I've had them leave the note without even trying to deliver. USPS too. I was waiting for a new toy the other day, knew it was out for delivery, and heard the truck pull up outside my apartment. I threw on my shoes and grabbed my keys, ready to run down the second I heard the door buzzer. A second passed. Then another 100. Then I heard the mail truck door slide shut and it driving away.
I ran downstairs and found the "sorry, we tried to deliver and you weren't home" note stuck to the door. He never even attempted ringing the buzzer.
I REALLY wanted my new toy so I ran upstairs, grabbed my wallet and jacket, and ran out to my car. I drove through the development, and didn't see him. So I drove down the road and found him delivering mail in the next neighborhood.
The part that irked me was when I called him on his behavior and asked why he didn't ring the bell (politely), he ignored me. Like a little kid. When I pushed a little further, he said "it didn't fit in the box, so we leave a note..."
He then started pawing through a stack of letters looking for my "package" he had tried to deliver. Of course I asked, since he'd tried to put it in the box and it didn't fit, why he didn't remember it being a large bright orange package, and not a letter.
He again lied and said it wouldn't fit in the box for packages, went to the back of the truck and found it. I asked him his name, and then explained I was headed home to stick it in my box. If it didn't fit, have a nice day. If it did, I'd take pictures and be sharing them with his dispatch supervisor.
To shorten the story, it did fit, I did call, and his supervisor and I had a great conversation. Oddly he seemed to know the driver by name the second I brought up the issue, before being given the name or my address. So I was assured he violated policy (they are REQUIRED to attempt the delivery, which includes ringing the bell), and that he'd be written up for it. I also assume, by the driver's notoriety, that he'd been in this sort of trouble before. So how meaningful that writeup is could be anyone's guess.
Long story short - maybe you didn't even miss the driver. Sometimes they just walk up, leave the note, and never even attempt the delivery. Every UPS guy I've known hates residential deliveries. Especially when they've got a mostly commercial route.
