Quick answer
Record the agreed window, actual arrival and operational effect, then ask the supplier’s routing team for a workable arrangement. Make it clear who can accept deliveries and what happens when the shop cannot receive safely. Instructions need to reach relief drivers as well as your sales representative. An argument at the door rarely fixes the route.
Describe the problem with dates and times
Keep a short arrival record for the deliveries causing difficulty. Note whether the van was early, late or unannounced, which member of staff received it and what work had to stop. Avoid writing “always late” when you have only one recent example. Specific records make it easier to distinguish a one-off delay from an impossible schedule.
For a café, the impact might be the only cook leaving the kitchen during breakfast. For a small retailer, it may be a pallet arriving before trained staff and suitable equipment are available. Include those constraints when talking to the supplier. The issue is receiving safely and keeping the shop working, not punishing a driver for a route they may not control.
Agree the details that a replacement driver needs
Ask where the supplier stores delivery instructions and whether they appear on the route manifest. A note in your representative’s personal inbox may never reach transport. Confirm the correct address, receiving entrance, operating hours, contact number and any unloading restrictions.
Do not share alarm codes or general access credentials in an ordinary delivery note. If you operate an authorised unattended-drop arrangement, define access and storage responsibilities separately and review it with appropriate security and food-safety advice. A normal staffed delivery should not quietly turn into an unattended drop because the driver is early.
- The realistic arrival window and any fixed closure periods.
- Who must be contacted on arrival.
- Who is authorised to receive or reject goods.
- Where goods may be unloaded.
- How unexpected delays or route changes will be communicated.
Use a message that proposes a solution
Ask for confirmation of what the supplier can provide. If its only available route reaches you during service, explore a different delivery day, agreed alternate receiver or another suitable supplier. Do not agree to an arrangement that depends on staff being available when they are not paid or scheduled to work.
Our deliveries on [dates] arrived at [times], outside the agreed [window]. At those times we cannot provide a receiver because [specific constraint]. Can transport confirm whether [proposed window/day] is possible? Please put the agreed receiving instructions on the driver’s manifest and confirm the contact process if the route changes.
Decide in advance what staff should do at the door
Give the receiver authority to call the manager when the delivery cannot be handled safely. Follow the agreement and applicable law when deciding whether to refuse or reschedule; there is no universal rule that an early delivery can be rejected without consequence. Record any agreement reached on that day so the next shift does not unknowingly expect another delivery.
The Small Business Commissioner’s contract guide supports writing down the arrangement. Your operating note should translate it into simple actions, with a clear escalation contact. Review the next few arrivals with the supplier. If the pattern continues, assess alternative supply and contractual commitments before ending the relationship.
Further reading: Small Business Commissioner: contract guide
Use Unpickle delivery notes and checking history to preserve what happened, then discuss the receiving arrangement directly with the supplier. Keep an arrival and exception record.