Notifications not coming through
Customer notifications not sending and history is empty? The cause is usually a disabled trigger, missing contact data, or empty SMS credits. Run these checks.
If Upper isn't sending customer notifications and the notification history is empty, the problem is almost always upstream of the send — a channel or trigger that isn't switched on, a stop with no email or phone number, or an empty SMS credit balance. Work through the checks below in order; the cause is usually one of the first three.
Why an empty history is the clue
An empty history is the giveaway. If Upper had attempted a send and the carrier rejected it, that attempt would still appear in the Analytics report with a failure reason. No history at all means no send was attempted — which points to configuration or missing data, not a deliverability problem.
If notifications are showing in history but customers aren't receiving them, that's a delivery problem, not a configuration one. See SMS charged but not received instead.
Run these checks in order
Confirm the channel and trigger are enabled
Open Settings > Notifications and check that:
- The channel you expect — email or text message (SMS) — is turned on.
- The trigger you expect is enabled. Upper has four built-in triggers: Out for Delivery, Notify Next Customer, After Delivery, and Missed Delivery. Each can be turned on independently.
- The trigger applies to the stop types you're using. A trigger set for delivery stops only won't fire on a stop marked as a pickup.
Check the contact data on the stops
Notifications only go to stops that have the contact field the channel needs:
- Email notifications need a customer email address on the stop.
- SMS notifications need a customer phone number on the stop.
Stops missing the required field are skipped — and because no send is attempted, they don't appear in the failure history. A stop import that didn't include an email or phone column is the most common reason for an empty history.
Check your SMS credit balance
SMS notifications run on prepaid credits. Open Marketplace > Notifications and Alerts and check your balance. If it's zero, no text will send. Top up under Add Balance, then re-dispatch. (This affects SMS only — email is not credit-based.)
Refresh and give it a few minutes
Notifications fire shortly after the trigger event, not always instantly. If you've just dispatched, refresh the dashboard and wait a few minutes before assuming nothing sent.
Confirm the history really is empty
Check all three places before escalating:
Analytics > Route Plan SMS Detailed Report— every text Upper attempted, with a delivery status and a failure reason where one applies.Analytics > Route Plan Email Detailed Report— the same for email.Contacts > [customer] > Notificationstab — the per-customer send history.
In either Analytics report, filter by a Failed status to separate "Upper never sent it" (empty history — a configuration problem) from "Upper sent it but it bounced" (a row with a failure reason — a deliverability problem).
Causes and fixes at a glance
| Cause | Fix |
|---|---|
| Channel not enabled | Turn on email or SMS in Settings > Notifications. |
| Trigger not enabled | Enable the specific trigger you expect (Out for Delivery, After Delivery, and so on). |
| Trigger doesn't cover the stop type | Edit the trigger so it applies to the stop types you're using. |
| Missing email or phone on the stop | Add the contact field to the stop and re-dispatch. |
| SMS credit balance is zero | Add balance in Marketplace > Notifications and Alerts. |
| Notification just configured, no route dispatched yet | Dispatch a route — notifications fire as the route runs. |
Common questions
Still not working?
If the channel and trigger are on, the stops have the right contact data, SMS credits are funded, and the history is still empty, contact us:
- Live chat — click the chat icon in the dashboard.
- Email — support@upperinc.com.
Include the route and a few stop IDs that should have notified. That speeds up the investigation.
Related
Email notifications marked as spam
If Upper's delivery notification emails land in customer spam folders, the usual cause is the shared default sender. Sending from your own server fixes most cases.
SMS charged but not received
Upper shows an SMS as sent and charged but the customer says no text arrived. The cause is usually a landline, a wrong number format, or carrier blocking. Here's how to check.