Guide for sellers

Fake COD orders: how to spot them and stop them

A fake COD order is a cash-on-delivery order from someone who never meant to take the parcel or pay for it. If you sell on cash on delivery, you will get them. This guide shows how fake COD orders look, which warning signs to check, and the simple routine that stops most of them before a parcel leaves your door.

What counts as a fake order

Not every bad order is a bad person, and the difference matters because the fix is different. Orders that never become a delivered parcel usually fall into one of these groups.

• Pranks and spite. Someone orders with another person's name and number, or just to waste your money.
• Sabotage. A rival or an angry buyer places many orders to drain your shipping budget.
• Mistakes. A wrong digit in the number, a wrong address, or an order placed by accident.
• Impulse. A real person who clicked on a whim and has already lost interest.
• Test orders. Someone trying your checkout to see what happens.

If you ship any of them, they cost you the same. You pay for handling, for shipping to the customer, and for the RTO charges when the parcel comes back.

Warning signs to check

No single sign proves an order is fake. Treat each one as a reason to look closer. Be more careful when you see two or three together.

• The phone number is invalid, has the wrong number of digits, or goes straight to voicemail or a busy tone.
• The name is random letters, a famous person, or clearly not a real name.
• The address has no landmark, no house or flat number, or does not match the pincode or city.
• The pincode is one your courier does not serve. Check pincode serviceability before you say yes.
• Several orders arrive in a short burst from the same number, the same address, or the same device.
• The same address shows up under different names, or the same name under different addresses.
• A new customer's first order is very large, or asks for many units of one item.
• The customer does not reply to any confirmation message, however simple.

Check before you ship

The best defence is to confirm the order with the customer before you pack it. A real buyer will answer a short message. A fake order usually will not, and that silence tells you what you need to know.

1. Send a confirmation message on WhatsApp. Say what was ordered and what they will pay at the door. Ask for a yes or a no.
2. Call if there is no answer. Try twice, at different times of the day.
3. Read the address back. A real customer will correct it. A fake one will not know it.
4. Set a deadline. If you confirm by hand, a day is a good deadline. If the order is not confirmed by then, cancel it. Do not ship on hope.

Add a little friction on purpose

A fake order is easy when placing it takes five seconds and costs nothing. A little friction makes it less attractive, and real buyers will hardly notice.

• Verify the phone number with a one-time code at checkout, if your store can do it.
• Limit how many orders one phone number or address can place in a day.
• For first-time buyers on expensive items, ask for a small advance or full prepayment.
• For numbers you have blocked, hide cash on delivery and offer prepaid only.

Keep a block list, and keep it carefully

When you confirm that an order was fake, write it down. Note the phone number, the address, the date and the reason. Check every new order against that list. It takes a few minutes a week, and it stops repeat offenders, who are common.

Why keep phone numbers at all? Because you cannot block a number you cannot recognise. But a phone number is personal data, and India's Digital Personal Data Protection Act (DPDP Act) applies. So keep only the number, the date and the reason. Use the list only to block fake orders. Do not share it. Delete each entry once you no longer need it, for example after a year, and delete it at once if you find you made a mistake. This is a sensible habit, not legal advice, so check the rules for your own business.

If a fake order has already shipped

Sometimes one gets through. Act fast, because every day on the road adds cost.

• Contact the courier and ask if the parcel can be held or sent back early.
• If the courier raises an NDR, reply straight away and ask for a reattempt only if the customer is real. Check your courier's NDR window, because it is usually 1–2 days.
• Try the customer once more, in case it was a mistake that can still be saved.
• When it comes back, check what is inside and record the result against the order.
• Add the number and address to your block list, with the reason.

If you are being attacked

A burst of orders from many numbers in a short time means someone may be targeting you. Pause cash on delivery for a few hours and take only prepaid orders. Do not ship anything from the burst until you have confirmed it order by order. Keep a record of the times and the numbers, in case you need it later. Switch cash on delivery back on when the pattern stops.

Do not punish the good customers

Every rule you add makes buying a little harder. Use the strict rules only where the risk is real, like a new buyer on a costly item. Keep the easy path for everyone else. Be polite when you ask for an advance. Say it is how you keep prices low and parcels arriving. Most real customers do not mind a short, clear reason.

Review once a week

Each week, list the orders that were cancelled or came back, and ask what they had in common. Was it one product, one pincode, one ad, or one time of day? If you see a pattern, add a check for it. After a few weeks your rules will fit your own business far better than any general advice, including this guide.

Taking the checking off your hands

Checking every order by hand is hard to keep up. NextLife does it for you. We message every customer on WhatsApp before a supplier ships, and we call them too if you turn calling on. An order that nobody confirms within 72 hours is cancelled, not shipped.

Here is how the money works, so nothing surprises you. You pay commission on orders that are delivered. You also pay shipping, and if a parcel comes back you pay the RTO charges as well. Each order where the customer answers a confirmation call costs ₹10. See how it works for sellers.

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