Shipping delay email
A delay email sent proactively is a service touchpoint; the same information given only after the customer asks is a complaint handler. Send it the moment the date slips, include a new date you actually believe, and give options for people who can't wait.
Subject: Your order [order number] is delayed — new delivery date [date]
Hi [first name], Your order [order number] ([short item description]) is running late, and I wanted you to hear it from us rather than from a tracking page. New expected delivery: [specific date or narrow range] Why: [one honest line, e.g. "the carrier is backlogged at the regional hub" / "the item was out of stock and restocks on [date]"] If that date doesn't work for you, you have options: - [Option 1, e.g. "switch to express shipping at no charge — reply 'express' and we'll upgrade it"] - [Option 2, e.g. "cancel for a full refund — reply 'cancel' and it's done same-day"] We'll email you again the moment it ships. Sorry for the wait. [your name]
Replace every [bracketed] placeholder before sending — the brackets are there so an unfilled field is impossible to miss.
How to use this template well
- Send this before the original delivery date passes. The same email arriving after a "where is my order?" message is worth half as much.
- Give a date with buffer built in and beat it, rather than an optimistic date you miss twice.
- Make the options one-word replies. "Reply 'cancel' and it's done" gets used; "contact us to discuss options" doesn't.
Related templates
Order status update emailA reply for "where is my order?" — current status, next milestone, and the tracking link.Damaged or defective item emailApologize once, ship the replacement, and don't make them work to prove it.Refund approval emailConfirm the amount, the card, and the arrival window — the three things they'll ask otherwise.
Your team's replies, one snippet away.
Repliqo turns templates like this one into shared snippets your whole team inserts in two keystrokes — with variables that fill in the customer's name automatically.