If your wedding invitations arrive damaged or incomplete, pause assembly, keep the packaging, count each ordered component, and photograph the problem before contacting the seller. Compare the delivery with your order confirmation and approved proof. Give the seller specific quantities and your planned mailing date, then wait for instructions before returning, repairing, or discarding anything.
The cover is an AI-generated educational illustration, not a photograph of a LunaInvites product or shipment.
Check the delivery before starting an assembly night
A carton arriving at your door is a good moment to take a breath before inviting friends over to stuff envelopes. A short receiving check can prevent you from discovering missing envelopes halfway through assembly or mixing a damaged batch with cards that are ready to mail.
This guide concerns the bulk order delivered from your invitation seller to you. If you already mailed individual invitations to guests, use our guide to wedding invitations returned to sender for that different situation.
Clear a clean, dry work surface. Have your order confirmation, final approved proof, packing slip if supplied, and phone nearby. Keep drinks, adhesives, wax, and address labels away until the inspection is complete. If someone else accepts your delivery, ask them to save the carton and packing materials rather than immediately recycling them.
Step 1: Record the package as it arrived
Before unpacking, photograph visible dents, tears, moisture, or openings. Take an overall picture as well as a closer view; a close-up alone may not show where the damage sits on the box. Keep the tracking label readable in the original image you retain for private support correspondence.
Open the carton carefully without cutting into the contents. Photograph the arrangement of the contents and cushioning before moving everything around. An unboxing video can supplement photographs, but you do not need an elaborate production to explain a problem. Clear still images and an accurate count are often more useful than a long, dark video.
UPS's claims guidance tells recipients to retain damaged contents and packaging. Its photo guidance includes the item in its packaging, the shipping label, and the outside of the package. FedEx's claims guidance also calls for keeping original packaging while a claim is unresolved. Follow the instructions applicable to the carrier shown on your actual shipment.
Do not post an unredacted shipping label or your complete invitation publicly to ask for advice. Those images can expose your home address, event location, and private contact details. Send relevant evidence directly to the seller through its verified support channel.
Step 2: Count components, not just stacks
Separate invitation cards, envelopes, and any additional items you actually ordered. Count each category independently. A stack of 100 cards beside a shorter stack of envelopes does not tell you whether the order contains 100 complete sets.
Use the purchased model's inclusion list rather than styling props in its photographs. For example, the current Black Envelope Clear Acrylic Wedding Invitation with Gold Border lists one clear acrylic invitation card and one black envelope per set. Do not count an unlisted ribbon, flower, insert, or display accessory as a missing component.
Make small counted groups, then have a second person recount any apparent shortage. Check under packing material and inside nested envelopes without pulling them apart roughly. Also check the shipping confirmation for multiple parcels: an item in a separate tracked box is different from an item missing from a completed delivery.
A simple receiving worksheet
- Component: The exact item name from your order.
- Ordered: The number expected in this delivery.
- Received: The number physically present, including damaged pieces.
- Concern identified: The number with a specific issue.
- Ready to use: Received pieces minus those you have set aside for review.
Example: You ordered 100 cards and 100 envelopes. You receive 100 cards, with six bent corners, and 98 envelopes, with no visible damage. Report “six cards with bent corners and two envelopes missing.” Reporting “eight invitations missing” would combine two different problems and make the next step harder to clarify.
Keep the questionable pieces separate without writing on them. Use a note beside each group, or label its storage container, so that helpers do not accidentally assemble or mail it.
Step 3: Identify the issue before proposing a fix
A useful report describes what you can observe. You do not need to decide whether the carrier, printing process, or packing caused it. An intact outer box does not prove that every enclosed item is correct, and a dented box does not prove that the invitations are damaged.
- Physical damage: Note the affected location and count, such as creased envelope flaps, cracked panels, or torn card edges.
- Missing component: Compare the count with the purchased set contents and any split-shipment information.
- Wrong item: Identify the ordered model or envelope choice and what arrived instead.
- Printing differs from the approved proof: Save the final proof and show the particular difference beside a photograph of the printed piece.
- The printed wording matches a proof containing an error: This needs a correction discussion rather than being described as shipping damage. Our after-printing mistake guide explains how to assess the effect on guests.
For a surface mark, photograph it in ordinary light and from an angle that makes it visible. Do not scrub, polish, scrape, heat, or apply a solvent to demonstrate or repair it. If you think a mark is on removable protective film, ask for instructions for that particular product before peeling anything. Do not assume every acrylic design ships with the same protective layer.
If the concern is color rather than physical damage, describe it precisely and include an unfiltered image. A phone display or heavily edited photo is not a reliable color reference by itself. Ask the seller to assess the observed difference against the ordered design and production details.
Step 4: Send one organized support message
Put the order number and issue in the subject line. Include the delivery date, affected quantities, photographs, and the date you hoped to mail your invitations. A concrete mailing deadline is more useful than “urgent,” but it does not establish that a replacement can arrive by that date.
Here is an original example you can adapt. Replace every bracketed field with your own information:
Subject: Order [number] — delivery inspection: six damaged cards, two missing envelopes
Hello, my invitation order arrived on [date]. I ordered 100 cards and 100 envelopes. After recounting, I have 100 cards, including six with bent corners, and 98 envelopes. I attached an overall packaging photo, close-ups of the affected cards, and the shipping label. I have kept the carton, cushioning, and affected items. My planned mailing date is [date]. Please advise on the next steps and whether you need additional photographs or an inspection. Thank you.
For a printing mismatch, add a short line such as “The approved proof shows [detail], while the delivered cards show [different detail].” Keep the explanation factual and attach the correct final proof rather than an earlier draft.
LunaInvites' current refund policy, checked October 15, 2026, asks customers to inspect orders on receipt and contact the store immediately about damage, defects, or an incorrect item. The listed contact is info@lunainvites.com. The policy also lists personalized items among return exceptions and requires a return request before items are sent back. Contact the store for assessment; do not assume a particular refund, replacement, or return outcome.
Who should handle a carrier claim?
Start by telling the seller about the delivery issue and asking who will coordinate any carrier claim. The seller has order and shipping information that may be needed. Carrier procedures, eligible claimants, and deadlines vary with the shipment and account; a US destination alone does not determine all applicable terms.
Save the tracking number, order receipt, packaging, and correspondence together. If the seller asks you to take a carrier-related step, confirm what has already been submitted so you do not create duplicate claims. Do not treat opening a claim as approval of compensation or as a confirmed invitation replacement.
Protect the mailing plan while the issue is reviewed
Ask whether unaffected pieces can be used and which pieces need to remain available for inspection. Keep any assembly decision separate from the question of how the problem will be resolved. Mailing some invitations immediately may be practical, but first check that you have enough complete sets for that group and that you can track which households received them.
For a new LunaInvites order, the digital proof is the design-approval stage of a physical invitation purchase. Under the current shipping policy, US shipping is free and estimated total delivery is approximately 7–8 days after final design proof approval, including 2 days of production. This is an estimate, not a guarantee or a replacement-order commitment. Ask separately about the timing of any proposed remedy.
Once the receiving check is complete, follow our pre-mailing storage guide for protecting ready-to-use pieces. When comparing future designs in the acrylic invitation collection, save the selected model's inclusion list with your order confirmation. That small habit makes the next delivery much easier to check.
Your delivery-day checklist
Keep the packaging. Count every ordered component. Set aside items needing review. Compare the print with the final proof. Send a private, specific message with photographs and your mailing date. Then follow the seller's instructions before changing or returning the affected items. The goal is a clear record and an agreed next step, so you can move into assembly with confidence.