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Yes, you can ship a parcel on someone else's behalf, but the label should carry your name as sender if you are handing it over, and you need that person's permission and accurate contents details before declaring anything. Carriers and customs hold the sender accountable for the box contents, so never send a parcel you have not checked, for someone you have not asked.
Put your name and return address as the sender if you are buying the label and dropping off the parcel. That is the person the carrier will contact if delivery fails, and the person a return will come back to. If the parcel is really from someone else, such as a gift from a relative, add a note inside saying who it is from, or put their name in the gift message. What you should not do is put their name as the sender while using your payment and your drop-off: if a problem arises, the carrier will chase a person who never touched the parcel.
For business sending, the rule is the same but stricter: the sender of record should be the person or business accountable for the contents. An employee shipping on an employer's behalf should use the business name and address, not a personal one, so returns, claims, and customs questions land with the business.
| Situation | Sender on label | Return address |
|---|---|---|
| Favour for a friend | Your name | Your address, unless they agree to receive returns |
| Gift from a relative | Your name, gift note inside | Your address |
| Employee for employer | Business name | Business address |
| Online seller order | Seller name | Seller's return address |
Get explicit permission from the person, and confirm three things: the exact recipient address, an honest description of the contents, and who pays if the parcel is returned or charged duty. For a cross-border parcel, you also need the contents value and country of origin, because you are signing a customs declaration on their behalf. If they will not tell you what is inside, do not ship it. A sealed box from a stranger is not a favour; it is a liability, and carriers can hold you responsible for prohibited items you declared without knowing.
Keep a written record: a message confirming the address, contents, and who pays is enough. If the parcel is lost or damaged, that record settles who files the claim and who receives any compensation. Without it, you become the middleman in a dispute between the carrier and a person who never dealt with the carrier directly.
Whoever pays for the label usually receives the tracking number, so agree up front who watches the parcel. The simplest setup: you pay, you track, and you forward updates to the other person. If they pay you back, settle that before shipping, not after delivery, because a delivered parcel leaves an awkward debt. For a gift, keep the tracking to yourself and tell the recipient only that something is on its way.
If the parcel needs a signature, warn the recipient, and make sure someone will be home. A missed signature means a depot trip, and if the recipient did not know a parcel was coming, they may not bother to collect it. For a Canadian parcel under 5 kg, a Canada Post Xpresspost label can be arranged through LetterAgent via your AI assistant: describe the parcel, approve the exact quoted price, pay once through Stripe, and print the PDF label.
A return comes back to the sender on the label, which is you, unless you agreed otherwise. Decide in advance what happens then: will you forward it, hold it for pickup, or return it to the person who asked you to ship it? For a refused parcel with duty owing, the sender can also be billed, which is why the "who pays" conversation matters before shipping, not when the bill arrives. A short agreement up front prevents the most common third-party shipping argument: everyone assuming someone else was responsible.
Ready to ship it? Get a shipping label with LetterAgent: describe it to your AI assistant, approve the exact quoted price, and get your label.
LetterAgent is a working name. Prices include print, postage, and our service fee. US prices in USD, Canadian prices in CAD (Canadian prices exclude applicable sales tax, added at checkout). Currently in private testing.
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