list USPS posted on PostalPro on Apr 27, 2026, which gives, for each tracking event, the line and sentence USPS.com shows, its status category and USPS's own description. Renames come from USPS's PTR Modernization overview; rules and deadlines from usps.com and the Domestic Mail Manual. USPS's tracking FAQ on faq.usps.com loads only with JavaScript, so it isn't quoted. We read every source on Oct 19, 2026 and say nothing about a status that USPS doesn't.
Sources
Each official page below was read on .
- USPS PostalPro: PTR2 Domestic Scan Events and Descriptions (April 2026)
- USPS PostalPro: Product Tracking & Reporting (PTR) Modernization overview, version 14
- USPS: USPS Package Intercept
- USPS Domestic Mail Manual 507: Mailer Services (undeliverable mail, returns, Hold For Pickup)
- USPS Domestic Mail Manual 503: Extra Services (USPS Tracking, insurance, Certificate of Mailing)
- USPS: Contact Us
- USPS PostalPro: PTR2 scan event list download page (posted Apr 27, 2026)
- USPS Notice 123 effective Oct 4, 2026: Package Intercept and Certificate of Mailing fees
Free 1-page Reseller Cheat Sheet: fees on 8 platforms, Media Mail and stamp prices
What each platform takes from a $10, $25 and $50 sale, Media Mail 1-10 lb, Ground Advantage to Zones 1, 5 and 8, and the Forever stamp, on one printable page. The link appears as soon as you sign up.