When a brand gets an order, they carefully process it, pack it, and send it to the customer through a delivery partner. But then the delivery person can't deliver it, maybe the customer isn't home, or something else.
This is exactly what happens to thousands of online businesses daily in India. According to a report, 60-65% of Indian online orders are cash on delivery, and return rates reach 30%.
Thus, managing this is extremely important. But how?
The answer is effective NDR Management. Non-Delivery Report (NDR) management is the solution that can transform your delivery operations, reduce costs, and improve customer satisfaction.
Now let’s dig a little deeper into NDR Management in E-commerce: How to Reduce RTO & Boost Delivery Rates.
What Is NDR in E-commerce Logistics?
NDR refers to Non-Delivery Report. It is a notification or report generated by courier partners when they cannot successfully deliver a package to the customer within the given time frame.
Typically, every courier partner tries to make three delivery attempts before converting the order as the RTO- Return to Origin.
So, in simple words, NDR is the way of telling the brands what's wrong and why they haven't delivered their order.
NDRs are created when delivery attempts fail due to various reasons:
- Customer unavailability at the delivery address
- Incorrect or incomplete addresses provided during checkout
- Customer refusal to accept the delivery
- Payment issues with Cash on Delivery orders
- Fake delivery attempts by delivery agents
- Out of delivery area situations
Why NDR Management Matters for Indian E-commerce
When an NDR is generated, it costs a lot to the brands, not in terms of money, but also their reputation. See why NDR Management is essential for any D2C Brand:
The Cost Impact of RTOs
Let us talk about some numbers that impact D2C brands when an RTO occurs:
- Every failed delivery costs you ₹300-400 extra.
- Return rates can reach 30% if not appropriately managed.
- When a package comes back to you (called RTO - Return to Origin), you pay for shipping twice: once to send it, once to get it back.
Have a look at an example.
If a brand sells a ₹1,000 product and it fails delivery, they might lose ₹400 alone because of both forward and return logistics costs, plus the sale.
The Customers Get Frustrated
Poor delivery experiences directly impact customer loyalty. When customers don't receive their orders on time or face multiple delivery failures, they lose trust in the brand. That is how an NDR that leads to RTO can impact your business's face value.
NDR can lead to Operational Inefficiency
Without proper NDR management, businesses struggle with:
- Your warehouse gets cluttered with returned products
- Your team spends time manually tracking and calling customers
- You lose track of which orders need attention
- Your inventory gets stuck in transit instead of being available for new sales.
You have seen that improper NDR management can lead to various costs to the brands. You might be thinking What are the reasons that brands face such issues, Let us move to that.
Key Challenges in NDR Management
Lack Of Real-Time Visibility
Many businesses receive NDR notifications in bulk reports at the end of each day, making it difficult to take immediate action. Due to the lack of real-time data, the brands could not get the opportunity to convert the failed deliveries into successful ones.
Do you know that Pragma helps D2C brands in overcoming this problem? Pragma provides Real-time NDR tracking across 300+ parameters. This can help you convert your failed deliveries at the time of occurrence.
Incorrect Or Outdated Customer Data
Incomplete or wrong addresses account for approximately 14% of total NDRs. In India's tier 2 and tier 3 cities, addresses are often unstructured, making it challenging for delivery agents to locate customers.
But Pragma helps risk assessment to identify problematic orders before dispatch.
COD-Related Delivery Refusals
Customer refusal accounts for approximately 37% of total NDRs, with COD orders showing significantly higher refusal rates than prepaid orders.
The COD orders are also the most common reason for RTOs in India. However, this can be solved with a system that helps convert COD orders into prepaid orders before they occur.
Manual Exception Handling Or No Standard Operating Procedure (SOP)
Many businesses lack standardised processes for handling NDRs, leading to:
- Inconsistent response times
- Missed opportunities for redelivery
- Poor communication with customers
Delivery Partner Inconsistencies
Sometimes delivery agents mark packages as "failed" without actually trying to deliver them with 2 or 3 delivery attempts.
However, with a system that consistently tracks and addresses fake delivery attempts, businesses can significantly reduce NDR occurrences and improve overall delivery experience.
Step-by-Step NDR Management Process
Step 1: Real-time NDR Detection
Instead of discovering failed deliveries at the end of the day, set up systems to know immediately when something goes wrong. For this, what you can do is:
- Set up automated systems like Pragma to receive NDR notifications immediately
- Integrate with courier partner APIs for instant updates
Step 2: Find Out Why It Failed
Understand the exact reason behind the generation of NDRs:
- Was the customer not home?
- Was the address wrong?
- Did they refuse the package?
And categorise NDRs based on resolution possibilities.
Step 3: Contact Your Customer Quickly
The next step is to contact your customers promptly at that time. Reach out to customers through multiple channels (SMS, WhatsApp, calls). Gather updated information (address, contact details, preferred delivery time)
For example, such a message can be sent through the systems:
Step 4: Fix the Problem
When you have identified the problem, try to fix it as soon as possible.
- Update the address if it was incorrect.
- Schedule delivery for a time when the customer is available
- Clarify any payment issues.
- Provide better directions to the delivery person.
Step 5: Try Delivery Again
Share the updated information with your courier partner and schedule a new delivery attempt.
Step 6: Keep Following Up
You should not give up after one attempt. Always try to communicate with the customers until the package is delivered or the customer confirms they don't want it.
By following the above, the brands can significantly improve their NDR management.
NDR vs RTO: What's the Difference?
Both NDR and RTO seem familiar, but they are different.
Let’s see how NDR (Non-Delivery Report) and RTO (Return to Origin) are different:
Best Practices for Effective NDR Management - How Can You Avoid Non-Delivery Reports?
Collecting Accurate Data Capture at Order Stage
Collecting correct and complete data at the time of order placement is the foundation of avoiding NDRs. Customers should be encouraged to provide full addresses, including landmarks and pin codes, and their mobile numbers should be validated with OTPs.
An efficient Warehouse Management System (WMS) can help reduce NDRs by keeping inventory and order data accurate. You can explore some real-world warehouse management system examples to understand more.
Pre-delivery Verification
Before dispatching an order, it is important to validate the address and check whether the delivery pin code is serviceable or not.
What you can do is:
- Implement order verification calls before dispatch.
- Use address validation tools during checkout.
- Send delivery confirmation messages with complete details.
Keep Strong Communication With Customers
This is one of the best practices in NDR Management. Keep connected with your customers to reduce delivery failures.
What you should do is:
- Keep them engaged with multiple channels of communication.
- Sending order confirmation messages, delivery reminders, and providing real-time tracking links.
- IVR calls for direct customer interaction
Choosing the Right Delivery Partners and Giving Them Training
You should always choose the right delivery partners based on different factors such as the type of products and the area of delivery.
What you should do is:
- Delivery agents should be trained to call customers before attempting delivery and to make multiple contact attempts if the first one fails.
- They should also have the flexibility to reschedule deliveries or leave parcels at alternate addresses when permitted.
- Also, proper communication between the delivery partners and customers must be allowed. This is one of the best ways to reduce NDRs.
Proactive NDR Handling
When an NDR is raised, it should be immediately shared with the seller along with the reason for non-delivery. Sellers and customers must then be given the chance to update contact details, reschedule delivery, or provide alternate instructions.
What you can do is:
- Provide multiple delivery time slots for customer convenience.
- Alternative delivery locations, like offices or nearby pickup points
Detecting Fraudulent Customers Before Deliveries
Brands can make use of detection tools that can alert them in advance about fraudulent orders. Pragma RTO Suite helps with automated NDR Management and screens customer info, which can flag impulse buyers, fake orders, and orders made by bots.
Quality Control and Monitoring
Brands must use a kind of automated tools that help:
- Track fake delivery attempts through customer feedback
- Monitor delivery partner performance across different regions
- Implement delivery verification through OTP or photos
Tools & Solutions for NDR Management for Indian D2C E-commerce Brands
- It provides real-time behavioural and risk analysis on 300+ parameters
- Helps to flag high-risk or fraudulent orders
- Pragma RTO Suite helps reduce losses by RTO up to 60% and NDR by 35%.
It is an NDR management system that automates follow-ups, reattempt scheduling, and customer communication.
It uses AI to:
- Verify Customer Address
- Detects Fraud Orders
- Also provides recommendations for choosing delivery partners
It offers NDR management with:
- Real-time visibility into undelivered orders
- Alternate delivery communication options (reschedule requests via SMS/WhatsApp)
- Customisable workflows
- Analytics dashboards
Real-World Impact: How NDR Management Reduces RTO (Return-To-Origin)
A fashion brand journey with Pragma shows how better handling of NDRs (failed deliveries) can directly cut down RTO (return-to-origin) losses.
By using Pragma's system,
- The brand saved over ₹9.5 crore in one year. The biggest win was a 27% drop in RTOs, as risky orders were checked in advance and COD was blocked for customers likely to reject parcels.
- NDR management also improved a lot; almost 16,000 failed deliveries (for every 100,000 orders made) were fixed and successfully delivered instead of being returned. At the same time, the brand saw a 4% increase in prepaid orders, which meant fewer cancellations and smoother payments.
- Customer communication got stronger with WhatsApp campaigns; these had a 73% open rate and almost no unsubscribes.
How Pragma Helps with NDR Management?
Pragma provides a comprehensive D2C operating System specifically designed for Indian D2C Ecommerce brands. Here is how Pragma helps:
1. Real-Time Order Verification
Pragma provides Real-time NDR tracking based on 300+ parameters. It checks customer details instantly. This ensures that the incomplete or risky orders are flagged before shipping, which reduces the chances of failed deliveries.
2. COD Risk Control
With AI-powered risk assessment, Pragma uses smart algorithms to identify high-risk COD (Cash on Delivery) orders. For such cases, it can disable COD or ask for prepaid payment, which cuts down NDRs caused by fake or refusals.
3. Automated Customer Communication
When an NDR happens (like a customer not being available or having the wrong address), with multi-channel customer communication, it immediately sends messages or WhatsApp alerts to the customer, asking for confirmation or updated details.
4. Faster NDR Resolution
Instead of waiting for manual follow-ups, Pragma, with the automated workflows for different NDR scenarios, automates the process by connecting sellers, customers, and courier partners in real time.
And do you know then what results Pragma provides:
- 36.7% reduction in RTO rates for clients
- ₹1.5 crores in annual savings for a leading FMCG brand
- 15% improvement in customer availability through pre-delivery notifications
- Helped resolve 15,999 NDRs on average for every 100,000 orders
So, are you ready to incorporate effective NDR Management into your business with Pragma, like some of the other top leading D2C Brands?
To Wrap It Up
NDR management is no longer optional for Indian D2C ecommerce brands; it's essential for their survival and growth. With high COD preferences, complex delivery challenges, and rising customer expectations, businesses that master NDR management will be in a profitable situation.
And Pragma is here for all D2C brands, to make management of NDRs simpler and accessible.
FAQs (Frequently Asked Questions On NDR Management in E-commerce: To Reduce RTO & Boost Delivery Rates)
1. What is NDR in e-commerce, and why does it matter?
An NDR (Non-Delivery Report) is triggered when a delivery attempt fails. If not handled effectively, many NDRs turn into RTOs (Return to Origin), which wipe out sales, add logistics costs, and stall inventory. Managing NDRs is key to converting failed attempts into successful deliveries
2. What are the common reasons behind NDRs?
- Incorrect or incomplete delivery addresses
- Customer unavailability or unreachable by phone
- Fake delivery attempts by the courier
- Orders placed to locations outside courier coverage
- Rescheduling requests by customers
3. How can managing NDRs reduce RTO rates?
Timely NDR management—using real-time identification, customer outreach, and self-serve tools—can cut RTO rates by up to 50%, as many orders get successfully delivered after quick intervention.
4. What are the best practices for handling NDRs?
- Get real-time alerts on failed deliveries
- Categorise NDRs by cause (address, availability, refusal) to tailor follow-up workflows
- Send automated follow-ups via WhatsApp/SMS/IVR, prompting customers to reschedule or correct details
- Enable self-serve options for customers to update delivery preferences or address
- Use AI analytics to identify high-risk zones, fake attempts, and courier performance trends
5. What results do brands report from smart NDR management?
- Improved delivery success and reduced RTO-related losses by up to 45%
- 20–35% boost in successful deliveries, improving customer satisfaction and margin
- Enhanced operational efficiency and reduced dependency on manual intervention
6. How much time do customers typically allow to fix an NDR?
Customers generally wait up to 36 hours following a failed delivery for the issue to be resolved. Timely automation of follow-ups within this window significantly preserves the delivery chance
7. Do brands in India use NDR management effectively?
Yes—for instance, Kapiva integrated ClickPost’s real-time NDR categorisation with WhatsApp and email automation. Their RTO rates dropped, customer complaints decreased, and delivery success improved dramatically
8. How does NDR lead to RTO?
After an NDR is raised, carriers typically attempt delivery 2–3 more times. If these attempts fail, the order is sent back to the seller as Return to Origin (RTO)
9. What are common causes of NDR in India?
Frequent reasons include:
- Incorrect or incomplete address
- Invalid or missing contact number
- Courier fake delivery (without attempt)
- Customer not available or refusing to accept delivery
10. Why is NDR management critical for e-commerce profitability?
Unchecked NDRs escalate into RTOs—causing double shipping costs, inventory lock-up, damaged goods, and unhappy customers. This can erode up to 25–40 % of profit margins
11. Is there a measurable impact from managing NDR effectively?
Brands that respond promptly—using automation and clear workflows—report up to 50 % reduction in RTO rates, with improved delivery success and customer trust
12. How do tech tools improve NDR management?
Modern NDR management solutions offer:
- Fast API updates from courier partners
- AI-based NDR classification by cause
- Auto-driven customer communication and carrier updates
- Analytics to identify fake deliveries or problem zones
Talk to our experts for a customised solution that can maximise your sales funnel
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