all arrived and despite the delay it was in good condition. The only odd thing is that there IS a label attached to the box addressed to the location in Newcastle. DHL said it never went there and it was a duplicate tracking number - perhaps they forgot to remove this... I just don't know what to think about all of this. Of course it great that it finally arrived but the awful support from the company has resulted in a lot of running around to get it delivered to the correct address.

28 days after the parcel was 'delivered' it finally was delivered to me at 10.02 on the 4th Feb. The official story is that it had a duplicate tracking number which meant it was undeliverable and was the reason why it was returned to Germany. This despite having a legible address. No one knows how or why this happened but it's been a lot of work from all sides to get this tracked down and solved. What do we do now?

Latest news:

Perhaps a new tracking number wouldn’t be a bad start. It must have some form of identification adhered to the parcel so they locate it within the 13 day DHL parcel

I sent this email to follow up, let's see if they have a new tracking number, and it's not a duplicate...

Perhaps a new tracking number wouldn’t be a bad start. It must have some form of identification adhered to the parcel so they locate it within the 13 day DHL parcel mountain

Latest reply from DHL Parcel UK:

Started the claim procedure so it's now sitting there under 'claims history'. I'll post a synopsis so you can advise on what edits might be required

does it make sense that I include a hard copy of the german post office receipt and the image showing that my parcel was signed for at his address under my tracking number? It would at least validate why I'm in touch with them

claim letter sent as an email with signed PDF attached. Now waiting for a response....

Thanks for the revision. The other odd thing is that the recorded delivery letter I sent to the alleged recipient has never been signed for - the tracking simply states 'we've got your item' although it was sent 1st class on Wed 22nd - it's now the 28th. So I can only conclude that it was refused

Here's a revised letter of claim to see if we can get some results:

No news from dhl after the email sent Friday morning. It’s getting on for nearly 3 weeks now since it was ‘delivered‘. If they know it’s in Cologne (as of Thursday 23 Jan) then why are there no updates...

Chasing email above sent to DHL to find out where the parcel is:

I don’t know what to think about this. The chances that a pre-printed label issued in Germany exactly match a tracking number issued in the UK are remote. And even if this was an issue and their systems suffered a meltdown and couldn't deliver it then why has the package been sitting in Dartford since the 8th January despite having my address fully visible? I will update here if there is any movement on the package - or if it makes an appearance.

The latest from DHL Parcel:

No response from DHL after the reply that security is taking a look at this. The letter has gone 1st class signed for. I haven't filed a police report, I need to do it with Northumbrian police - will this help matters?

I added the address and a few minor tweaks but otherwise sent as is, Dankeschön

Latest reply from DHL

Ok sent with a few minor adjustments

I've known this person for 35 years and they sent this cutlery that they inherited from their late step-mother as a reminder of when I lived in Germany. For the same reason she sends me marzipan and other products from time to time. I can't believe these people signed for the parcel in their own name and then pointedly denied ever having received it - despite the satellite photo of the delivery with a pin dropped directly above their house and the land registry title for the address matching their surname.

Email from DHL operations:

Ok I've got the title from the land registry with the correct name and the address I identified. The person who signed for the parcel is resident at that address Btw it's only £3

yes I did that, not much auction only stuff but I will check from time to time