What happens if I click “Send a postcard” and get an address, but I don’t send the postcard to that address or I delay sending the postcard?
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Nothing “happens” but if you don’t send the postcard at all you’re going against the rules and the whole idea of postcrossing. I don’t want to believe that there are people who do that, but I know it might happen.
Delaying is just kind of a little bit rude to the recipient who is waiting for postcards but it’s not a super big deal if it’s a short delay. If we’re talking a few days, that’s no problem. A week or two, okay. Months and months is not ideal but sometimes there are circumstances like people falling ill or whatever other big problem in life. Waiting months without a reason is frowned upon but nothing really happens. I suppose if someone does that regularly with every single card, they could be reported to the admins.
P.S. I will move your question to a more appropriate section 
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Hello @anon69461019
Welcome to Postcrossing and to the forum.
When you draw address you agree that you send a card and that you do that as soon as possible.
The rules say clearly that you have to send cards to all addresses you draw.
From the Community Guidelines:
-Send your postcards.
Always send a postcard to each address you request from Postcrossing. There are no exceptions to this. The receiver is dependent on you to receive postcards back, so please send it as soon as possible.
I saw that you have 0 sent cards.
Did you draw already an address and is there a problem with it?
Maybe you will share this problem here with us?
Otherwise you should contact the support about this via the contact form
→ Contact us
Or has there been a private problem so that you can’t write the card immediately?
In that case you should inform the support too.
And I change your headline because it’s easier for other people who have the same question as you to find it.
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Why are you asking? There might be many reasons for not sending a card. Would you like to discuss one or two of them?
Apart from being unethical, the other consequence is that you won’t receive a card either, as your address only gets released to someone when a card that you have sent is registered by the recipient… so it’s not in anyone’s interest to try to “cheat” the system and not send cards out…
Sometimes, though, a short delay in sending can be justified. E.g. if someone is unwell, or you are keen to match someone’s interests and it takes some time to find a nice card, etc.
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If you do that a few times the software will recognize that your cards do not arrive and blocks you from drawing a new address until some of your to be sent cards are registered by the addressees.
And of course the unsent cards will block your slots for 60 days.
What do you expect to happen?
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The reason I ask this question is that I bought some postcards online and I am waiting for them to come back.Due to the arrangement of my school rest days , I may be a little late to send this postcards. I hope you don’t get the wrong idea. In addition, I sent a message to the mailing object yesterday, explaining the reason for the late postcard delivery.
As long as you send it, nothing, I guess. I’m usually delayed, for I like to draw special postcards for the profile and that takes time to have the idea, investigate, sketch and, finally, draw. However, sometimes life gets in the way and I see I’m going to be too late. Then I grab a regular postcar, the one I think it would fit better, and send it.
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Ah! Postcards abroad take weeks or even months to travel, so a few days delay don’t matter.
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by mailing object do you mean the receiver of your card? i wouldn’t do that as it spoils the surprise. if your cards are a week or less later that’s not a big problem.
also, i don’t know where your cards are going to but for most places it’s quite slow anyway to and from china.
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If you do ask to send the cards by Air Mail, they may take month, for they travel only by surface mail (Ship, Lorry, Train) then. But as far as I know, China Post asks more postage for Air Mail.
Send what you have there are no rules. Just send the card have fun. There is no postcard police don’t worry. Lol
yes. Because I was afraid that the recipient might be worried if I didn’t send it immediately after I got a new address (although I didn’t know if he or she was worried), I just told the recipient that I might send the postcard later, but didn’t tell him or her the specific time (because I didn’t know).
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Thank you for your help! 
The recipients don’t know that you’re sending them a card. So don’t worry, there’s no need to contact them.
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